Unconditional

by Holly Copella

  “Do you remember what today is?”

  Harlan sank deep into thought and carefully considered the question. He struggled for a response then finally looked at her and grinned as his eyes lit up.

  “Bath day?”

  Indy gently cleared her throat, held back her laugh, and offered a tiny smile. He didn’t remember! She could feel her entire body sag with relief.

  “It's Christmas,” she replied.

  Harlan suddenly grinned in response. “I kissed Nala under the mistletoe last night,” he boldly announced. “Don't tell the commander.”

  “I won't,” she replied warmly then smiled. “Merry Christmas, Harlan.”

  Indy leaned forward and kissed Harlan affectionately on the cheek. She pulled back and met his gaze, staring almost helplessly into his eyes. He stared back at her with a familiar fondness then gently touched her arm with his fingers and returned the smile.

  “Merry Christmas, Indy.”

  Indy’s heart suddenly pounded to her name escaping his lips. She stared at him with surprise. It was a mixture of enthusiasm and fear that he possibly remembered what they’d done.

  “You remembered my name,” she gasped then smiled while fighting her tears of joy. His recovery was more important than whether or not he remembered making love to her. “That's probably the best Christmas present I've ever gotten.”

  Harlan suddenly grinned and indicated his cast. “I wrote it down last night.”

  Indy took his fingers in her hand and looked at the writing he’d scribbled on his cast. Although, she didn’t remember him doing that, it read, ‘Indy--pretty bath girl’. She appeared humored and held his fingers while staring into his eyes. It was now time to be direct with him about what he actually remembered from last night. She needed to be certain what he did and didn’t remember.

  “Do you remember the party last night?”

  “Was it someone's birthday?”

  “Jesus' birthday,” she offered then tilted her head. “Do you remember what movie we watched after the party?”

  “The Grinch?”

  Indy’s heart raced as she stared at him. She attempted to keep from reacting. “Oh, you remember watching that?”

  Harlan casually indicated the DVD box on the nightstand. “Lucky guess.”

  Indy saw the movie box and hid her smile. She was once again relieved. Thankfully, no one would ever have to know what happened. It would be her secret…forever, if necessary.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Later Christmas morning, Jackson was slumped over his coffee at the kitchen island counter. He looked like hell after a night of overindulgence of more than just eggnog. Indy entered the kitchen through the archway with a freshly washed and dressed Harlan clinging to her arm. Indy immediately noticed Jackson and his mood. It was a familiar sight from many a Christmas past. For her father’s men, Christmas morning was a day of recovery. At least some things never changed. Harlan was surprisingly alert and cheerful, despite his excessive Christmas cheer from last night. Thankfully, he hadn’t gotten sick on the potent, milky drink. Indy helped Harlan onto the kitchen chair alongside Jackson. Jackson eyed Harlan, noted his cheerful disposition, and chuckled. It was possible Jackson was jealous that his friend felt better than he did that morning.

  “You're in a good mood, Harlan,” Jackson announced then grinned slyly and raised his brows in suggestion. “Did you enjoy your bath?”

  “Yes, thank you,” Harlan replied a little too quickly.

  Indy smacked Jackson’s shoulder as she passed behind him on her way to the main counter. She prepared a cup of tea for both her and Harlan.

  “Wish my Christmas morning started off on that note,” Jackson playfully pouted while barely containing his lustful grin. “What did you kids do last night?”

  Indy tensed with her back to Jackson and tried to brush the sexual images from her mind.

  “We watched a movie,” she casually replied.

  “We slept together,” Harlan informed him.

  Jackson nearly choked on his coffee and whipped his head in Harlan’s direction. Indy turned toward the island counter with a shocked look. Had she heard him correctly? Jackson looked from Harlan to Indy and then back to Harlan.

  “You slept together?”

  Harlan casually indicated some writing on his cast. “Yes, I wrote it here.”

  Jackson looked at Harlan's cast where he indicated. It read, ‘slept with Indy’. There was a series of numbers written on the cast as well. Jackson gave Indy a stunned look and appeared unable to blink.

  “You slept with Harlan?”

  Indy felt her body tense as her heart raced, but she managed to keep a straight face. “Slept…as in I fell asleep in his bed.”

  Harlan looked at his cast and appeared bewildered. It was obvious he was giving the entire conversation a little too much consideration.

  Jackson exhaled, held back his grin, and laughed softly. “You had me concerned a minute there.”

  Indy placed Harlan's tea on the counter before him. Jackson eyed the numbers written on Harlan’s cast.

  “What's with the numbers?”

  “I'm not sure,” Harlan replied while studying them, struggling to remember.

  “They're detonation codes,” Indy replied casually and leaned on the counter across from them.

  Harlan and Jackson looked at Indy with shared surprise to her assessment. She stared back at them then laughed at their priceless expressions.

  “He may be a genius, but he's a predictable one,” she replied and straightened.

  Harlan looked at Jackson and grinned with boyish delight. “She called me a genius,” he announced then slyly raised his brows. “She loves me.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Jackson muttered. “You're one lucky bastard, Harlan.”

  Harlan’s look turned serious. “Are you the commander?”

  “Me? No, I'm Jackson.”

  “Do I know you?”

  “Yeah, of course,” Jackson replied. “We're comrades, and we’ve been friends for years.”

  Harlan removed his pen and wrote something on his cast. Jackson strained to see what he was writing. It simply read, ‘Jackson; pretty boy; friends.’ Jackson chuckled and looked at Indy across from them.

  “He thinks I'm a pretty boy.” Jackson again eyed the cast and read another phrase. “Wil-E-Coyote; super genius; poison,” he said aloud then gave Harlan a strange look. “Okay--?”

  Harlan’s look was serious as he stared at Jackson. “The coyote is evil.”

  Jackson and Indy exchanged looks and knowing smiles. His fascination with old-time cartoons was somewhat endearing.

  †

  Within an hour, Flynn, Nate, and Jackson were already carrying boxes containing Liz’s clothes and personal belongings down the stairs and into her awaiting car. Kale arrived a few minutes later to join the precession of movers. He brought the hearse so they wouldn’t have to return for a second trip. Kale was unusually quiet from the time he arrived and didn’t speak to anyone, including Indy. Indy felt uncomfortable around Kale and Liz. She knew she was partly to blame for her father’s breakup and was almost certain Liz and Kale blamed her just a little too. Since there were already enough movers, Indy remained silently out of the way toward the back of the foyer near the back hallway. It pained her to see the saddened looks on the faces of Liz and her father as they carried boxes down the stairs and outside, but she wasn’t sad enough to trade Harlan.

  “Did something happen?” Harlan spoke from behind her.

  Indy jumped with surprise and turned to see Harlan standing behind her while watching the men with boxes. She eyed him suspiciously and wondered how he had managed to sneak up on her so quietly with a cast on his leg. She attempted to relax and insecurely folded her arms across her chest, rubbing her shoulders subconsciously.

  “The commander’s girlfriend is moving out,” Indy gently informed him.

  Harlan watched in silence a moment then glanced at his cast. He looked back int
o the foyer beyond Indy. “The bald man?”

  “Yes, he’s the commander,” Indy replied.

  “Is that his girlfriend?” he asked while casually indicating Liz, who glanced at them before heading out the door with the last of her personal belongings.

  “Yes, that’s Liz.”

  “She doesn’t like me,” Harlan announced.

  “I’m sure that’s not true,” Indy replied without looking at him. She didn’t want him to look into her eyes and possibly notice she was lying to him.

  “Then why did she look at me that way?” Harlan asked. “You saw the way she looked at me.”

  Indy turned to face him and offered a pleasant smile. “I think that look may have been directed at me,” she replied. “Let’s just forget about Liz and move on.”

  Harlan stared into Indy’s eyes. She stared back and felt a dull ache sweep through her body. Last night was still fresh in her mind, yet Harlan had no idea they’d made love. She could almost feel his hands traveling her naked body. The phantom sensation was almost enough to send her body into spasms of ecstasy. Indy pushed her feelings aside and attempted to keep a level head.

  “Would you like to help me prepare Christmas dinner?” she asked almost timidly.

  Harlan’s smile brightened. “It’s Christmas?”

  She felt the tears welling up in her eyes. Indy wished he’d retain some small memories throughout the day and give her some hope for his recovery. She managed a smile.

  “Yes, it’s Christmas Day,” she replied gently. “You kissed me under the mistletoe last night.”

  His eyes suddenly lit up. “I did?”

  Indy nodded. His boyish delight was endearing. Harlan then looked up and spotted the mistletoe above them. He grinned and pointed to it.

  “Do I get a do over?”

  She contained her humor to his innocent way of asking then took a step closer to him and gently touched his face. Indy placed her lips to his, hesitated a moment, and then kissed him warmly but quickly on the lips. She pulled away before he could return the kiss or make an attempt to place his arms around her. That small kiss was all she could handle at the moment, and even that was enough to send a tingling sensation throughout her body. Harlan maintained his grin and gently brushed his fingers along her cheek. Indy knew she had to put some distance between them before her body reacted in an unacceptable manner. She took his fingers and guided him toward the kitchen. Harlan reached back with his free hand when she wasn’t looking and snatched the mistletoe from the archway. He happily followed her into the kitchen.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Present wrappings and bows lie scattered around the family room floor not far from the large Evergreen tree lavishly decorated in gold and pink. Indy, Harlan, Flynn, Jackson, and Nate sat in their respective chairs near the Christmas tree with their newly unwrapped treasures and traditional gag gifts. Flynn and Jackson were dressed festively with Santa hats firmly planted on their heads. Nate had a candy cane sticking out of his mouth and occasionally bobbed it around as if were a cigar. Flynn’s study was the only room in the house where smoking cigars was permitted. It had been Nala’s rule from the day they bought the house, and the rule would remain in effect until Flynn’s dying day. Indy was grateful for her father’s respect toward her mother’s wishes even after her death. Of course, Indy wasn’t exactly fond of cigar smoke either, so that may have had something to do with it.

  “Well,” Flynn announced with a humored smile, “this has been a very interesting Christmas.”

  “Reminds me of that Christmas we'd spent in Iraq,” Nate remarked.

  All three men chuckled. Harlan stared at them with confusion. It was obvious he was desperate to be let in on the joke. Flynn noted his friend’s bewildered stare and obliged.

  “We hung mistletoe from our assault rifles,” Flynn informed Harlan.

  Harlan continued to stare at them as if not fully understanding the humor but found his own way of feeling included in the conversation.

  “I kissed Nala under the mistletoe,” Harlan announced.

  Flynn frowned in response. “Yeah, I heard. Don't tell the commander,” her father remarked then looked at Jackson, who sat across from him. “When he's back to himself, remind me to hit him.”

  Jackson gave Flynn a thumbs up. Nate suddenly chuckled and rotated the candy cane in his mouth, pinching it between his teeth on the side.

  “Remember that Christmas when Harlan wrapped the bomb in holiday paper and a big red bow?” Nate remarked, barely containing his humor.

  There was another round of laughter. Harlan continued to stare at the men then drifted out a moment.

  “18-6-24-3-10-15,” Harlan suddenly announced.

  All four fell silent and stared at Harlan. Their expressions were equally stunned.

  “Was that the detonation code?” Jackson suddenly asked with surprise.

  Harlan’s eyes became fixated on the arm of the chair. He was off in another world. “It won't detonate,” Harlan announced. “I need to manually detonate it.”

  Harlan's thumb subconsciously pressed into the arm of the chair. Everyone stared at him in silence before sadness overtook them. It was obviously a chilling reminder of the incident that nearly claimed his life. Indy quickly jumped up from her position on the sofa and approached Harlan. She held his fingers in her hand and sat on the arm of the chair alongside him. He suddenly snapped out of his trance, looked up at her, and smiled.

  “Is it bath time?”

  Nate and Jackson hid their smirks while chuckling softly. Flynn just glared his annoyance at Harlan. Indy was certain her father was showing an enormous amount of restraint where his friend was concerned.

  “I dug out some old photo albums,” Indy informed Harlan, swiftly changing the subject. “I thought you and I could look at them tonight over hot chocolate and cookies.”

  Harlan grinned boyishly and caressed her hand with his fingers. “Okay.”

  Indy looked at her father and raised her brows. “Don't worry about us, Dad,” she announced. “I know what you boys want to do tonight.”

  All three men exchanged looks and grinned at the silent suggestion. Flynn then appeared apprehensive while studying his daughter.

  “Are you sure you don't want us to stay with you and Harlan?” Flynn asked then smiled timidly. “It is Christmas Day.”

  “Don't worry,” she remarked. “Margo, Kale, and Roman are coming over for dinner. We don't need a bunch of hard ass soldiers ruining our good time.”

  Flynn suddenly grinned and chuckled. “You really are the son I'd always wanted,” he announced then looked at Nate and Jackson. “We bug out in ten. Move it out, men!”

  All three sprang to their feet with a little too much enthusiasm. Harlan attempted to stand but was limited by the cast on his leg and struggled to get out of the plush chair.

  Indy held him back with a hand to his shoulder and a firm stare. “Sorry, soldier. You're sitting this one out.”

  “We're going to kick ass!” Nate said excitedly.

  All three hurried from the room.

  Harlan appeared concerned as he watched the men jogging from the safety of the family room. He looked at Indy with a strange expression on his face.

  “What if they need me?” he suddenly asked.

  “I don't think they'll need anything blown up at the paintball field.”

  †

  Only ten minutes had passed before Flynn, Jackson, and Nate hurried down the staircase and into the foyer with their duffel bags firmly in hand. All three grinned like schoolboys. Indy approached them from the family room and admired their enthusiasm. She often wondered if they were that overzealous in the field where it really mattered. She’d never seen her father or his team in real combat before--not even pretend combat at the paintball field. She was sure they were magnificent. Flynn awaited her approach and placed his arm firmly around her shoulder.

  “Are you sure you don't mind?” her father asked with sincerity in his eyes.


  “Mind?” she scoffed. “You're doing me a favor by getting out of my hair.” She smiled warmly. “Go, have fun. Pulverize the other teams.”

  “We always do,” Jackson replied while raising his brows suggestively. He then hesitated and his smile faded slightly. “Though it won't be as climactic without Harlan.”

  “Yeah, it's not nearly as much fun if no one pisses their pants from his surprise assaults,” Nate remarked.

  “I'm sure he'll be back to scaring the piss out of college kids on holiday break soon enough,” Indy informed them. “He’s not even aware what he’s missing. Don’t worry about him. We’re going to have the sort of fun he can have within his limitations.”

  Flynn smiled and kissed Indy on the forehead. “If you have any trouble--”

  “We’ll be fine,” she interrupted. “Just go.”

  It didn’t take much encouragement to send the three men running from the house.

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Margo, Kale, and Roman had joined Indy and Harlan for dinner and an evening of hanging out together. It was already a little after eight o’clock that night. Indy and her friends drank and had a good time recounting Christmas’ past. Harlan sat in his overstuffed chair with his leg elevated and attentively paged through the photo album on his lap. He stopped on one of the pages and stared at it with a strange look on his face. Something had caught his attention, alerting the others. Roman appeared curious and approached.

  “What did you find?” Roman asked and looked over his shoulder at the album.

  Harlan pointed to a woman standing alongside him in the photo. It was Maureen. “Who's that?” he almost demanded as if something had clicked in his mind.

  Roman suddenly tensed to the question, cast a quick glance at Indy, and then looked back at Harlan. “That's Maureen.”

  All eyes were now on Harlan as they stared in silence and awaited a response, since he’d clearly recognized her. Harlan suddenly threw the album across the floor, startling everyone. He appeared hostile while deep in thought. Indy became concerned and slowly stood. He didn’t remember his wife, and he certainly didn’t know she’d filed for divorce, so his sudden agitation was surprising and almost unfounded.