Page 29 of A Soldier's Return

Melissa had decided on a strategy of avoidance. Though it was tough, she tried to pretend their kiss had never happened, that they hadn’t spent a glorious five minutes with their mouths tangled together and his arms tightly around her.

It was one of the toughest things she’d ever had to do. Every time she passed him in the hall or shared an exam room with him while he spoke with a patient, she had to actively struggle to keep from staring at his mouth and remembering the heat and magic of their embrace.

The only saving grace was the clinic’s caseload. They were both busy with patients all day and didn’t have time for small talk. She almost made it through her shift without being alone with him, until she waved goodbye to Carmen and Tiffany and headed out to the parking lot at the end of the day, only to find Eli walking out just ahead of her. She almost turned around to go back inside but couldn’t think on her feet quickly enough to come up with an excuse.

She found her urge to flee annoying and demeaning. So they’d shared a kiss. That didn’t mean she had to be uncomfortable around him for the rest of his time here in Cannon Beach.

She put on a cheerful smile. She could do this. “Do you have big plans for the weekend?” she asked, then instantly regretted the question. She didnotwant him thinking she was hinting that they should get together or something.

He shook his head. “Dad is hoping he’ll be ready to come home soon, so I’ll probably be busy making sure the house is ready for him. What about you?”

“Not really. Skye and I are running into Portland tonight to take Carol’s things to her. The hotel has already packed them all up for her.”

“That’s very nice of you.”

“It’s the least I can do.”

Jim had been airlifted to the hospital in Portland and Carol had flown with him, unwilling to leave his side even long enough to come back to Cannon Beach for their suitcases.

“What’s the latest? Have you heard? When I talked to Carol earlier, she told me he was likely going to need a quadruple bypass.”

“Then you know as much as I do. The surgery won’t be until tomorrow, from what I understand. I feel good about his chances, but it’s too early to say if he’s out of the woods.”

“At least hehasa chance. He wouldn’t have, if not for you.”

“And you,” Eli said.

It was a shared bond between them, one she never would have expected when she awoke that morning.

He smiled a little, more with his eyes than his mouth. Melissa fought a shiver. She also wouldn’t have expected that kiss.

Whyhad he kissed her? And would it happen again?

She cleared her throat. “I’d better go. Skye will be waiting for me at the babysitter’s.”

“Right. Pizza night. Tell her I meant my invitation of the other day. The two of you are welcome to come to my dad’s house so she can shoot some pool. Nobody else is using it. Who knows, maybe she can turn into a pool shark and start fleecing all the tourists over at A Slice of Heaven.”

“You’re a bad influence on my child,” she said, shaking her head. And onher, she wanted to add, giving her all kinds of ideas she didn’t need complicating her world right now.

She had a weekend away from him to regain her perspective, and the sooner she started the better chance she would have of putting that kiss out of her head.

She gave him a wave and had started to climb into her SUV when another vehicle pulled into the parking lot—a flashy red convertible carrying two people, a blond male and a darker-haired, more petite female.

She paused, ready to explain that the clinic was closed. The convertible pulled up next to her. When the driver pulled off his sunglasses and climbed out with athletic grace, Melissa let out an involuntary gasp.

“Cody! What...what are you doing here?”

Her ex-husband beamed his trademark smile that had appeared on surfing magazine covers for more than a decade. “I told you I was working on coming back to Oregon. And here I am.”

“I didn’t realize you meant you were coming back immediately.”

“I wanted to surprise you, Missy.”

“I’m surprised, all right.” She couldn’t have been more surprised if he’d come back to town with tattoos covering his face like a Maori warrior. “Are you...moving back to Cannon Beach?”

“No. We’re just here hanging out with my buddy Ace. You remember him, don’t you?”

“Oh, yes.” Ace had been a jerk in high school and now had a string of used car lots along the coast. From what she heard, he wasstilla jerk.

---