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Lia waved a hand. “You’re right. Sorry. I’ll get the lemon sorbet.” She rested her head in her hand on the counter. “I guess I am feeling a little guilty about choosing to spend Christmas in Napa. I thought maybe a nice surprise dessert for my mom might ease the sting a little.”
She sighed. She suspected she was being played, but she wanted Ally to have a nice surprise, too. Might help when Jessica showed up and crashed their dinner.
“Don’t worry, Lia. Leave this to me. I won’t let you down.” At least not with the desserts. She suspected Lia might feel let down if she knew Jessica was spending almost every available minute with her brother.
Jess’s phone chimed with a text message and she quickly read it.
Mitch:I can’t stop thinking about you and that kiss.Looking forward to seeing you. Your place at six?
They’d decided on her place that evening so he could bring his laptop to show her pictures from his world travels. He led such an exciting life, and she wanted to get to know him better, on that level. Understand better the life that was so important to him. So much a part of who he was.
But now they also needed to talk. It was in her best interest to find out if what Lia had claimed was true. Was she just wasting her time and emotions on a man who would never be ready to settle down?
His kiss had held a promise of so much more…but that could also lead to so much more heartache if Lia was right.
Either way, she needed to know where they stood before they took things any further.
Jess:Meet you at my place at six.
…
Getting out of the shower, Mitch wrapped a towel around his waist and wiped the steam from the mirror. He hummed a Christmas tune as he applied shave gel to his face. He hadn’t even thought he’d be breaking out the razor on that trip home. In such a short time, Jessica had him feeling more relaxed than he’d felt in a long time. She was a breath of fresh air in the small town where he usually felt claustrophobic.
And she’d agreed to go to his family’s early Christmas with him. Of course, she was nervous about his family seeing them together. He was, too. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d brought a woman home. It had to have been in high school. Hopefully, it wouldn’t give anyone the wrong impression. Give Jessica the wrong impression.
He wasn’t sure what was going on between them yet, but he did know he liked her a lot. More than he’d liked anyone in a long time. She said she was clear about keeping things casual…but he wasn’t sure.
Hell, he wasn’t sure his own emotions were so casual anymore. After all, he was risking his sister’s wrath by taking her to Christmas. He couldn’t understand why Lia would have a problem with him dating Jessica. Sure, they were friends, but they weren’t best friends or anything, and it wasn’t like they were all teenagers anymore. He was almost forty years old. He could date who he wanted to date.
He slid the razor across his cheek and down his neck, then checked the time on his cell phone. Just another hour until he got to see her. Not texting her that day while she worked took so much effort, but she was busy and he was already dominating so much of her time.
Though she didn’t seem to mind.
Her request to see his videos and photos from his tours overseas hadn’t completely surprised him. A lot of people liked to see his footage from his travels. Normally, he liked to share them. He hoped maybe watching some of those good memories on screen that evening would help remind him that most missions went well, they were a success…that life over in those countries wasn’t always bad.
His phone chimed with a new text and his heart soared, reaching for it, but his excitement faded seeing his colleague Maria’s number lighting up the display. They’d been in Cambodia together. They’d experienced this last mission trip as a team and his anxiety rose slightly just seeing her name on the display screen. Being in the trenches together bonded people.
The two of them had gotten close over the years. They shared things with each other, confided in each other, and had gotten physical from time to time. It had been casual at best, an intimacy formed out of convenience and a mutual respect and trust, but there were no real feelings there for either of them. And after the devastation they’d faced just weeks before, they’d both needed time to process. They hadn’t spoken since they’d boarded the flight home from Cambodia.
Over the last week, he’d started to heal, but immediately, the tightness in his chest returned.
Maria:Have you received your next assignment yet?
Mitch:Not yet. Have you?
He held his breath as he waited. Over the years, he typically traveled with the same group of doctors, nurses, and volunteers. This had been the third mission with Maria on his team. If she’d gotten hers, his was coming soon.
Unfortunately, the need and desire to leave again for another mission wasn’t so desperate anymore. He was definitely going to go, but the days didn’t feel like torture, the way he’d assumed they would, and he wished he could stay a little longer. At least until New Year’s.
Maria:It just came in. Cambodia again. Fly out Dec 25th.
That’s the trip he assumed he’d be on as well, but he now wished they’d assign him somewhere different, with different people. A new team who didn’t know what happened…
He sighed as he finished shaving. There was nothing he could do about it right now, so he’d wait until he received his own notification before stressing too much about next steps.
He brushed his hair and his teeth, then dressed in the jeans Jessica seemed to like and a black sweater he’d bought earlier that day, then he sat on the edge of the bed and put on his shoes.
His laptop open on the desk sounded with a new email, and he knew exactly what it was. Standing, he went to the computer but hesitated before opening the message from the Doctors Without Borders office in L.A.
