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She didn’t totally believe that. It took several seconds for her to tear her gaze away and remove her fingers, which he’d trapped with his.
Everyone remained seated in the courtroom while the judge issued instructions on the restraining order. Elizabeth watched J.R.’s face once the case was closed. He gave a solemn nod to Ariana and the look in his eyes was one of relief, not the kind of vengeful parting look Adam had drilled Elizabeth with upon agreeing to their settlement. She shivered at the memory.
Even though she hadn’t seen him since that day, triggers occasionally still popped up. More things had triggered her in the weeks since John moved into The Oasis than the previous year or two combined. If that didn’t abate once he moved on, she’d make an appointment with her counselor.
The courtroom cleared out. Their party waited for J.R. and his attorney to disappear into the elevator before exchanging a few victory high-fives.
“Thank you. Thank you so much.” Ariana gave hugs, then thanked John’s team.
Elizabeth was aware that Special Ops teams’ members typically stayed together longer than in regular Army units. The camaraderie amongst the men was obvious. As was their respect for John, who was all seriousness today. Leaving his team for the new training position in Florida was going to be a huge change, especially for someone who considered his team his family. He didn’t have a lot of other family and clearly longed for it.
“Are you all free for a celebratory lunch?” she asked.
“Thanks, but we need to get back to work,” John answered for the group. “I’ll see you tonight for some celebratory lasagna or enchiladas.” He winked.
“You got it,” Ariana said quickly.
“And I’m sending in cookies for everyone with John tomorrow,” Elizabeth added.
“Great. Tomorrow is Rodriguez’s day to lead PT. We already call it groan day. He’ll be even tougher to make us work off those cookies,” John grumbled good-naturedly.
“I’ve got a decade on most of you, and if you can’t keep up with me, I get your cookies.” The soldier with kind eyes and a mustache rallied the troops toward the elevators.
John spoke to his team but made eye contact with Elizabeth before the doors closed. Somehow, his departure felt premature, like there was something still unfinished between them.
* * *
John’s truckrumbled past two hours later than usual that evening. Elizabeth carried the containers of cookies she’d baked to Hope Harbor, praying she wouldn’t lose her nerve.
At the familiar sound of Boss and John’s nightly reunion, it hit her how much she was going to miss them when they moved out. He’d given up a lot for the military and hadn’t complained once about putting his life on hold to help them here at The Oasis. He deserved to have a full life—more than she could give him—but there was one thing she could do.
John caught her discreetly watching them play.
“Your cookies, as promised,” she greeted him.
“You didn’t have to, but I won’t say no. Promise you won’t snitch to First Sergeant Rodriguez that I’m sneaking some tonight?” He opened the top and helped himself to a cookie. “Mmm. These are awesome. Do you ship overseas to soldiers on deployment?”
“I’ll be happy to send you care packages the next time you deploy. And, after all you’ve done, I’ll go to the wedding with you—as friends.”
“What?” He coughed out, choking on the cookie.
“If you still need a date, that is. If you already found someone, that’s—that’s great,” she stammered. Of course, he had no reason to tell her if he’d found someone to go after she had turned him down.
“No.” He coughed again, clearing his throat. “I was going alone.”
“Well, if it’s not too late. I don’t want to complicate things last minute.” She gave him an out in case he’d changed his mind about dodging the beauty queen.
“Absolutely not. I’ll let Nate know tonight. I was going to give him an update on Ariana’s case anyway.”
His happy smile gave her butterflies, despite the fact they weren’t going as a real couple.
“Will you be able to come to the rehearsal dinner Friday night?” he asked, pausing between words.
She hadn’t even thought about that. “Where’s the wedding and rehearsal?”
“Outside of Charlotte.”
About three hours away. Her insides clenched at the thought of what that meant in the way of an overnight stay. “I don’t have time to reschedule my clients on short notice. How about I meet you at the wedding on Saturday?”
