No, she didn't ignore it. But she refused to dwell on it. Maybe that was why he liked her so damn much. She wanted the world to be good and was doing something about it. She was right, he only wanted the adventure, the excitement, and the friendship that Emily gave him.

And occasionally, when he was on leave, a roll in the hay with Maggie Nevowitz, who was cute and bawdy and not at all fragile.

"Nothing." Emily took a step back. "I didn't really expect it."

"Then will you tell me why I'm freezing my balls off down here?"

Her smile lit her face. "Because it could have been." She started for the stairs. "The most magical words in the language."

He followed her. "No, the most magical words are heat, food, and sex." He turned up his collar as they went outside. "Brrr." His gaze went to the mountains. "It's coming fast. Look at those clouds."

"Then let's get going." She jumped into the passenger seat of the truck. "At the speed you drive, we should be out of the province before the storm catches up to us. And the military escort will meet us long before then. It should be okay."

"Yeah." He didn't move, his eyes on the roiling gray-black clouds. He was feeling a chill that had nothing to do with the temperature. His chest was tight, and he was experiencing a weird panicky sensation. It was as if those threatening clouds were alive and stalking him.

Stupid.

"Sure." He tore his gaze away from the approaching storm. "It'll be okay."

"THEY'RE COMING." BORG FELL down beside Staunton on the side of the hill overlooking the road. "Just a few minutes away." He lifted his rifle. "Shall I blow out the tires to make them stop?"

"No, they'll stop." Staunton lifted his binoculars.