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Here we go.
“Candace,” he began, but she cut him off again with a flick of her hand.
“Don’t worry about it, Teague. It’s not like we were ever a thing. We weren’t even close to a thing.”
Teague remained silent, staring down at the remnants of his whiskey.
“Who is she?” Candace asked. “Anyone I know?”
He started to shake his head and then swore, because hell, he was worked up and he had no right to be.
“No one.”
“Bullshit. Who is it?” Her eyes narrowed a bit as she took another sip and watched him intently. “It’s Sabrina, right?”
He didn’t reply. He gripped the edge of the bar and blew out a long breath.
“Huh,” Candace said softly. “That surprises me.”
He shot her a look. “Why’s that?” Instantly on the defense, he pushed away from the bar and faced her, head on. He was ready to argue. Hell, he was looking for a fight.
“Hey, don’t get your knickers in a knot.”
“My what?” he barked.
Candace put her hand on his forearm. “I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just, well, I never took you for the kind of guy to get mixed up in anything that has the potential to get messy or complicated. Didn’t think that was part of your DNA. I gotta tell you, getting involved with a woman with two kids is going to get complicated.”
“No shit,” he muttered.
“So, Sabrina,” she murmured, stirring her drink. “She’s a nice girl. I hope you know what you’re doing.”
He glared at her, hating the fact that she was making a whole lot of sense.
“Tell me something,” Candace said, finishing her drink. “Why are you here drinking alone? Why aren’t you with Sabrina?”
He took a moment and wondered how much he should share, and then thought, screw it.
“She made it pretty clear this afternoon that she wanted a time out and I don’t blame her. I just…” He swore and ran his hands along the stubble on his chin.
“You just?”
“I wasn’t ready for it to end.” There it was. The admission that had been banging around inside his head all evening. “And that’s wrong. So fucking wrong.”
“Why’s that?” Candace asked.
“Because I’m leaving next week.”
“Oh,” Candace said softly. “Heading back to the states?”
“No,” he said roughly. “Overseas.”
The band kicked into their final set of the evening and for a few minutes, his thoughts were drowned out by the music and the crowd. He glanced around, a scowl on his face as his gaze moved over the room. These folks had no idea of the shit that existed beyond their borders. He should be envious of that, but in truth he was just tired of it all.
/> So it was ironic that after he’d returned Richard’s call a few hours ago, it had taken Bowen less than a minute to convince him to travel back to Syria.
Syria. The one place on this planet that might break him for good or the one place that might be his redemption. His gut tightened at the thought.
“I should go,” he said, straightening and reaching into his pocket for his cell. He noticed that his brother Jack had called again, but it was too late to return the phone call so he ignored it.
