A warm glow rose to her cheeks as she observed Matt’s pride in introducing her.

“So you’re the physical therapist?” The guy he’d introduced as Tommy picked her up and spun her around.

“Wow. It’s nice to meet you, too!” Penny clutched at his arms when he finally set her on the ground.

“Guys, don’t scare her off yet.” Matt put a possessive arm around her shoulders.

Saul chuckled. “You can’t keep her hidden away forever. We’ve all been hearing about your miracle worker. Look at you, man. I’d never know you got hurt looking at you now.”

Matt led them into the living room. Penny dragged in a few extra chairs from the kitchen.

“So, you’re all in the same unit?” Penny asked.

“We used to be. Matt was reassigned last year.”

“There are so many stories we can tell you about Ace,” Tommy bragged.

“For starters, why do you call him that?”

There was a chorus of voices then.

“Oh you haven’t seen his competitive side yet?”

“He always has to be number one.”

“I don’t care what it is, from shooting to bowling, he has to be the best. If he isn’t, he’ll practice until the day he can beat you.”

Penny laughed along with the others. She’d gotten a small glimpse of his competitiveness in the bedroom. The man was an inexhaustible sex god. He’d been determined to make her feel so much pleasure that her eyes had almost rolled to the back of her head.

“I’ve seen how hard he works in therapy. He hates to lose.”

It was a good thing too, she thought. It was likely the only reason he hadn’t given up on her.

Over the next few hours Penny got a chance to see a different side of Matt. He was more serious with his friends than he was with her. It made her wonder if he found it as difficult to let down his guard as she did.

“So how long have you and Ace been dating?” Cora asked. The guys had migrated to the kitchen, leaving Penny, Cora, and Danielle in the living room. Loud trash talking and laughter spilled into the room every few minutes.

“Not very long. It’s all still sort of new. Have you been with Saul long?”

“We’ve been married for five years now, and it’s been tough at times. I miss my family back home in Colorado. When he’s deployed, I feel like I’m living life in a constant state of limbo. Like I’m sort of stuck in a holding pattern, waiting for him to come home. But at the same time, I’ve learned that I’m a lot stronger than I thought I was. I can hold down the fort while he’s out there doing his job. I love him so much that it’s worth it.”

“My dad was a captain in the Army. He just retired last year. We moved a lot growing up, so I know how hard it can be. How isolating.”

Both Cora and Danielle made soft sounds of agreement.

“If you ever need someone to talk to, feel free to call me or Danielle. Military wives stick together. No one else understands how hard it is. Don’t be shy about asking for support if you need it.”

Penny sat stunned as the other woman got up to refill her drink. It was stupid, but once again she was being caught off guard because she hadn’t thought about the future. She’d come down here impulsively because she couldn’t stand the thought of Matt not being a part of her life. But when you were in the military, your life wasn’t your own. She knew this from experience. If she and Matt stayed together, she’d have to live it all over again. A military wife. That’s what she would be eventually.

The one thing she’d sworn she wouldn’t do.

*   *   *   *   *

AFTER EVERYONE LEFT, Matt closed the door and walked back to the living room where Penny was curled up on the couch. She’d been extremely quiet the last hour. His friends could be a bit much, so he’d tried to hurry them along. Penny wasn’t as extroverted, so he was worried they’d overwhelm her. Or that they’d tell her something he didn’t want her to hear. There were certain embarrassing stories that he’d prefer stay buried. Penny finally seemed to see him as a man instead of the bratty kid she used to babysit. He didn’t want anything to change her opinion.

She looked up when he entered the room. “Is everyone gone?”

“Yeah. Sorry about that. I didn’t know they would be here that long. Shep said they were just passing through.”

“That’s okay. They were all really nice. So nice that it made me feel bad.” Penny hugged her arms close.

He sat on the couch next to her and pulled her into his lap. “Why would you feel bad? I want you to like my friends.”

“I feel bad because I’m not like Cora and Danielle. I can’t keep a smile on my face as we move from city to city and base to base. I’ve done it too many times already.”

“I know. But, Penny, I’m not asking you to do that.”

“You aren’t asking me right now, but there’s going to come a day when you’re reassigned somewhere far away and then I’ll be stuck in the same situation. Caring about someone that I can’t have. Worrying about you all the time.”

Hope burst forth in his chest. Matt could feel that the smile on his face was too big, but he couldn’t seem to rein it in. She didn’t even realize it, but she’d just sealed her own fate. Now that he knew she cared for him, there was no way he’d let her go. Ever.