Page 142 of Scars of Fate

“You fit right back in.”

The words struck deeper than he intended.

Back then, the Brave had been my family too.

Holiday dinners.

Backyard cookouts.

Hospital waiting rooms.

Long nights when none of us knew whether everyone was coming home.

When Lucas and I divorced, I didn’t lose only my husband.

I lost all of them.

“I missed this,” I whispered.

Lucas’s expression changed.

“We missed you.”

“You never called.”

“We thought you wanted distance.”

“I did.”

That wasn’t the complete truth.

“I didn’t know how to see all of you without seeing him.”

Lucas absorbed the blow without looking away.

“I understand.”

“I don’t think I did. Not until now.”

The helicopter landed.

Rotors whipped my hair around my face.

Lucas caught one loose strand and tucked it behind my ear.

His fingers lingered against my cheek.

“You’re seeing me now.”

“Yes. I am.”

For one suspended heartbeat, neither of us moved.

Then Adam shouted over the engines.

“Get aboard!”

Lucas offered me his hand.