“Yeah.” Thanks, Hula. “She’s an old girlfriend.”
“Ah,” she said, dipping the washcloth into the water, then sliding it up her other arm slowly. “And she’s a goddess?”
Hunter scowled and watched as the wet cloth slid along her wet skin. Yes, Gretchen was beautiful, but he’d never fantasized about being her washcloth. Besides, he hadn’t come up here to talk about Gretchen. “Hula’s got a big mouth.”
Margie gave him a sad smile. “Which answers my question.”
Frowning, he asked, “Why’d you wait until now to ask about her?”
“Maybe because I didn’t want to know.”
“So why’d you ask at all-” He stopped. “Never mind. This is female logic, right?”
“I was just curious, that’s all,” she said.
“Fine, but I don’t want to talk about my ex or any of your exes, either.”
“I don’t have any,” she told him, sliding her body down into the water until her knees poked through the water’s surface and her ni**les made tiny pink islands. “Exes, I mean. You’ll be my first.”
“What?” He stared at her and shook his head, not sure whether to believe that or not. Yes, she’d been a virgin, but she’d had no ex-boyfriends at all? “How is that possible? Do you only meet blind men?”
Margie laughed shortly. “I think that’s a compliment, so thanks.”
“Of course it’s a compliment.” Hadn’t he complimented her before this? Apparently not. He should have. Hell, she’d stepped up and taken care of Simon when he wasn’t around. She’d been there for this town, for his grandfather, for him, he thought, remembering the night she’d held him and eased him through a nightmare. The same night they’d had sex for the first time. He’d been so intent on shutting her out, he hadn’t told her how much he appreciated everything she did.
But he’d make up for it. He could compliment her plenty over the coming years. He’d make a mental note to do just that. He stood up, not really trusting himself to stay so close to a wet, na**d Margie without reaching out a hand to touch, to stroke, to…
“Look, Margie,” he said, scraping one hand across his face as if he could wipe away the erotic images filling his mind, “I thought we should talk about the divorce.”
“Oh.” Her eyes looked suddenly cooler, more distant, as if she were deliberately closing herself off to him. Self-preservation? Probably.
Well, Hunter figured he had the answer to their problems.
“The month’s almost up,” he said as he walked back to the edge of the tub to look down at her.
“I know.”
“Yeah, but you don’t know things have changed.”
Her gaze lifted to his. “What do you mean?”
“I mean,” he said, “that I’ve decided to leave the Navy when my enlistment’s up. I’m coming back home. To stay.” Wasn’t as hard to say it this time, he thought, and considered that a good sign.
She stilled, then slowly a small smile curved her mouth. “That’s wonderful, Hunter. I’m sure Simon’s happy.”
“Yeah, he is. But I want to talk to you about us.”
“I don’t understand,” she said, using her arms to sweep the remaining bubbles over her, covering her skin in a gleaming, nearly see-through cape.
“I know.” He sat down again on the edge of the tub and wished she didn’t look so uneasy. “But you will in a minute. I did a little thinking, and I realized there was an easy solution to our situation.”
“Yes,” she said, huffing out a breath that made the bubbles shudder. “The divorce.”
“No,” he told her. “The marriage.”
She tipped her head up to meet his gaze. “What are you saying?”
“It’s simple, really,” he said and smiled at her. “I’m staying, so I think you should, too.”
“What? Why?” She straightened a little in the water, and the bubbles slid down her skin.
“I’m suggesting that we stay married instead of getting divorced,” he told her and waited for her smile.
It didn’t come.
“You can’t be serious.”
“Okay,” he admitted, wondering why she wasn’t seeing the brilliance of this plan, “not the answer I was expecting.”
“Well, you’re not making sense,” she said, and her voice sounded breathless. “Why would you want to stay married to me? You’ll be here, so you won’t need me to watch over Simon. You can do it yourself.”
“This isn’t about Simon,” Hunter told her, then corrected himself, “well, it is partly, I suppose. But the main thing is, you love it here, right?”
“Yes…”
“You love Simon.”
“Yes, but-”
Hunter was warming to his theme now and gave her a smile designed to convince her to agree. “We’ve already proven we get along fine. And the sex is good. So why shouldn’t we stay married?”
“This is crazy,” Margie said softly and stood up in the tub.
Faced with his na**d wife, Hunter had a hard time keeping his mind on the subject at hand, but he managed. “What’s crazy about it? Hell, I thought you’d be pleased.”
She laughed and looked at him as if he were certifiably insane. Stepping out of the tub, she moved past him, grabbed a navy-blue towel off the closest rack and wrapped it around herself. “Oh yeah. Why wouldn’t I be pleased?”
“Exactly.” He stood up too and glowered at her. Damn it, he’d come up with the perfect solution. Couldn’t she see that?
“Hunter,” she said, taking a deep breath and holding it, “you’ve told me over and over that you don’t want a wife.”
“I changed my mind.”
“Oh!” Margie threw both hands up. “Well, that’s different, then. You changed your mind.”
“What’re you pissed about?” He sounded incredulous, as if he didn’t understand why she wasn’t jumping up and down for joy at his businesslike offer. Couldn’t the damn woman see that this was good for both of them? “I thought you’d be happy to stay.”
Barefoot, soaking wet and suddenly furious, Margie fisted her hands at her hips. “Why would I be happy to stay with a man who doesn’t want me?”