Page 79 of Trusting a Warrior

“Geo? You okay?” Lani’s innocent question caused the woman to suck in a sharp breath.

“Geo? Oh, my God. George? Is that you?”

Steeling himself, his heart beating so hard he felt sick, Geo turned around. The woman clapped a hand to her mouth.

“It is you,” she breathed. “Geo...”

He was surprised by the strength of her hug, the genuine pleasure she seemed to find in seeing him.

You should hate me. Why don’t you hate me?

While he stood there mutely, wrestling with his agonized thoughts, the woman turned to Lani and held out her hand. “I’m Renae Barlow,” she said. “Geo’s an old friend. It’s so lovely to meet you.”

Lani smiled and introduced herself, but her eyes asked Geo the one question he dreaded answering: Barlow?

The wave of pain coursing through him almost knocked him down.

Renae Barlow. Cade’s wife.

Chapter Sixteen

“I didn’t know what to say to her.”

Lani wanted to shout her relief at Geo’s muttered words. He’d been silent all through paying for their groceries, the drive home and lugging them upstairs. Resisting the urge to press him to talk, she’d clamped her tongue firmly between her teeth and waited him out.

Now she was careful to keep her voice neutral. “You haven’t seen her in a while?”

“Not since Dover.” He stopped in the middle of unloading one of the bags, his knuckles clenched white around a can of stewed tomatoes. “I’m the one who escorted him home.”

“Oh, Geo. That must have been so incredibly difficult,” she said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

Having to escort the body of his friend all the way from Afghanistan to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware would’ve been a solitary, emotional task in and of itself. Then to be confronted with Cade’s horror-stricken and grieving wife...

“I’m going for a run.” Abruptly handing her the can of tomatoes, Geo disappeared in the direction of the bathroom, and Lani stared after him, wrestling with indecision.

She knew the run would calm and exhaust him. By the time he got back, he’d be locked down tight as a drum again. Frustration burned its way through her. He’d finally cracked open the door, so now all she needed to do was find a way in.

But how?

A sudden lightbulb went off in her head, and she shoved the rest of the perishables into the fridge before dashing to the bedroom to exchange her sandals for sneakers.

When Geo emerged, dressed in his running gear, she was waiting for him, bottle of water in hand.

He stared at her. “What’s this?”

“Going with you. A run sounds good.”

Eyeing her floral sundress, hoodie and tiny cross-body purse, he said skeptically, “You’re going running like that? The woman who hates exercise?”

She winked. “First time for everything, right? Actually, I’ll walk and carry the water.”

To her satisfaction, he didn’t argue, just went into his warm-up stretches on the porch while she locked the door.

“There’s a cute little business district to the north of here,” she said. “I walk over that way sometimes when I can’t sleep. Nice quiet streets, no traffic. That’s where I’ll be, okay?” As she passed him on the stairs, she reached out and squeezed his arm. “Have a nice run.”

She set out at a brisk pace, and when he finally caught up, he muttered, “You lied to me. I think you’re a secret exerciser.”

“Ha, no.” She crinkled her nose at him. “I like to walk, and my job means I’m always on my feet and moving, so—”