Stitched Up Heart (Combat Hearts Book 1)

by Tarina Deaton

Bree smiled back. “Morning.”

  “What brought that on?”

  “You said get creative if I woke up before you.”

  “I did, didn’t I?”

  Bree just raised and lowered her eyebrows.

  “I like how you get creative.” He lowered his head and kissed her deeply. “Shower?”

  “I need to get to work.”

  “We should conserve water. Shower together.”

  Bree laughed and pushed at Jase’s shoulders. “That’s not going to get me to work on time.”

  Jase collapsed onto his back. Bree raised up on an elbow and ran a hand across his chest. “Me first.” She gave him a quick kiss. She rolled away him.

  “I’ll let your dogs out and fix coffee while you shower.”

  “Thank you.”

  Bree made her way to the kitchen dressed in her standard uniform of black yoga pants and long sleeve shirt under a scrub shirt. Jase wrapped something in a paper towel and set it next to a to-go cup of coffee.

  “What’s that?”

  “Egg and cheese on an english muffin,” he said.

  “Wow. Breakfast to go?”

  He kissed the side of her neck. “I figured you worked up an appetite this morning.”

  She grinned and picked up a sandwich. “That I did. What are your plans for today?” She took one of the cups he held out to her.

  “I need to run some errands for the trip this weekend and restock some supplies. What about you? What time do you get done with work?”

  “My last appointment is at three, so I should be able to leave around four-thirty.”

  “Your place or mine tonight?”

  “Mine. Denise is bringing that mama dog over before she goes to dinner with her cousin.”

  “I can keep Charlie and Polly again, if you need me to,” he told her.

  Bree raised her eyebrows slightly. “You don’t mind? Did Charlie get in your way on Friday?”

  Jase leaned down and gave her a brief kiss on her lips, but didn’t pull away when he told her, “I wouldn’t offer if I minded.” He straightened before continuing. “It was actually nice having him with me for the day. I might have to talk to you about adopting my own.”

  She smiled big. “Really?”

  “Really,” he answered with a smile of his own.

  Bree stepped closer and raised up on her tiptoes and gave him a hard kiss. Taking control of the kiss, Jase pulled her closer, his tongue delving between Bree’s lips to tangle with hers. Desire coiled low in her belly before spreading out, up through her chest and arms and down her legs. She felt languid and energized at the same time — relaxed, but tingly.

  Before Bree could drop her coffee to the floor and have her way with Jase right there in his kitchen, he pulled away slightly with deep inhale. “You need to go before I make you call in sick and drag you back upstairs.”

  “Yeah,” she whispered. “Probably a good idea.”

  “Dragging you upstairs or you going to work?”

  With a quick peck, Bree pulled out of his arms. “Going to work.”

  One calloused finger tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  Bree grabbed a sandwich off the counter. She glanced over her shoulder as she opened the kitchen door and smiled at Jase. “See you later.”

  That smile stayed with her the rest of the day. It was infectious, and she passed it on to everyone. The only person who seemed not to respond was her assistant, Cindy.

  Bree took advantage of a lull between patients. “Cindy, I’m going to grab a coffee. Do you want to go?”

  Cindy looked up from the computer on her desk. “No thank you, Dr. Marks. I need to input all these patient notes into the system.”

  Bree leaned against the door jamb to the shared office. Cindy was the only assistant in there at the moment, the three other medical assistants busy checking in patients.

  “Is everything okay?” Bree asked. “You seem kind of down today.”

  Cindy looked down at the keyboard and shrugged. “It was just a long weekend.”

  “Is there anything I can help with?”

  Cindy rubbed her cheek against her shoulder and glanced at Bree. “No,” she said quietly. “There’s nothing wrong. I just didn’t sleep well this weekend. A lot of stuff going through my mind.”

  “Well, I’m here if you need to talk to someone.”

  Cindy just nodded and started typing again. Bree stood away from the door jamb to leave.

  “Dr. Marks?”

  “Yes?

  “I’m really glad things seem to have worked out for you,” Cindy said.

  Bree cocked her head slightly, trying to judge the look and quiet tone. That was an odd thing to say. Cindy was normally quiet, but this was more. She seemed upset about something.

  “Are you sure there isn’t something you want to talk about? If not with me, someone else?”

  Cindy shook her head. “No. Thank you for being concerned, though.” She returned to her work, dismissing Bree.

  Bree stared another moment before heading out. A fellow physical therapist was walking out ahead of her in the same direction. “Hey, Janet. Where’re you headed?”

  Janet paused, letting Bree catch up with her. “Caffeine. I need a top off.”

  “I’m headed that way myself.”

  “You seem to be in a really good mood today.” Janet pushed the button at the elevator bank and a door opened immediately. “Did you get you a little somthin’-somthin’?” She did a sexy shoulder shrug.

  They stepped into the elevator, and Bree tried to stop the grin from spreading across her face.

  “Yeah you did!” Janet bumped Bree with her shoulder. “Spill the details. Did you and Chad have wild, make-up monkey sex?”

  “Oh hell no! Chad is gone. G-O-N-E.”

  “So you got a new guy?”

  Bree felt warmth spread across the top of her cheeks. “I might have.” Leaving the elevator one floor down, they continued to the coffee stand.

  “Who is he? Where did you meet him? How did you hook someone new so soon?” They joined the end of the line.” I’ve been single for months without even a nibble. And let me tell you, I need to be nibbled.”

  Bree let out a bark of laughter. A young sergeant in line ahead of them turned and Janet winked at him. “Stop.” Bree slapped Janet’s arm. They placed their orders, and Bree gave Janet an abbreviated version of her weekend with Jase while they waited for their coffee.

  “No wonder you’ve been all smiles today,” Janet said.

  She grinned. “It’s like I have no control over my face.”

  Janet sipped her coffee. They stepped to the side to allow a patient in a wheelchair to pass. “There are worse problems to have.”

  Cindy’s response came to mind. “Have you noticed anything going on with Cindy?”

  “That girl is kind of weird,” Janet said.

  “No she’s not, she’s just quiet.”

  “Those are the ones you have to worry about.”

  She pushed the up button to call the elevator. “She’s sweet.”

  “I’m not saying she’s not sweet. I don’t have anything against her personally. She’s just a little odd.”

  “Okay, I’ll give you that. I think she’s been very sheltered.”

  “That’s one way to put it.” They joined three other people in the elevator cab, the button for their floor already lit.

  “Be nice. She seems a little down today.”

  “Okay. Yes, I have noticed she’s more withdrawn today than usual. She’s perfectly polite to the patients, but that’s about all the effort she’s putting into it.”

  “Do you think I should be worried? I asked her if everything was okay and she just said she had some stuff going on.”

  They exited the elevator on their floor. “Everyone has off days.”

  “True. I’ll give her a couple of days and see how she is then.” She glanced at her watch. “I need to hurry; my next app
ointment should be here soon.”

  “Mine too. I’ll catch up with you again later.” Janet waved as they went their separate ways.

  She dropped her bag on the bench in the mudroom and hung her keys on the hook by the door. The house was quiet. Too quiet.

  Panic coursed through her and she froze. Shit. Where were Charlie and Polly? With Jase.

  Relief flooded her, replacing the panic, and she smiled for the thousandth time that day. She kicked off her shoes and padded through the house to her bedroom. Changing into shorts and a t-shirt, she threw her scrubs into the laundry hamper. Going to the foyer, she hesitated briefly before unlocking the front door so Jase wouldn’t have to knock, no matter which door he came through. In the living room, she put together another kennel for the foster dog arriving later. Tuning her satellite radio to a hard rock station, she danced around her kitchen as she prepared dinner.

  She called out when she heard the front door open and close. “I’m in the kitchen.”

  The smile on her face died quickly when Chad came around the corner from the foyer.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Her heart began to pound as her anger spread through her. “What part of it’s over do you not understand?”

  “Brianna, I need you to listen for a minute,” Chad started as he stood on the other side of the eat-at counter.

  “Listen to what, exactly? How you didn’t mean to cheat on me? How none of the women you cheated with meant anything to you? What do you think you can say to make any of this better?” She circled her hand in the air.

  “It’s not like you’ve been celibate, Brianna.” He pointed toward the front door. “You sure didn’t have any problem moving some guy in as soon as you kicked me out.”

  Bree sucked in a breath, astonished at Chad’s gall. “Are you kidding me?” Her voice was low and controlled. “At least I had the decency to break things off before I found someone else. I wasn’t fucking around the whole time we were together. I wasn’t more interested in your money than you.”

  “Of course you weren’t. You didn’t have to be more interested in my money because you’ve always had money.”

  Blood rushed in her ears and her vision narrowed, sharpening on the threat before her. Muscle memory had her shifting her grip on the knife she held, turning it so she held it in a reverse grip, edge out. She needed to keep her anger in check.

  “That’s always been the issue, hasn’t it?” she asked. “You changed when you found out I had money. Got more attentive. Started pushing things. It was what? A couple of months after that you asked me to marry you?”

  “If you’d just agreed to set a date, none of this would have happened.” Chad jabbed his finger at her.

  “Yes, it would have. If you think I would’ve actually married you, you’re delusional. I’d decided to break it off before I even caught you.”

  “Damn it, Brianna! You ruined everything!”

  “What the fuck did I ruin, exactly?”

  “I owe a lot of people a lot of money. You have no idea what you’ve done,” he continued to shout.

  “Not my problem. Maybe you shouldn’t have been a stupid shit and gambled all that money.”

  “Fuck you, Bree.” Spittle flew from his mouth as he lost any facade of calm or cajoling.

  She watched a drop of spit hit the counter. Well, that’s disgusting. Note to self: sanitize counter.

  “It’s so fucking easy for you. You stupid fucking rich bitch.”

  And that was her limit. “Get. The fuck. Out.”

  “I need money.” His words seethed through his clenched teeth and he gripped the back of the stool. “If you had just set a date and married me, none of this would have happened.” He wasn’t even looking at her any more.

  “Are you kidding me? You think having access to my money would have made everything better? It would have just made it worse.” She shook her head. “I’m done. Leave now or I’m calling the cops.”

  “You’re so fucking selfish!” He shook the stool. “It’s not like you use the fucking money! You give it all away to your stupid fucking dogs and your stupid crippled soldiers!”

  She sucked in a breath and gripped the knife harder.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Jase stormed in behind Chad. Charlie and Polly followed close behind, growling low in their throats. The anger on Jase’s face was palpable. It was fascinating to watch him advance across the room.

  Chad pointed at Jase. “It’s none of your fucking business.”

  Bree’s eyes widened as Jase connected a right hook to Chad’s jaw and knocked him to the ground. “The fuck it’s not.”

  He grabbed Chad by the scruff of his collared shirt with one hand as he used the other to bend one of Chad’s arms behind his back. Charlie barked and ran around them both as Jase shuffled him toward the front door.

  “You have two minutes to get in your car and leave before I call the cops and have you arrested,” Jase yelled.

  Tension flowed out of Bree when the door slammed. The grip she had on the knife loosened, and it rested on the cutting board as she released it.

  Jase stalked back into the kitchen and around the bar. He didn’t stop and Bree backed up into the door of the pantry. Jase braced his hands on either side of her head and leaned close. He closed his eyes and took a breath.

  Was he counting to ten? Anger etched on his face, visible in the careful way he controlled his movements. Chad had been in a rage. It hadn’t scared her, but she’d taken a defensive posture at the possible threat he posed.

  He opened his eyes, his gaze intense. “Care to tell me what the fuck he was doing here?” His voice was measured, the tension in each carefully-voiced word palpable. His hazel eyes were shot through with gold.

  “Screaming about how I ruined his life because I wouldn’t marry him,” she said.

  “Why did you let him in?” The strain in his voice was still leaking through.

  Bree wondered what would happen if he didn’t hold himself in check. Why wasn’t she afraid? He’d backed her into another wall — her defenses should be on high alert, especially with everything that had happened a few minutes ago, but she felt no fear that he would hurt her. “I didn’t let him in; he walked in.”

  The small muscle under his right eye twitched. He stared, searching her face before closing his eyes and dropping his head. He straightened up and away from her and placed his hands on his hips as he took a step back.

  “How did he walk right in?” His eyes remained closed, his head still down.

  “It wasn’t locked. I’m assuming he turned the knob like anyone else would do.”

  “Why the fuck was the door unlocked, Bree?”

  She pushed away from the wall. Enough was enough. She was tired of men yelling at her and expecting her to take it. “Because I was expecting you to walk in the door and I left it unlocked as a courtesy. Won’t fucking happen again. In fact, I’ll be sure to lock it behind you after you leave,” she shouted.

  “I’ll knock on the damn door if I need you to let me in. You don’t leave the fucking thing open,” Jase shouted back. He ignored her not-so-subtle suggestion to leave.

  She took a step toward him. “I was trying to be nice!”

  “I don’t want you to be nice; I want you to be safe!”

  “I think I proved I can take care of myself quite effectively when I punched you in the balls.”

  “What is going on in here?” Denise asked as she came around the corner.

  “Maybe you can talk some sense into her,” Jase said, throwing his hands up in the air. He walked over to the back door and let the dogs out.

  “What is he talking about?” Denise asked.

  Bree grunted and opened the refrigerator to get a beer. She twisted off the top and threw the cap in sink. She took a long pull from the bottle. “Chad decided to stop by for a visit.”

  “What did that shithead want?”

  “To scream at me about ruining his life.”

  Deni
se’s lip curled up. “What a douche-canoe.”

  “Pretty much.”

  “That’s it?” Jase asked.

  Denise looked at Jase over her shoulder. “What do you mean that’s it?”

  “That’s all you’re going to say to her? She left her door wide open. Anyone could have walked in.”

  Denise looked back at Bree. “Lock your doors.”

  Bree saluted her with the beer. “Yes, ma’am.”

  Denise looked at Jase again. “Okay? Okay. Now, on to more important things. I brought the mama dog over.”

  Bree clapped her hands and jumped up and down. “Squee! Where is she?”

  Denise smiled, shaking her head “She’s in the hall bath. I didn’t want to bring her in with all the shouting going on.” Denise stared at Jase.

  Bree got a hot dog out of the refrigerator and skipped around the counter. She cracked the bath door open and peeked in. The small tan-and-white dog cowered in the corner. Kneeling down, Bree broke off a piece of hot dog and held it out to the trembling dog. The dog stretched her nose forward, sniffing at the piece of meat. Softly, she took it from Bree’s fingers. Scooting back a few inches, Bree held out another piece, coaxing the dog out of the corner.

  “Hey there, sweet girl. That’s not so bad, is it?” Bit by hotdog bit, she brought the dog out of the bathroom and led her over to the kennel she had set up earlier and closed the door.

  She walked back into the kitchen. “Poor thing.”

  “She should be fine after she settles down.” She took a sip of her water. “She got agitated if there were a lot of other dogs around, but she seemed fine with one or two.”

  Bree tore off a sheet of foil and wrapped it over the top of the large pan. “I’ll keep her in the kennel tonight and tomorrow to give her a chance to get used to Charlie and Polly.”

  “That’ll work.”

  “Dinner with Sarah tonight?” Bree placed the baking pan into the oven and set the timer.

  “Yeah.”

  “How’s the treatment going?”

  Denise inhaled deeply before answering. “Not good.”

  Bree walked around the counter and hugged Denise. “You want to bring the kids over this weekend?”

  “Let’s see how Sarah’s feeling.” Denise gave her a small squeeze. “Maybe we can meet at the kennel and let them run around with the dogs.”