A Match Made in Heaven?. Sun Chara

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      “Can this house stand?”

      He snapped his head up in surprise, but realizing her query was literal rather than figurative, a blank mask fell on his face. “It’s stronger than it looks.”

      The play on words, the double entendres, seemed apt somehow.

      “What’s with all this rainfall in the desert?” she asked, her tone irritable.

      He shrugged. “In November thunderstorms are common even in the Mojave. High winds—”

      “Seems kinda freaky to me.”

      That made his eyes crinkle with amusement, and her heart melted. And to combat that feeling, she fueled her next words with a sharper edge.

      “Next thing you know it’ll be a snow blizzard.” She toyed with the spoon in the half-filled mug, and then stirred with force. “What with global warming—” A blob of tomato flew up and landed on the tip of her nose. “Oops.”

      Johnny chuckled, set his mug on the counter and stepped closer, not missing a beat. “Higher altitudes like the Mesquite and Clark Mountains have been known to get snow.” He dabbed the splatter from her nose with his shirt cuff. “The Sierra Nevadas.”

      His eyes held hers.

      She felt vulnerable, transparent, nervous. “Thanks,” she whispered, raising the mug to her mouth and taking a drink.

      “No problem.” He sauntered back to the counter and flicked his wrist. “You can use me as your sponge boy anytime.”

      A hint of a smile on her mouth, but she hid it behind the mug.

      “So the weather’s not going wacky?” She wished the same could be said for their life, which launched into wacko mode since yesterday.

      “Nope.”

      Their banter simply delayed the inevitable, and they both knew it. As much as it hurt, she had to get away for a little while. To think clearly. Give them both some breathing room to sort things out and see—her lip quivered—if their marriage survived. Or toppled, making them another divorce statistic.

      “When you leavin’?” he asked, his words cool, seeming to pick up on her thoughts.

      “Tomorrow. The weather should clear by then.”

      “How you plan on getting there?”

      “Joh—”

      “Tsk, tsk.” He clicked his tongue, downed the soup in two gulps and set the mug in the sink. “I’m not playing chauffeur to you again, so soon.”

      “I’ll get the keys to the truck, Belen.”

      “Uh, uh.” He pulled the keys from his pocket and dangled them from his fingers, out of reach. “You can’t go driving a tow truck on the freeway, Sam.”

      “Why not?” She plopped the near empty mug on the table, liquid sloshing upward but not spilling.

      “I’m exchanging it tomorrow for a more practical vehicle.”

      “Fine. I’ll take your new truck rental.”

      He chuckled, but the sound lacked humor. “Don’t think so.”

      “I’ll call and get the Chevy fixed.” She tilted her chin, her gaze challenging.

      Folding his arms across his broad chest, he met her look and cocked a brow.

      “No phone,” she said, snapping her fingers and shaking her head, her body language all a bristle.

      “That’s right.”

      “I’ll walk.” She gripped the edge of the table, knots in the wood bumping against her fingers, and pushed herself up. Grabbing the mug from the table, she waddled across the floor and plunked it in the sink.

      Mere inches separated them. The tension was a tangible force between them.

      She wished she could lay her head on his shoulder and let all their differences wash away. But she couldn’t, not until she knew for certain what was on his agenda. She walked back to the table and collected the leftover Saltines.

      Johnny straightened to his full six-foot frame and flicked his gaze over her full condition. “Two miles to the main road, Sam.”

      She glanced around, debating what to do with the cracker packs in her hand. “A little gentle exercise—”

      “Not if I can help it.”

      A package of crackers hurled through the air.

      He raised a hand and caught it.

      “I will leave here, Belen. I will find a way. I will not live in this pigsty nor bring up my baby in this hovel.” Her voice cracked, and she pressed her fingers to her mouth, muzzling sobs.

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