Before Mac could say a word, the woman sat down across from her with an expectant look. Mac surveyed the opulence around her. The walls were paneled in dark mahogany and the leather chairs were done in plush burgundy. Mac got up and moved to a large picture window, surveying the spacious grounds. There was a low hedge that ran around the house, but the grounds themselves extended far beyond. Neatly-trimmed topiary dotted the landscape, as well as a tall fountain that was spraying water high into the air.

“So, tell me about yourself,” Lily said expectantly. “How do you know my sister? I take it you met in the Army?”

Mac gave Lacey’s sister a confused look, but decided to play along. She didn’t know which side the sister was on in the family drama, but knew she would figure it out eventually. She returned to the chair and sat down.

“We were stationed in Iraq together,” Mac nodded, as Lily poured iced tea into a glass and set it on the table in front of Mac. “Thank you.”

“You say you served together?” Lily asked as she poured an iced tea for herself and added a cube of sugar. “Sugar?” She held up a cube for Mac, who merely shook her head.

“We were stationed at a medical evacuation command center near Baghdad,” Mac answered and sipped her tea. “She was the flight surgeon on my chopper.”

“Oh, you’re a pilot?” Lily prodded.

“Yes, didn’t she tell you?” Mac couldn’t believe her ears.

Sudden dawning alit in Lily’s eyes. “You were there. You survived the crash, too. They said there were others, but they wouldn’t say who the others were. You’re Lacey’s Mac.”

Mac wiped uncomfortably at her jeans. “Yes,” she answered. “I was there. Lacey could tell you this, as much as I can. I can’t believe she didn’t mention anything about me.”

“Please,” Lily continued. “Can you just indulge me and tell me what happened. I’m afraid my sister remembers very little about her time in the Army and especially her last tour in Iraq. She’s had a few flashbacks, but she can’t seem to put the pieces together. It must have been a horrible experience for you both.”

“We survived through some very tough situations,” Mac evaded. “Lacey doesn’t remember Iraq?”

“No,” Lily answered with a shake of her head. “She was in a coma for three months and came out of it with no memory of anything beyond medical school. She doesn’t remember serving her residency in a VA hospital in Virginia, nor does she remember the two tours of duty she served in Iraq.”

Mac considered the woman’s words. “So, she doesn’t remember the people she served with.” She felt tears spring to her eyes, but managed to push them back down. She could wallow later.

Lily watched the sadness appear and disappear from the other woman’s startlingly blue eyes. “Unfortunately, no. She hasn’t been able to remember anything for months. Like I said before, she has flashbacks and nightmares, but doesn’t really talk about them.” She stopped to consider what she had just said. “I take that back. She did mention being trapped beneath a piece of wreckage after the crash. She mentioned a few names, but I don’t remember them. She said they were men she served with who were killed in the crash. And she mentioned your name a few times.”

“O’Leary and Montgomery,” Mac nodded and swallowed down some iced tea.

Mac tried to reconcile the devastating news, as she kept a tight hold on her errant emotions. The very idea that Lacey could only remember her name made her heart ache almost physically. The ache became so strong, in fact, that she was having a hard time concentrating on Lily’s next words.

“Are you all right, Ms. Papadopoulos?” Lily asked with growing concern. “You’re very pale.”

Mac forced air into her lungs and let the breath out slowly. “I’m fine,” she finally answered and took another sip of her iced tea.

“May I ask you a personal question, Ms. Papadopoulos?” Lily waited long enough for the color to return to the taller woman’s features.

“It’s Mac,” Mac answered with a polite half-smile. “Please, just call me Mac.” She swallowed the rest of her tea and set the empty glass on the table in front of her. “I’m not a school teacher.”

“Mac,” Lily said as she kept a watchful eye on the woman. “Were you and my sister…um, close?”

Mac’s gaze shot up and locked with the eyes of her lover’s sister. “Why do you ask?”

Lily fidgeted with the fabric of her trousers. “Because…Well, my sister confided in me about…”

Mac couldn’t help the blush that suffused her tan cheeks. “She told you she’s gay?” Mac watched as Lily merely nodded. “Yes, we were close,” Mac answered. “I loved your sister.” She glanced wistfully away. “Still do.”

“Will you still love her if she can’t remember who you are and what you meant to each other?” Lily posed the question with sincerity. “The doctors say she may never recover those lost memories, although Dr. Gilchrist is more optimistic than most.”

Mac let a wistful smile touch her lips. “Yes,” she answered simply.

Lily rose from her seat, left the room and returned holding a small card in one hand that she held out to Mac. Mac took the card and glanced at the embossed address printed in small letters. She ran her finger over Lacey’s name and smiled.

“My sister lives near Westhaven Estates,” Lily said. “Her condo is in a very exclusive gated community west of the 610 Freeway. Just take 59 South to the 610 North. Get off at San Felipe and follow it to Willowick, turn left and continue until you see the main gate to Country Club Condo Estates. I’ll leave your name at the gate, so you won’t have any trouble getting in. The address is on the card. Her condo is in a triplex and is the one closest to the gate.”

Mac met Lily’s intense gaze. “Thank you.”

“No, thank you, Mackenzie,” Lily said with a warm smile. “I think my sister will be quite relieved to finally put some of the pieces of her missing life back together.”

Tears swam in Mac’s eyes at the woman’s words. “I take it you’re on her side, then? She mentioned some things, including how hard it was at home for her. Your father…”

“She’s my sister,” Lily shrugged. “I love her and will always be there to look out for her best interests. I just wish I’d been there when he was…” She swallowed audibly. “Did she tell you he hit her?”

“No,” Mac shook her head. “She just said things were tough and she didn’t want to go home after college. That’s why she joined the Army. She wanted more from life than to have him mapping everything out for her, including who she would marry.”

“Mother didn’t lift a hand to help her,” Lily added with a curt nod. “And I was too young to know what was going on. She defied him a number of times and paid the price. She never said a word about what happened when he took her into his office…until just recently.” Tears swam in her eyes. “I can’t believe he used a damned belt on her.”

Mac closed her eyes tight against the onslaught of painful images Lily’s words conjured. She loved Lacey more than life itself at that moment. The woman was a pillar of strength in a world gone wrong and never let anyone see the pain that she carried deep inside her.

Mac put a hand on Lily’s shoulder. “She’s lucky to have you for a sister, Lily.”

Lily smiled and nodded. “She’s lucky to have someone like you to care about and love her, Mackenzie Papadopoulos.”

“I guess, despite everything, Lacey is a lucky woman all the way around, then,” she said as she tapped the card against her open palm. “Now it’s time to see just how receptive she is to meeting a ghost from her past.” Mac started for the door and was stopped by a hand on her arm.

“Be careful, Mac,” Lily gazed up into the warm blue eyes of her sister’s lover. “The doctor warned her not to push too hard to remember. She also warned Lacey that a sudden rush of memories might overwhelm her and set her recovery back far enough that she might lose it all permanently.”

Mac patted the hand on her arm. “I’ll be careful with her, Lily. Please don’t worry that I’ll let anything happen that will harm her in any way. Especially not now that I know where she is.” She held the card up and grinned broadly.

***

It only took Mac twenty minutes to navigate the highways and streets of Houston to the Country Club Condo Estates. Lily’s directions were spot on. She passed rows of neatly-manicured lawns with large estate-like homes set back from the street. It was strange being among such wealth and privilege, when she knew Lacey didn’t really belong there. The woman she had come to know in Iraq was someone who was comfortable just being a doctor who healed people and slept in a tent. She was also a broken soul in need of love, plain and simple. Mac smirked as it occurred to her that most people in the world just wanted someone to love them, to make them feel like they were worth something.

She pulled up to the security gate and marveled at the small mosaic fountain and ferns that graced the entrance to the gated community. Gates and walls were meant to keep people out, to shut out the world. She chuckled when she compared this place to the 6,000 acre ranch home she was used to. The ranch had no walls. It was open and one could marvel at the mountains in all their glory.

“Hello there, young lady,” the heavyset security officer within the stucco guard shack greeted her with a welcoming smile. “What can I do for ya?”

“I’m here to see Lacey Stephens,” Mac handed over the business card Lily gave her for his inspection. “Her sister was to call ahead to let you know I’d be coming by.”

“Name?” He glanced down at a clipboard and then met her hopeful gaze again.

“Mackenzie Papadopoulos,” Mac answered.

“Ah, yes, Ms. Papadopoulos,” he gave her a wide grin and tipped his black cake hat back to reveal the silver hair beneath. “Does Ms. Stephens know you’re coming? I’m sure her sister called ahead to let her know.”

“It’s a surprise,” Mac answered with a wink. “We’re old Army buddies.”

The man’s face brightened and his gray mustache twitched, as one side lifted in a congenial grin. “I served in the Army myself,” he said and adjusted his pants at his expanded beltline.

“Oh, really? Which division?” Mac gave him a sincere smile. “We were in the 150^th Medical in Iraq.”

“3^rd Armored Division,” he answered proudly. “Served two tours in Vietnam. Was lucky to come back with all my digits,” he held up both hands and wiggled his fingers.

“I guess we’re both pretty lucky then,” Mac gave him a nod. “Rank?”

“Sergeant Major,” he answered. “You?”

“Chief Warrant Officer,” Mac answered.

“Well, then, ma’am,” he grinned from ear to ear. “You go on ahead and tell, uh…”

“Captain Stephens, Sergeant Major,” Mac answered for him.

“You tell Captain Stephens that Sergeant Major Timothy Evans is here for her anytime she needs a fellow soldier to lend a hand,” he said and gave her a quick salute. “It’s always a pleasure to meet a fellow soldier.”

“I will certainly do that, Sergeant Major,” Mac returned the salute with one of her own. “You take care of yourself, now.”

“Damned straight, ma’am,” he answered and punched a button on the console in front of him.

Mac waited long enough for the gate arm to lift all the way, before she pulled the pickup through and followed the street that Lacey lived on.

“I’m coming, sweetheart,” Mac muttered as she pulled up in front of the triplex and killed the engine.

She sat there for a moment and tried to slow her racing heart, as she gazed at the condo that belonged to Lacey Stephens. After six months of wondering and waiting and hoping, it was finally time to find all the answers to her pressing questions. Mac took a deep breath and let it out slowly, as she mustered her courage and climbed from the pickup.

“Okay, Mac,” she sighed, as she slowly walked the short distance to the front door. “Just play it cool. Don’t scare the shit out of her.”

She looked at the plain white door in front of her and lifted a hand to knock, when the door suddenly opened. The woman who stood there in the doorway bore a slight resemblance to the woman she’d known in Iraq.

“Oh, hello,” Lacey was startled to have a tall woman at her door.

“Hi.” Mac, who was just about to knock, lowered her arm to her side, as she gazed longingly at the woman who resembled her lover in so many ways.

Lacey wore her hair loose and straight around her shoulders. She was dressed in a pair of black jeans and a green cambric shirt over a white t-shirt. Small gold hoops hung from her ears, but it was her eyes that sent a shock of recognition through Mac. They were almost the same green as her shirt and so familiar that Mac nearly launched herself into Lacey’s arms.

“Come in,” Lacey moved back enough to let the slightly-bewildered woman enter. “I was hoping to look through the applications today and make my final decision, but when Lily called to say she was sending over someone else—” The words trailed off as Lacey limped away from the door.

Mac took a seat in the off-white chair that Lacey indicated and watched as the smaller woman leaned heavily on a metal cane, as she maneuvered over to the chair across from her. Lacey had yet to meet her eyes and Mac finally realized the smaller woman had said something.

“I’m sorry. What did you just say?” Confusion marred Mac’s brow.

“You’re here to interview for the position, aren’t you?” Lacey sat down with difficulty and raised her eyes to meet Mac’s. “Oh…” Her breath suddenly caught as she gazed into eyes the color of a clear blue sky.

Mac cocked her head to one side, as Lacey finally looked at her and the color drained from the woman’s face. “Something wrong?”

“Um…” Lacey couldn’t help but gape at the dark-haired woman with the familiar blue eyes for another moment, before shaking her head and finding her voice again. “I…um…You did send a resume to my sister, didn’t you?”

Mac rested her forearms on her knees and folded her hands in front of her. “You recognize me, don’t you?”

Lacey swallowed with difficulty. “I…You seem very familiar, but…”

“But?” Mac prodded when Lacey didn’t immediately finish the sentence.

Lacey shook her head and frowned. “I’m sorry,” she finally said. “I know you look familiar, but that’s been happening a lot lately. I’m afraid I had an accident several months ago. I lost my memory and have just recently been having flashes that don’t make a lot of sense.”

Mac’s brow quirked. “So, you really don’t remember who I am?”

“No, should I?” Lacey answered, shifting uncomfortably under the woman’s intense scrutiny.

Mac took a deep breath and let it out slowly, as she looked away to hide her disappointment. “We served in Iraq together, in the Army. We were stationed just north of Baghdad at a medical evac compound.”

“So you’re not here to interview for the position?” Lacey tried to clarify.

Mac shook her head. “No,” she said and watched Lacey’s expression turn thoughtful. “I’m here to visit with you, Lacey. It’s been more than six months since we…” She straightened and ran a hand through her shoulder-length hair, as she tried to come up with the best way to proceed. “Our chopper crashed during a mission. You were badly injured, but we didn’t know that right away. They said the symptoms of your internal injuries weren’t immediately recognizable, because of your other injuries. We were rescued a few days after the crash, but by then you’d slipped into a coma.”

Lacey had been listening with rapt attention, trying desperately to recall events that the woman was relating to her. “I remember being trapped under a door,” she finally said in a hoarse whisper.

Mac nodded. “That’s where I found you after I made it out of the cockpit.”

“You were the one, then?” Lacey tried to put the pieces together now that she had some idea what had happened. “You helped me get out from under that door?”

Mac’s expression was hopeful. “You remember that I lifted the door off and pulled you free?”

Lacey shook her head. “I don’t remember anything else, except…” she swallowed down the memory of the two men whose bloodied faces still haunted her nightmares.

She hadn’t had any new nightmares since her experience with Dr. Gilchrist the previous week. The session had left her so drained and exhausted that she had slept the entire night and most of the next day afterward.

The same nightmare brought her awake in the middle of the night two nights later. Sweat drenched and shaking uncontrollably, she had tried to rid herself of the vivid images that kept playing over and over in her mind. She never mentioned to Lily the recurrence of the nightmare or how it was starting to take on a life of its own.

After three straight nights of waking to variations of the nightmare that included watching the two men burn right before her eyes, Lacey finally called and cancelled her next appointment with the psychiatrist. She wanted nothing more to do with the woman and her hypnotherapy.

“Lacey?” Mac saw misery reflected in the eyes that met hers.

“I’m sorry,” Lacey got to her feet with some difficulty and leaned heavily on the cane as she made her way to the kitchen. She grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it with ice-cold water from the outside dispenser in the refrigerator door. “Would you like something to drink?” She turned and was surprised to have the dark-haired woman towering over her. “Oh, my…”

“Water’s fine,” Mac said as she easily grabbed a glass from the same cupboard Lacey had taken hers from. She put the glass under the dispenser and filled it before turning back to face her companion. “Are you okay? I didn’t mean to upset you. I know this is probably a lot for you to deal with right now. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable about this. If you want me to leave, I will.”

Lacey drank half the glass of water and smirked wryly. “It seems I’ve been nothing but upset since I came home from the rehab facility.”

Mac leaned against the center island and sipped her water. “Tell me how you’ve been?”

Lacey glanced up and saw the sincere concern in the woman’s gaze. “It’s been…I’ve been…” she shrugged. “What can I say? I don’t really know you.”

Mac’s face fell at the words. “I…” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, then smiled. “No, you probably don’t know me, but I know you better than you think I do, at this moment. We became really good friends while we were serving together. Actually, we were more than just friends, but…” Mac stopped, not wanting to say more than Lacey could handle.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable with the taller woman towering over her in her own kitchen, Lacey returned to the living room and sat down on the sofa. She watched the tall woman return to the chair and noticed that the woman limped slightly and favored her right arm.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t remember your name,” Lacey continued after another sip of her water.

“Mac,” she answered. “Mackenzie Papadopoulos, but everyone just calls me Mac.”

Lacey nodded. “Nice to meet you, Mac.”

Mac snickered. “Nice to meet you, too.”

Lacey fiddled with the glass in her hands before meeting the woman’s gaze again. “You were injured in the crash, too, I take it?”

Mac nodded and slapped her knee. “The doctor’s say I may never lose the limp, but, hey, can’t be all flowers and springtime, now, can it.”

“And your arm?” Lacey asked.

Mac touched her shoulder. “Part of the reason I’m here in Texas,” she answered with a frown. “I’m scheduled for surgery next Thursday, in Dallas. They’re going to remove the bullet that’s still lodged in there.”

Lacey’s brow shot up. “You were shot?”

Mac nodded. “It’s a really long story.” She turned her gaze to the bank of windows that looked out over the small man-made lake and marveled at the view. “It’s not as gated as one might think,” she commented absently. “Nice view.”

Silence stretched between them as they both pondered their situation. Things certainly weren’t what Mac had expected, and Lacey couldn’t figure out who the woman was who sitting across from her.

Lacey pulled her good leg up and tucked it underneath her outstretched bad one. She then set her water glass on the table. She glanced at the clock in the kitchen and noted the time—it was just past two-thirty. Then she realized she really didn’t have anything pressing. She was merely going to pop a microwavable meal in and eat alone, again. She was finally getting the hang of “cooking” meals for herself, although she’d had a rough time of it in the beginning. Who knew one could turn enchiladas into black globs of inedible goo in such a short time?

“I can order some Chinese take-out and have it delivered, if you want to stay for dinner,” Lacey suggested and then frowned when she realized she hadn’t meant to invite the woman to dine with her.

Mac’s attention returned to the woman sitting across the glass table from her. “Do you want me to stay for dinner?”

“I do,” Lacey nodded. “Although, I do have an ulterior motive behind this.”

“Oh, really, and what’s that?” Mac’s brow lifted as she leaned forward and rested her arms on her knees again.

“Tell me how we met, how we got to know each other, what we are to each other,” Lacey answered. “I want to know what happened in Iraq, especially.”

Mac got up from the chair and moved to the couch. She removed her shoes and tucked her socked feet under her, as she settled into a more comfortable position. Once she was settled, she glanced over at Lacey still stretched out on the smaller sofa. She lifted her glass and finished off her water, then set the glass on the table.

“We met in Colonel Farrell’s office,” Mac began. “At the request of my former CO and Colonel Farrell, I was transferred from Afghanistan to Iraq as a medical evac Pilot-in-Command of a Black Hawk—that’s a helicopter.” Mac lifted an arm and rested her elbow on the back of the couch. She then set her head against her closed fist as the memories washed over her. “You were assigned as flight surgeon to my chopper and we hit it off right from the start.”

“Hit it off?” Lacey interjected. “How so?”

“We…” Mac’s gaze took on a faraway look, as she recalled those first moments with the woman she loved. “I think we were really comfortable together, even early on. We just seemed to—I don’t know—fit?” She shrugged.

“Okay, go on,” Lacey said with rapt attention.

 “Well, we hung out together sometimes.” Mac’s expression turned thoughtful. “You weren’t exactly the easiest person to have a conversation with all the time. We had our moments.”

“Did we go on any missions together…um…before?” Lacey prodded.

Mac considered the question for a few minutes, as she tried to come up with the best way to explain what had happened, without traumatizing the woman too much. Lily’s warning that she not tell Lacey too much before she was ready to remember hung in the back of Mac’s mind. Then again, she didn’t want to renew their relationship with lies of omission between them, either.

“Our first mission together was more of a transport gig,” Mac answered evasively. “I took you and our medic to meet a convoy headed into Baghdad.”

“Wait a minute,” Lacey held up a hand. “Weren’t we stationed near Baghdad? Why would you need to fly us to Baghdad?”

“We were stationed ten miles north of Baghdad, actually,” Mac clarified. “It was just easier to take you there by air that day.” She watched Lacey nod and wait expectantly for her to continue. “So, anyway, our medic, Simmons, told me you two were assigned to a humanitarian mission on the far side of Baghdad. Apparently, you did some surgeries on civilians in a hospital that wasn’t really a hospital.”

Lacey frowned in confusion. “I performed surgery in a hospital that wasn’t really a hospital? How does one do that? Don’t they have real hospitals in Baghdad?”

“Not sure,” Mac shrugged. “That’s just what Simmons told me.”

“Simmons,” Lacey said thoughtfully. “She was the one who wasn’t on the mission when we crashed.”

Mac was a little surprised that Lacey knew that. “You remember Simmons?”

Lacey shook her head. “No, I just remember she wasn’t on our last…um…flight. Neither was Jimenez.”

Mac’s brow lifted again. “No, neither Simmons, nor Jimenez, was onboard when we went down. Simmons showed up later as part of the rescue party, led by Major Johnson.”

“Kevin Johnson?” Lacey perked up.

“Yeah,” Mac answered. “Do you remember him?”

“We went through OCS together,” Lacey answered matter-of-factly, then caught herself. “Wait, how do I know that?”

Mac smirked. “I think you’re starting to remember.”

Lacey looked pleased. “Yeah, I guess so.” She marveled at the fact that she could call forth a name from her past that she hadn’t remembered before. “Go on, please.”

“Okay,” Mac continued. “We picked you and Private Simmons up at a rendezvous point the next morning. Our orders were to meet up with another convoy. There was an injured soldier who needed medical attention.” Her expression darkened and she shook her head. “That mission was a little more challenging than we’d anticipated. We ended up with more casualties than originally planned.” Her expression turned thoughtful.

“What happened?” Lacey prodded when Mac didn’t immediately elaborate.

“We were ambushed,” Mac answered. “No one was killed, but that’s when Jimenez was shot in the leg. It’s also why he wasn’t onboard during out last mission.”

“Okay,” Lacey put her fingers to either side of her face, as if to steady the mass of confusing thoughts racing around inside her head. “Let me get this straight. Simmons and I performed humanitarian surgeries in Baghdad and then flew with you to meet a convoy. While we were on the second mission, we ended up in the middle of an ambush?” She glared at Mac. “What aren’t you telling me?” And then her expression showed sudden realization and her tone became accusing. “You talked to my sister, didn’t you? That’s why you’re being so evasive. Did she tell you that my shrink warned me not to push things?”

Mac sat up and scooted over until she was closer to Lacey. “She said the doctor warned you not to push yourself to remember too quickly. She also warned me not to say too much that might just confuse you more.”

“You’re confusing me by not telling me what really happened,” Lacey shot back with more vehemence than she’d intended. “Just tell me what happened and let me decide if it’s too much for me or not.” She ran a frustrated hand through her hair. “Jesus! Why is everyone always trying to protect me from the goddamned truth? I’m not a fucking idiot!”

Mac waited patiently for Lacey’s tirade to peter out and then smirked. “That sounds more like the Lacey Stephens I knew in the desert.”

Lacey’s mood lightened and she chuckled. “You should have heard me tell my parents off right before I moved out of their house.”

Mac joined in and chuckled herself. “I think I would have been proud to see that.”

Lacey stared down at the folded hands in her lap for a moment. “I’m sorry about that outburst. I just feel like… She looked up and met blue eyes watching her expectantly. “It’s hard not knowing what happened. I feel—” She finished with a firm shake of her head.

“You feel what?”

Lacey sighed heavily. “I feel like I’ve known you all my life, except that I can’t remember anything about you, other than your face. I’ve seen your face in my dreams, but I could never connect a name or anything to it. Wait, that’s not really true, either. I think I remembered your name but just couldn’t put the pieces together. It’s like a puzzle with missing pieces.” She shook her head and looked away. “It’s so confusing. I just want to remember everything that happened—my time in the Army, what I did, who I was—but I can’t. It’s like there’s this stupid wall there, separating everything that happened up to my enlistment from everything that’s happened since I woke up from that damned coma. There’s just a black hole where all those memories should come together.” She thought about that for a moment. “No, not a black hole. More like a miasma of swirling images that just don’t make any sense.” Her eyes met Mac’s. “That’s where I’ve seen your face and how I can remember Kevin Johnson’s name. Some of it is feelings and impressions, while the rest is just strange disconnected images and names that echo in my head.”

Mac lifted Lacey’s feet into her lap. “We became closer than mere friends, Lacey. I know it doesn’t make any sense right now, but it’s true.” She gazed deeply into sea-green eyes swimming with unshed tears and reached a hand out to cup Lacey’s cheek. “There are a lot of things I can tell you about our time together, but I think your sister and the doctor are right. You should let yourself remember in your own time, in your own way. Pushing those memories just confuses and frustrates you.”

Lacey leaned into the gentle caress, closed her eyes and reveled in the familiarity of the touch. “I hate not knowing.”

Mac watched Lacey’s eyelashes flutter open. “I know,” she sighed. “I also know they only want what’s best for you…and so do I.” She smiled warmly, as she rubbed a thumb against Lacey’s cheek and let her heart swell with love for the woman who no longer completely remembered her.

“So was this what it was like?” Lacey indicated their intimate position. “Were we always this close?”

“Um…” Mac considered the question. “Not exactly. We’re officers in the Army and there’s this policy…”

“Don’t ask, don’t tell,” Lacey blurted, then pulled up short. “Damn!”

Mac’s brow lifted. “You can’t remember being in the Army, but you can remember the DADT?”

Lacey shrugged. “It’s a random thing, I guess.”

Mac chuckled. “Apparently.”

“So, you were saying?” Lacey prodded.

“I was saying we didn’t exactly have a free pass to make our relationship known,” Mac continued. “We had to be…um…discreet. No holding hands in public and certainly no…um…”

“Did we have sex?” Lacey watched the taller woman for a reaction and wasn’t disappointed when a blush suffused Mac’s cheeks.

Mac cleared her throat. “Um…” Her voice squeaked out an octave higher than usual. “We…um…”

Lacey chuckled as she watched the blush deepen on those tanned cheeks. She marveled at how beautiful Mackenzie Papadopoulos really was and not just on the outside—though she was certainly striking. That silky dark hair contrasted nicely with those strikingly blue eyes that changed color, depending on her mood. Right at that moment, they were a soft bluish-gray and filled with…Was that love in her eyes?

“You okay?” Mac’s voice broke through Lacey’s reverie.

“I’m…I’m fine,” Lacey answered after clearing her own throat.

“You looked like you were studying a ghost—half intrigued and half scared to death,” Mac continued with concern. “Is this,” she indicated their position, “making you uncomfortable?”

“No,” Lacey shook her head. “It’s just…” She shook her head again. “You’re very beautiful and I can see that you have strong feelings for me, but…”

“But you don’t remember,” Mac nodded sagely. “It’s okay, Lacey. I understand.”

“You do?”

“Yeah,” Mac patted the legs on top of hers. “It’s going to take some getting used to, but I intend to stick around for a while and get to know you again.” She took Lacey’s hands in hers. “I want to be here for you, even if it’s just as your friend.”

Lacey looked down at their joined hands. “Just friends,” she considered the idea and smiled. “I guess I can use a friend right about now.” She met Mac’s expectant gaze. “Especially one who knows what I went through over there.”

Mac caught the wistful expression on the smaller woman’s face before it disappeared. “There’s only one thing.”

“What’s that?” Lacey’s gaze met Mac’s.

“I can only stick around for the weekend before I have to go back to Dallas and have that surgery I mentioned earlier,” Mac said.

“Oh, that’s right,” Lacey looked thoughtful for a moment. “Is someone from your family going to be there with you?”

“No,” Mac shook her head. “My brother and his wife are busy running the ranch, so…”

“Wait, your brother runs a ranch?”

“Yeah, in Wyoming. That’s where I live when I’m not flying for the Army,” Mac said.

Lacey’s expression reflected her confusion. “So, why are you here in Texas to have surgery? Wasn’t there someplace closer where you could have it done?”

Mac blushed again. “I…I wanted to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.”

“Kill two…I don’t understand,” Lacey shook her head in confusion.

“I knew you were here in Houston, so I called the VA and asked if there was a hospital close by where I could have the surgery,” Mac answered matter-of-factly. “They referred me to the VA hospital in Dallas and gave me the name of an orthopedic surgeon who practices there.” She shrugged. “I gave the guy a call and he scheduled the surgery. End of story.”

“How did you know I was in Houston?” Lacey asked.

“You told me,” Mac answered. “You said you grew up here and your parents still lived here. One of the nurses at Walter Reed also told me your parents came and took you to Houston to a facility where you would be well taken care of.”

“I woke up at Harbor Care and Rehabilitative Center,” Lacey said.

“I didn’t know,” Mac continued. “I tried to call your parents several times, to find out how you were doing, but they weren’t very interested in talking to someone from the Army. I even told your mother once that I was a friend from college, but she didn’t believe me. Your sister answered the phone once, but your father must have entered the room at that moment, because she didn’t say very much. She kinda acted like I was a telemarketer and hung up.”

“Why wouldn’t they tell you anything?” Lacey’s eyes blazed with sudden anger. “It’s not like you came out and told them that you were my lover.” She looked at Mac. “Did you?”

“No,” Mac answered. “I just said I was a friend.”

“Damn him!” Lacey pounded a fist against her leg. “He had no right to do that!”

“Hey, settle down there, Doc,” Mac put a hand over Lacey’s fist. “It’s not worth it. I’m just really glad I finally came here to find out for myself.”

Just then the phone rang. Mac grabbed it and handed it to Lacey.

“Hello?” Lacey said into the receiver. “Oh, hey Lil. What’s up?” She listened for a moment. “Yeah, she’s still here.” She listened again and then glanced up at Mac. “Yeah, I suppose.” She lifted the receiver away from her ear and handed it to Mac. “She wants to talk to you.”

Me? Mac mouthed in confusion, as she took the phone and put it to her ear. “Hello?” She listened and shook her head. “No, she’s fine. We were just talking about…” She listened and frowned. “What? I thought you said they didn’t…”

Lacey’s expression turned to confusion at the strange, one-sided conversation. “What is it?” She asked quietly.

Mac put her hand to the phone and was just about to answer, when the doorbell suddenly rang. She winced and removed her hand from the phone. “Never mind, they’re here,” she said as she hung up. Mac then gently shifted Lacey’s legs from her own lap, as she climbed out from beneath her.

“I’ll get that,” Mac said as she quickly rushed to the door.

“Wha…Why are you answering…” Lacey didn’t have a chance to say more as Mac pulled the door open and stepped out of the line of fire. “Mother? Father? What the hell are you two doing here?” Lacey scowled at her parents, as they unceremoniously swept past Mac without a glance in the tall woman’s direction.

“Oh, Lacey dear,” Meredith charged toward the couch in her powder blue Yves St. Laurent silk pants suit, with matching handbag, and with her arms outstretched. A thick gold bracelet dangled from one wrist and an assortment of gold, diamonds and precious gems adorned her fingers and ears. “We’ve missed you so much,” she took a seat next to Lacey without waiting for an invitation to do so.

Lacey glanced from her mother to her father and noticed the angry scowl on the man’s face. She caught a glimpse of Mac standing at the door, just before the woman closed the door and stood discreetly in the entryway.

“How did you get past the guard at the front gate?” Lacey shot her father a glare that matched his own. “I gave them strict instructions.”

“Do not even presume to talk to me in that tone of voice, young lady,” James stood behind the chair at rigid attention. “Your sister finally came to her senses. That’s all you need to know…”

“We’ve been so worried about you, Lacey dear,” her mother interrupted. “You’ve no idea what it’s like…”

“I’m no longer a young lady,” Lacey stood up with difficulty and moved to stand behind the couch, sure she would do something everyone would regret if she didn’t put a barrier between herself and her parents. “Besides, Lily gave me her word she wouldn’t tell you where I live. She wouldn’t break her word, so you must have coerced her somehow. What did you do to her?” She glared daggers at her father. “You didn’t hit her, did you? Or maybe you hired a private investigator to tail her?”

“Now, you see here…”

“James!” Meredith turned an icy glare on her husband and then rounded on her daughter. “What in the world would make you say such a thing to your father, Lacey Justine?”

Lacey crossed her arms over her chest and glared at her father with a lifted brow. “He never told you, did he?”

Meredith glanced in confusion from James to Lacey and back again. “What is she talking about, James?”

“I have no idea,” James glared at Lacey.

“Oh, really?” Lacey shot back. “You have no idea how often you dragged me into your study and beat the shit out of me, just because I wouldn’t be the dutiful daughter and adhere to your outdated ideals? Or did it just slip your fucking mind, old man?”

James growled a warning deep in his throat that did not go unnoticed by the others present.

“James?” Meredith looked to him. “What in the world is she talking about? Is that true? Did you hurt her?”

“I never…”

“Bull-fucking shit!!” Lacey exclaimed and shot an accusatory finger in his direction. “You are such an incredible asshole and a fucking liar!!!”

James took a menacing step toward Lacey, but Meredith got up from the couch and stepped in front of him. Despite her usual poised demeanor, at that point she was seething with anger and a little embarrassment for her daughter’s language.

“Tell me you did not lay a hand on our daughter, James,” Meredith confronted him directly.

“I most certainly did not…”

“No, he laid his belt across my bare ass every chance he got!” Lacey seethed. “Didn’t you ever wonder what he did after he sent me to his office when I did something to displease him, Mother? Did you never ask yourself why I always ran from there in tears and disappeared into my room for hours afterward? Or why I could never sit at the table with the rest of the family for breakfast?”

This time her mother looked uncomfortable. “I…I never imagined…”

“No, you couldn’t possibly imagine that your husband could be so cruel as to take a belt to his oldest child until she could no longer sit down,” Lacey snapped. “You,” she glared at her father, “are an incredible bastard and I wouldn’t return to that house, even if it were the last goddamned place on earth!”

Mac watched the interplay between the three in amazement and with a touch of horror. She remained completely still as the scene played out before her. She wanted to see how Lacey handled herself with her parents, but was also poised to intervene if things got out of hand. She could see that Lacey’s father was trying desperately to control his volatile temper in front of his wife, but Lacey’s goading wasn’t helping matters.

“You’ve no idea what you’re saying,” James ground out between clenched teeth. “These are delusions brought on by the injuries you suffered in that godforsaken war. You aren’t in your right mind. You aren’t…”

“Fuck you!” Lacey shook her head, her bravado quickly ebbing with her waning strength. “I am no more delusional than you are truthful, you pompous son of a bitch.”

“Lacey! Really! Is such language really necessary?” Meredith was still looking from her husband to her daughter, as Mac watched the storm pass as quickly as it had started. The Stephens matron seemed to be trying to find some sense of order in the confusing interplay between father and daughter. “You are still a respectable young woman, and I won’t have that kind of language out of your mouth. Heaven only knows what you picked up over in that godforsaken place.”

“I learned to cuss like a damned sailor, Mother,” Lacey snorted and couldn’t help the weary chuckle that escaped her. “It happens when you serve with people who weren’t raised with silver spoons in their damned mouths.”

Mac wanted to say something about Lacey’s colorful language choices during their time together in Iraq, but she remained completely silent. She wanted to remain an observer at the moment and allow Lacey to finish what she started.

“You still haven’t answered my question,” Lacey said in a quiet voice, glancing from one parent to the other. “Why are you here?”

“We’re here to put a stop to this nonsense and bring you home with us,” her father’s expression dared her to argue. “I know some very good doctors who can help you, so don’t even think about arguing about our decision. You’re coming home and that’s final. Besides, Paul is anxiously awaiting your return. He knows how hard all this has been on you and he understands. He’s willing to give you a second chance and still wants to marry you. Although, only God knows why he would want to strap himself down with…”

“I’m not going anywhere, Father,” Lacey stood defiantly and mustered what little reserves she could. “This is my home, now, bought and paid for with my own damned money. I no longer answer to you, and I already told you why I won’t marry Paul. This ploy is a farce and you know it. I’m a grown woman and have been making my own decisions for a very long time. I don’t need you telling me what I can or cannot do. End of discussion.”

James’ temper flared again, but quickly abated as he decided on a different tact. “Your mother has been beside herself with worry, Lacey Justine. We had no idea where you’d gone or if you were all right. Please, just come home so we can look after you and make sure you’re getting the proper care you deserve. We just want what’s best for you.”

Lacey glanced at her mother who was giving her the sorrowful look she always used at moments like this one. “It’s not going to work this time, either of you. I’m staying here and that’s final.” She leaned heavily on the back of the couch and stood her ground. “I have all the help I need, right here, in my own home.”

It was at that point that Meredith glanced at Mac standing near the kitchen. “Are you her in-home caregiver, then?”

Mac’s brow lifted. “Hardly,” she snorted, finally able to express some measure of the amusement she’d been holding back during the entire exchange.

James turned to address the woman he hadn’t bothered to acknowledge up to that point. “Then who are you and why are you here? This is obviously a family matter and you are not welcome.”

“That’s none of your damned business!” Lacey piped in with less vehemence than she’d intended. She leaned heavily on the cane and couch, as she made her way over to where Mac stood. “She’s a dear friend of mine from Iraq.” She challenged him to argue, as she lifted her chin defiantly. “We served together in the Army. And since you both are unwelcome guests in my home, I’ll ask you not to treat her with the same disrespect you’ve shown me since birth. She’s a decorated officer and a damned good pilot.”

Her mother gasped.

“You remember?” Meredith’s gaze shot to her daughter.

Lacey shifted, leaning heavily on the cane for support. She could feel her remaining reserves quickly dissipating. The hours and hours of grueling physical therapy she’d endured over the last three months to help build up those muscles that had atrophied during her three-month long coma didn’t seem to be helping much. And to stand in front of her parents and confront them was more than she was prepared to endure.

“I remember more every day,” Lacey answered evasively. She glanced at Mac and saw a twinkle in the taller woman’s eyes and a small half-smirk. “We were on the same flight crew and survived the crash together.”

Mac kept a respectful distance from the woman standing next to her, even though the urge to pull the smaller woman against her and protect her was almost overwhelming. She could see how much effort it was taking Lacey to merely stand there next to her and it suddenly dawned on her how physically sapped the woman still was.

James suddenly broke the silence. “I don’t think you can call nearly dying in the godforsaken desert surviving.” His gaze locked on Mac’s. “And where were you when she was in a coma for three months and couldn’t lift her arms to feed herself once she woke up? Hm? Some friend you turned out to be.”

“I was recovering from my own injuries,” Mac shot back and then moved closer to Lacey. She threw caution to the wind and put a protective arm around the smaller woman’s shoulders. It warmed her to feel Lacey lean into her for support. “I tried to call you to find out how she was doing, but no one would take my calls. So, I took matters into my own hands and came to see her.” She gently squeezed Lacey’s shoulder.

“Well…” James harrumphed. Then his gaze narrowed at the two women standing before him and a sudden realization dawned in his eyes, as they turned suspicious. “Are you lovers?” His tone was full of unbridled derision.

“James!” Meredith gasped.

The question took Lacey totally by surprise. “I…uh…”

“Well? Are you?” James prodded, his glare taking in Lacey and then Mac.

“We were, yes,” Mac answered honestly.

Renewed rage crept into the man’s features, until he suddenly exploded. “Lacey Justine Stephens!!!!”

Mac didn’t even hesitate as she put herself between Lacey and the enraged man in front of her. Meredith grabbed for her husband and tried to hold him back.

“James!” Meredith pleaded. “Please…”

“Leave her alone,” Mac warned with an icy glare, as she put a staying hand in front of her to stop him. “I’m serious. Don’t you dare try to hurt her ever again, Mr. Stephens.”

James Stephens glared up at the tall woman towering over him, until his rage abated and his breathing returned to normal. He shook off his wife’s grip and pointed an accusatory finger toward the smaller woman behind Mac.

“This is not the last you’ve heard from me, young lady,” he waved the finger menacingly. “As your father, it is my duty to stop this and bring you to your senses. We are your family. Not this…this…” He watched Mac’s turn menacing. “No daughter of mine will behave like some…some…deviant!”

“Just leave, Father.” Lacey sighed heavily, as she stepped around her bodyguard and stood her ground. “I didn’t ask you to come here in the first place. Now I’m convinced more than ever that the guards at the gates need a good dressing down for letting you in here.”

The exasperation returned to her father’s expression, but one look at Mac’s warning glare kept him from opening his mouth. He marched to the front door and yanked it open, then turned back to glare at Lacey. “I will not tolerate deviant behavior from any offspring of mine.” He shot his wife a commanding glare. “Meredith!”

Meredith Stephens gave her daughter one last pleading look, before silently following her husband out the door. As soon as they were alone again, Lacey collapsed against the woman holding her.

“Whoa! Whoa! I gotcha,” Mac managed to catch Lacey in time to keep her from crumpling to the floor in a heap. She scooped the smaller woman up into her arms and carried her to the couch, ignoring the strain on her shoulder. “There,” she said as lowered the exhausted woman onto the cushions. “You okay?”

Lacey ran a tired hand through her hair. “Thanks,” she smiled up at her savior. “I’m fine. Just…just really tired.” She was panting in an effort to catch her breath. “It doesn’t take much to zap my strength these days. Just one of the perks of spending three months flat on my back in a damned coma.”

“Yeah, I can now see what you were talking about with your father,” Mac frowned. “He’s not exactly the most congenial person in the world. I’ve really never met anyone quite like him.”

“He’s a real pain in the…” Lacey caught herself and smirked wryly. “I guess we don’t really pick the family we’re born into.”

“No, but we certainly get to choose who we spend our lives with, once we reach adulthood,” Mac agreed. “Is there anything I can get you? A blanket, maybe? Another glass of water?”

Lacey shook her head. “No, I’ll be fine. I just need a few minutes to recharge.” She breathed deeply until the lethargy passed. “Pisses me off that I get tired so easily.” She chuckled. “Guess I won’t try to run any marathons anytime soon.”

Both women were silent for a time as they tried to process what had just happened.

“I thought you handled the situation fairly well,” Mac was the first to break the long silence as she took a seat on the sofa. “It was sure a far cry from what I thought would happen.”

Lacey glanced up at the woman who now sat on the other end of the sofa. “How so?”

Mac shrugged. “Frankly, I thought you would punch his lights out. Six months ago you probably would have—you were that angry with him for the way he treated you.”

“He tried to mold me into his idea of the perfect daughter,” Lacey’s attention returned to her hands in her lap. “I guess I’m tired of giving in to him, like my mother and my sister do. But, if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that violence isn’t the answer, either. I realize now that violence just begets more violence. Eventually someone has to break the cycle or it just continues to perpetuate, until eventually something terrible happens.” Lacey met Mac’s gaze. “My sister thinks I’m nuts, but she’s still very supportive, especially after I told her about the belt.”

“She didn’t know?”

“I think they knew on some level, but it wasn’t something they were willing to admit,” Lacey answered, tears swimming in her eyes. “He told me that whatever happened in his office stayed in his office. It was his Cardinal Rule—his way of staying in control. I was never to mention it to my mother or anyone else, for that matter. He said it would just worry her. And my sister was too young to understand. At least that was his excuse.”

“I guess I can’t understand how he could do that to you and get away with it,” Mac decided to move back to the couch. She lifted Lacey’s legs into her lap again and absently massaged the tight muscles until they loosened up. “I mean, I know parents abuse their kids, but…Well, he’s a doctor and lives in a mansion and all. Isn’t he supposed to heal people, not hurt them? It just doesn’t make any sense.”

Lacey shrugged. “I’ve given up trying to figure out why my father is the way he is. He never talks about his childhood, so I have nothing to base his behavior on. Maybe he was abused by his father. I just don’t know.”

“Maybe,” Mac continued to rub Lacey’s legs even after she felt them relax beneath her fingers. She didn’t really know if she was doing anything that might help the smaller woman, but she didn’t want to stop either. It was too nice to be close to Lacey after their long separation.

Lacey relaxed for the first time all day. “Mmm, that feels really good.”

“Some people say I have the hands of a sailor,” Mac snickered. “Can’t figure out where they get that from. I’m not a sailor. I’m a pilot.” Her expression turned thoughtful. “Then again, sailor or pilot, what’s the difference? Just don’t tell any squids I said that. Don’t want a bloody nose for crossing the invisible line.”

“I don’t think you have the hands of a sailor,” Lacey let her eyes drift shut. “Your hands are very gentle and strong. A sailor’s hands are calloused, hard.”

Mac continued with her gentle massage and reveled in the contact. “The lady I took horse riding lessons from said my hands were soft on a horse’s mouth. She was impressed that they were so large, yet so gentle.”

“She was right,” Lacey sighed, as she felt her body relax for the first time in…ages?

Lacey studied Mac behind half-closed lids, as the dark-haired woman concentrated on her legs. Lacey couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful Mac was. Her soft features were lightly tanned from hours spent in the sun. Green eyes traced Mac’s well-defined jaw line and high cheekbones. She noticed a few red marks on Mac’s left cheek and wondered where they’d come from. Without even realizing she was doing it, she reached out and traced one of the small marks with a finger.

“Did you get those in the crash?” Lacey asked quietly.

Mac’s eyes met Lacey’s and she nodded. “Some glass from the windshield got embedded in my face. I think I turned to look at Donaldson right before we hit the ground.” Her eyes turned misty with unshed tears. “He died on impact.” She sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes. “His family had to bury an empty casket.”

“They didn’t recover his body?”

“No,” Mac answered. “We…” she looked at Lacey. “We blew up the wreckage to keep the bastards from decimating the bodies. We also used it as a diversion.”

“We?” Lacey was confused.

“We,” Mac nodded, “as in you and me. There was an explosives expert onboard with us. He was carrying a bag of C-4, but he wasn’t with us immediately after the crash. Our mission was to find a downed aircraft, rescue the crew and blow up the wreckage. Anyway, after I got you out from under the door, we used the explosives to hide the fact that we survived the crash and escaped.”

“Did it work?”

Mac snorted. “Not exactly, no. We managed to get away from the wreckage, but there was a lot more that happened after that. Long story short, we were rescued two days later.”

Lacey searched her scattered memories to put faces to the names of the men who were lost. “I’m sorry,” she simply said.

“So am I,” Mac said, as she regained control of her emotions. “It wasn’t exactly the perfect ending I’d hoped for.”

“Me either, I guess,” Lacey clasped her hands in her lap and then glanced at the clock. “It’s almost five o’clock. I think I promised you dinner.”

A smile returned to Mac’s face. “Yeah, you did.” She considered for a moment. “You mentioned something about Chinese, I believe.”

Lacey nodded. “There’s a bunch of take-out menus in the drawer over on the other side of the center island. If you would please grab the one for Lee’s Kitchen and the phone, I’ll call in our order.”

Mac quickly grabbed the items and returned to the woman stretched out on the couch. “Here you go,” she said, handing over the requested items.

“Okay, your choices are quite extensive, so,” Lacey quirked a brow at her companion. “What’ll it be, Chief? Moo-shoo pork? General Tso’s chicken? Chow Mein? Chop Suey? They also have a number of shrimp, pork, chicken and beef dishes, including Mongolian beef, sweet and sour chicken, and shrimp fried rice. Or we could go for more exotic…”

“Surprise me,” Mac interrupted and received a smirk in return.

“Okay,” Lacey smirked. “I hope you like spicy.” She dialed the number for Lee’s and quickly placed the order. When she was done she looked at her companion and smiled, a feeling of warmth spreading through her at the woman’s gaze meeting her own. “Can I ask you something?”

“Shoot,” Mac answered easily.

“Do you believe in God?” Lacey considered the bluntness of the question. “I mean, do you believe that God exists?”

Mac’s eyes shot to Lacey’s and searched the smaller woman’s features for some hidden meaning behind the question. “Yes,” Mac finally answered. “I believe he exists in everything around us. I just don’t…” She shrugged. “I don’t really go in for all that religious crap. I think most of it is man-made and has nothing to do with what God really wants from us, including some of what’s in the Bible.”

“Do you think he’s with us, even when shit happens?” Lacey continued. “Is he there during times of war and when someone murders someone? Or is he just there when the good stuff happens?”

Mac thought about that a moment. “I suppose he’s there all the time.”

“Then why do bad things happen?” Lacey frowned. “I mean, why is it that bad shit has to happen at all? Why would he let us get hurt or killed by other people? Why did we crash and why did our guys have to die, when all we were trying to do was help people? What the fuck is up with that?”

“War, humanity…We’re always trying to maintain some measure of control, I guess,” Mac answered with a shrug. “Who knows what those guys were thinking when they saw our chopper out there in the middle of what they consider their territory. Maybe they thought we were another fighter there to take revenge on them for shooting down our guys. Maybe they just knew we were American—infidels who need to be obliterated from the face of the earth. Or maybe they were just ordered to shoot at anything that moved and we happened to come by at the right time. I don’t really have an answer for you. They shot at us and got lucky. Sometimes shit just happens.”

“Do you think God is on our side or on the side of insurgents?”

“Hmm,” Mac pondered that question thoughtfully for a moment. “I don’t think God takes sides, especially in war. We like to think he does, but I don’t believe he does at all.” Her expression turned thoughtful. “I think he’s just there with all of us, waiting for someone to ask for help or turn to him for whatever reason. Sometimes He helps those who ask and other times…” she shrugged. “Other times He’s just there to pick up the pieces afterwards.”

“I think I have to believe He was there with us,” Lacey said with assurance. “I think He made sure we—you and me—that we survived.”

Mac’s brow rose. “Why do you say that?”

Lacey shrugged and met Mac’s steady gaze. “We still have unfinished business to take care of together.”

That brought an unexpected smile to Mac’s lips that quickly spread across her entire face and lit her eyes for the first time in a very long time. It lifted the weight from her shoulders and sent a tingle that soon spread throughout her entire body. For the first time in months, she actually felt like things were looking up.

“You mean that?”

Lacey nodded. “I do.” She paused to consider. “I also think looking forward is a lot better than looking back. Don’t you?”

Mac considered. “I think we can learn a lot from the past, but we also need to move forward and enjoy each and every day that comes along. I know I will, as long as I have you there to share it with. Maybe that’s what God wants from us.”

“Really?” Lacey gave the woman an expectant half-smile. “Do you think we’ll go to Hell for being…you know,” she shrugged. “The Bible says…”

“The Bible was written by a bunch of celibate guys who lived during some very trying times,” Mac interrupted. “Social norms change, people change, times change. Slavery ended, for the most part. And it’s not like all the rulers of the world are men now. Women aren’t considered merely chattel in most countries, anymore. We’ve evolved. We’ve grown as human beings—some of us more than others.”

“Yeah, but we still wage war for the sake of holding onto what little power we can grab onto,” Lacey shot back. “War sucks.”

“Yeah, it does,” Mac agreed. “It sucks in more ways than one, especially since there really isn’t any good reason to wage a war. I mean, why don’t we just flush a boatload of money down the toilet and watch it drift out to sea? That would probably cost less than waging a war half-way around the world. The savings on medical bills and burial costs, alone, would be well worth it.”

They both chuckled at Mac’s seemingly simple answer to the world’s ills.

“So, do you think God will send us to Hell for being together?” Lacey shifted slightly. “I mean, we’re two women who have been in a relationship together. There are a lot of right-wing-nuts out there who would condemn us to the fiery depths for that alone.”

“I’ve already been to Hell,” Mac answered. “Hell for me was being separated from you.” Her gaze met Lacey’s and in it she expressed all the love she was feeling for the woman. She took Lacey’s hands in hers. “I know you don’t remember all the stuff we went through or all we meant to each other, but I want us to be together from this day forward. I love you, Lacey Stephens. And I will spend the rest of my life showing you just how much I want to be with you, even if you never remember what we experienced in the desert.”

Lacey glanced down at her smaller hands in Mac’s larger ones and felt a moment of exhilaration at the intimacy of the contact. “I think I’m open to just about any possibility right now, Mackenzie Papadopoulos.” She smiled up into blue eyes filled with love.

“That makes two of us.”

***

“So, now what?” Mac lay back against the couch arm and sighed in contentment, as she gently stroked the strawberry-blond locks of the head lying on her chest.

Lacey lifted her chin enough to look into content blue eyes. “I have ice cream in the fridge,” she replied.

“Ugh,” Mac groaned. “I don’t think I can eat another bite, right now.”

Lacey chuckled softly. “That’s what you get for eating the entire carton of broccoli chicken over white rice by yourself, you pig.”

“Don’t forget the three crab rangoons you tossed onto my plate,” Mac growled playfully.

“I didn’t force you to eat those,” Lacey shifted off her human pillow and managed to get to her feet. “You want to watch some TV?” She glanced out the window and noticed the sun had set, as she grabbed the remote from where she had tossed it the night before. It briefly occurred to her that things had definitely changed for the better since the previous night. Was it only yesterday that she was feeling so completely alone? “What time is it anyway?”

Mac glanced at her watch. “Eighteen hundred hours, I think.”

“Hmm,” Lacey flipped on the TV and lowered the volume until it was just background noise. “I really don’t know what’s on.” She surfed the channels, as Mac sat up to make room for her on the couch. “I don’t usually watch TV, especially not on a week night.”

“What do you usually do, then?”

Lacey resituated herself and relaxed into the cushions. “Oh, crap!” She suddenly sat forward and slapped a hand to her forehead. “I was supposed to be at physical therapy at sixteen this afternoon.”

“Oops,” Mac said. “Sorry about that.”

“Why are you sorry?” Lacey shot Mac an incredulous look. “You’re not the one who made me miss my appointment.” She thoughtfully considered for a moment. “Actually, I could blame my parents for the lapse, but what would be the point? Truth be told, I simply forgot.” She shrugged. “I guess I’ll just have to take my butt chewing on Tuesday, when I go in for my hour-long session. Ugh. I hate the long sessions when I miss a shorter one.”

“I take it this isn’t the first time you’ve forgotten an appointment?”

“Um…no,” Lacey had the grace to blush. “My sister usually reminds me, because I can’t seem to remember a lot of things these days.”

“Is it a side effect of the coma?” Mac asked. “I mean, you didn’t seem to have problems remembering before…except on those occasions when you woke up with a hangover.”

Lacey shrugged. “I don’t know. I got through college and my residency just fine, so I must have remembered all the stuff that I studied during test time. Either that or I wouldn’t be a doctor.” She sank back into the cushions again. “The neurologist says I could have suffered some brain damage associated with the crash or the two times my heart stopped when we were en route to the medivac or maybe the coma.”

“You remember your heart stopping?” Mac looked intently at her companion. “I didn’t think you were awake when they rescued us.”

“I wasn’t,” Lacey answered. “I don’t remember any of it. I just know what I was told.” Her eyes met Mac’s and she saw the sadness there. “Oh my God, you were there.” Not a question, but a statement of fact that earned her a quick nod. “I’m sorry I put you through that. No one deserves to see someone they care about die in front of them.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Mac said and couldn’t help it when her hand unconsciously brushed a lock of hair back from Lacey’s face. “I’m just glad we’re here together, now. I thought…I didn’t think…um…”

Lacey glanced at Mac. “Are we? Here, together, I mean.”

Mac let her hand rest on the back of the sofa. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to presume…”

“No, please don’t be sorry, Mac,” Lacey amended. “I know you feel things for me that I can’t yet fully understand or comprehend. I can see it in your eyes.” She watched Mac blush. “I may not remember what we were to each other, but I can’t help feeling this…mm, connection? I feel comfortable sitting here with you, just being with you. Is that weird?”

“No, not at all,” Mac quickly answered. “No more weird than my need to be close to you. I know you can’t remember all that time we spent together, but I’m hoping we can build on what we have right now—maybe even start over and get to know each other in a whole new way.”

Lacey shifted closer to the taller woman. “I’d like that.” She smiled as she let her head rest on Mac’s shoulder. “Is this okay?”

Mac closed her eyes and reveled in the warmth coursing through her at the contact. “Perfect,” she fairly purred her contentment.

“What channel is this, anyway?” Lacey finally spoke after a long silence. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this show before.”

Mac glanced at the TV and smirked. “A ten-plus-year-old adventure show about two friends who travel around Greece together,” she said. “Some critics called it campy. Others just plain dismissed it as being incredibly lame and not worth the hour time slot it took up.”

“Is it any good?” Lacey watched the screen for a moment, as the two main characters danced a jig together using a long prop stick. “Oh, that’s…um…interesting, I guess.” She shook her head when the taller of the two flipped over her companion’s head and landed on her feet.”

Mac shrugged. “The show has a long following, even though it ended almost a decade ago.”

“Who are the actors? Are they still around?” Lacey watched as the show wound down and went into slow-motion with the two main characters hugging and laughing, before the credits suddenly started running at high speed. “Man, the tall one sure looks a lot like you,” her gaze met Mac’s. “Except you’re a lot more beautiful. Same eye color, hair color, but your features are more…um…angular, maybe? Your jaw is square and your nose is smaller, more refined. But the two of you could be distant cousins.”

“Thanks,” Mac blushed to her roots at the compliment. “The taller one is a woman from New Zealand. That’s also not her natural hair color,” she flipped her own hair for emphasis. “Mine is one hundred percent eau natural.”