Chapter Thirty-Six

The next six days flew by, and before Polly knew it, Parker was starting to reassemble his kit, readying himself to get back on a plane for the other side of the world.

She felt like her heart was breaking not only to let her twin go back into such a dangerous situation (and by choice, no less), but also because she knew it was ‘put up or shut up’ time in California. She had to decide if she was staying married, staying in the practice, and staying in California.

Or chucking it all for a chance as an old crush.

Or maybe, if she was honest, chucking it for a chance to be herself for the first time in fifteen years. 

Or some combination thereof.

Either way, it was time to make some choices and stick with them, and do what was best for her. Period.

Her flight actually left the night before Parker’s did, so he had insisted on driving her to the airport, and as he was loading her suitcase into the back of her rental car, she took one last look around the cabin – and spotted Chase standing on the porch, his back to her, as though waiting for her to come outside.

“Weren’t going to let me go without saying goodbye again, huh?” Polly asked lightly as she stepped outside.

“Not a chance,” Chase said. “Here’s my email address,” he said a bit shyly, handing her a small slip of paper. “Keep in touch, yeah?”

“How do you know I won’t be back soon?”

Chase looked at her seriously for a long moment, then took her hand lightly in his, and pressed his lips against her knuckles tenderly. “I hope you will. But you have to do what’s right. If you marriage is repairable, I won’t be the kind of man who stands in the way of that. If California is where you love to be, I would never ask you to give that up. But if you decide you don’t want those things anymore… I’ll be here waiting for you.”

“That’s poetic, I suppose,” Polly mused. “All those years of me pining over you, and now you’re pining over me.”

“I wouldn’t say pining…” Chase said with a wry grin. “Lusting? Wanting? Digging? Needing?”

Polly bit her lip to keep from laughing. “Sexy. Thanks.”

“I will miss you,” Chase replied softly. “Be safe. Do what’s right for Polly, not anyone else. It’s time you put yourself first, and I mean it. But if you want, you know, write to me. Stay in touch, no matter what happens…”

“I will,” Polly whispered. “I promise.”

“Be safe,” Chase said, pulling her in for a tight hug and kissing her temple. “I’m not gonna kiss you this time.”

“How come?”

“I might not be able to stop,” Chase said huskily. “God’s truth.”

Polly nodded slowly. “I know the feeling.”

**

“So,” Parker said easily as Chase navigated his Jeep towards the Detroit airport to return Parker to his SEAL team the following morning. “You and my sister.”

Chase slid him a sideways glance and bit back a grin. Instead, he shrugged noncommittally. “She’s cool.”

“She’s. My. Sister.” Parker enunciated. “You hurt her, I kill you. It’s part of the twin code.”

“Code?”

“It’s in the secret twin handbook. No twin, no handbook. But believe me, it’s one of the rules,” Parker replied, his tone teasing but his sentiment serious.

“I really like her, man,” Chase said, baring his soul a bit. “I mean, I always like her, but… I’ve fallen for her, man. Big time. I’ve never felt like this before, about any woman.”

“Have you done anything about it?” Parker asked seriously. “Does she know how you feel?”

“We’ve talked, we flirted, we’ve discussed, we’ve teased, and we’ve…” Chase bit of his sentence, and Parker tensed. 

“You’ve…”

“Just a kiss. A little one,” Chase relented, unable to keep it to himself. “And it was mind blowingly sexy fantastic.”

“Ish. Twin,” Parker reminded him and Chase laughed.

“I really like her, and I’ve tried to tell her so, but I won’t be the guy that breaks up a marriage. I’ve done rotten things to women in the past, and I’m done with that. I’m a better man than that now,” Chase said, surprising himself with his brusque tone.

“Yes,” Parker agreed. “You are. And for what it’s worth – I think you guys are made for each other, and from the way you two were looking at each other across the dining room table, I’m surprised the curtains weren’t smoldering or the tablecloth caught on fire.”

“Bad?” Chase asked, embarrassed. 

“Jack and I felt violated,” Parker replied, deadpan. “Or at least left out.”

“So what do I do?”

“Give her space, give her a little time, and then, and I’m serious now: go get her. Go. Get. Her.” Parker replied simply, and Chase nodded absently, already thinking ahead.

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