Page 63 of One More Chance

“You’re not an abusive husband. I’ve known you most of my life, Lucas. That’s not you. We just have to figure out what triggered the episodes and make sure they don’t happen again.”

His breath comes out in a hard, defeated sigh. “I need a shower and I need to patch up the cut on your face.”

We both climb off the bed, and he directs me to the bathroom. I sit on the toilet seat, and he examines my cheek. Guilt stares back at me from his pain-filled eyes.

I cup his face with one hand. “It’s going to be okay, Lucas. We’ll figure it out.”

He’s been under a tremendous amount of stress because of the drug charges and the approaching trial. The cop showing up at the worksite yesterday, after someone claimed they saw him selling drugs, didn’t help his situation any.

Most people would crumble under the strain he’s been forced to endure.

He cleans the small cut, which has stopped bleeding. Then without a word, he climbs into the bathtub. He’s hurting, and it’s killing me to see him like this. I just want to take his pain away.

I slide the curtain to the side and join him.

His hand leans on the tiles, his head hangs forward. Water sluices over his head and down his back. I can’t tell if he realizes I’ve climbed into the tub with him.

I pour some body wash into my cupped hand and tenderly lather up his back and arms. His muscles are rigid under my touch, the tension in them practically vibrating.

With each stroke, the knots in his muscles begin to loosen. Lucas turns to face me, gratitude in his eyes.

And then we’re kissing.

The kisses are tender. Sweet. Love and desire and hope soak each stroke of the tongue, each brush of the lips.

He pulls me closer. My arms go around his neck. His hardening length presses against my stomach, but he makes no move to take things further.

The tension in his body shifts, his muscles no longer as tight as they were. We keep kissing, in no rush to leave the shower. The only place I want to be is here, helping him get through whatever he’s dealing with. In this moment.

Our kissing changes direction, interspersed with lathering each other’s bodies. Our touches linger and caress. But that’s as far as we take it. Sex isn’t what Lucas needs to chase away his demons, to heal his past hurts.

The water gradually switches from hot to lukewarm. Not one for cold showers, I step out of the bathtub and dry myself. Lucas remains standing under the water as I return to my room to retrieve clothes.

I quickly change. Jasper’s awake. I can hear his little barks alerting me that he’s ready to get out of his crate.

As I enter the hallway, Lucas walks out of the bathroom, naked except for the green towel wrapped around his waist.

I smile at him while my gaze takes in the few remaining water droplets sliding down his body. Lucky droplets. “I’ll take Jasper into the backyard. We won’t be long.”

The mountain air is chilly as the puppy and I head outside, but the sky is cloudless, hinting at another beautiful day.

Lucas is in the kitchen, making breakfast, when we return. “I might as well get an early start at the worksite,” he says.

“Will you be okay?”

He doesn’t look okay. Dark circles I hadn’t noticed before now form crescents under his eyes.

“I’m fine.”

A concerned frown wrinkles my brow. “Did you get much sleep last night?”

“I got enough.”

I remove my supplies for my morning smoothie from the fridge. “I should probably sleep in the guest room until we figure out what’s causing your flashbacks and nightmares.”

He nods, but I sense he’s refortifying the wall around him brick by thick brick. It’s stronger this time. Impenetrable. But it somehow…somehow it pokes holes in my wall. Makes me bleed for what he’s going through.

I want to take away his pain, but I don’t know how. “Is there someone you can talk to at the Veterans Center about what’s going on?”

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