Read Online A Soldier for Keeps by Jillian Hart - Free Book Online Page B

their disapproval, but it had happened before.
    No, he had a harder time accepting what was truly eating at him. Not only did he want to see Lexie, heneeded to see her. He longed to see her sweet smile and her lovely face and the peace he’d felt with her. He missed her company and companionship and the gentle way she made him smile.
    A headache began to throb, and he rubbed at his forehead with the heel of his hand. You aren’t looking for anything serious, buddy. That was his number-one rule. Why did it feel as if he were in real jeopardy of breaking it? He wasn’t looking for disaster. And while Lexie was a friend now, he could look down the path and see how his feelings could deepen for her. That was something he couldn’t risk. He could only get hurt. That was a fact.
    Maybe it was time to do the right thing for them both. He grabbed up his phone and typed a return message. “I’m heading out tomorrow.”
    It seemed an eternity before her answering message popped onto his screen. Her words were friendly. “To Wyoming?”
    “Yep.” He hit Send. He could have said more, but he didn’t. He glanced through the streaks on the windshield to the warm lights of the cozy dorm. Snow landed on the glass, gathering until the wipers swiped them away.
    His phone beeped. He looked down at her message. “Have a safe trip.”
    The ache in his chest doubled. He winced, knowing what he was walking away from. “Thanks. Take care of that ankle.”
    He hit Send and waited before his phone beeped.
    “Goodbye.” Her one word said it all.
    She wasn’t feeling this way. He would never be a contender for a girl like Lexie, if he was looking to be. The ache in his chest became a pain that took his breath away.
    He pocketed his phone, put the truck in gear and headed away from the dorm. As he drove through the campus and onto the main street through town, he banished all thoughts of her. But the feeling, and the hurt, remained.
     
    Lexie heard the knock on her partly open door and looked up from her homework. The desk, wedged in the corner by the window, gave her a good view of the snowy trees and courtyard, but she had to twist around in her chair to see who had dropped by. “Come in.”
    The door swung open wider, revealing Giselle in a pair of navy blue MCU sweats. Tears stood in her eyes. “Do you have a minute?”
    “For you, I have more than a minute.” She closed her book and saved her computer file. “I thought you might drop by. I hear your brother is leaving for Wyoming.”
    Giselle nodded, lingering in the doorway. She must have been trying to study, too, because her dark hair was tied back, out of the way.
    Lexie gathered up her crutches. “If you want something to drink, I’ve got soda in the fridge.”
    “No, thanks.” The girl bit her lip, as if she were thinking hard, or as if what she had to say was difficult.
    “Come sit down.” She eased into her overstuffed reading chair and leaned her crutches against the bookcase. The pipes clanked as the radiator came to life, spewing out warm air. Lexie waited as the girl closed the door.
    You’re not thinking about Pierce, she reminded herself. She had to be disciplined about this. At least, until she was clear about why she was feeling this way.
    “I was hoping to ask you for a favor. A really big one.” Giselle slumped onto the couch. “It’s about my brother.”
    “What about Pierce?” Her thoughts shot to his text messages and their conversation in the rain. All it took was a single thought and a spear of panic burrowed into her heart. She had gotten too close to him. If that wasn’t impending doom, then she didn’t know what was.
    “He’s going to go back in for another four years,” Giselle explained, her worry for her brother evident in her voice, on her face, in her posture. “I don’t want anything to happen to him. He can’t see it. He thinks he’s invincible or something.”
    “I’m sure he knows the cost of his sacrifice.” She