Broken Soldier: A Novel by Clara Frost

standing well back from the mess. “Paella?” Rafa asked.
    “It was supposed to be,” Emily said. It was supposed to be a surprise, and Christa assured her that she’d made it before and that Rafa would love it.
    Rafa came closer, looking at the ruined meat. “It looks okay to me. Just a little overdone on the bottom.”
    That drew a snort of laughter from Christa. “Your sweet lies might work on Em, but I know better. How about we go back into Boulder and get dinner somewhere? I think Paul and I would rather stay in the city, anyway, and not ruin your weekend.”
    It wasn’t a great option, but the fridge wasn’t stocked with perishable food and Emily didn’t have anything else to cook. “Are you sure?”
    “Absolutely,” Christa said. “I’ll even call ahead and get us a table. Where do you want to go?”
    “How about Japanese?” Paul asked.
    Emily loved sushi, but she wasn’t sure about Rafa.
    “I eat everything,” Rafa said without her even having to ask.
    Christa clapped her hands together. “Alright, let’s get dressed and do this.”
    Rafa and Emily went to the master bedroom to change. “Sorry about her,” Emily said. “She’s both flighty and a little dictator sometimes.”
    “She’s fine. She introduced us, so she can’t be all bad, right?”
    Emily wanted to throw him on the bed right then and right there. Instead, she draped her arms around his neck and gave him a long, lingering kiss. “Maybe you’re right.”
    #
    Something about the way Emily kept picking at her food was starting to bother Rafa. She barely ate enough to feed a bird, and he’d seen how much she exercised. She’d nearly run him off the trail last weekend and he had a feeling she wasn’t likely to take it any easier when they went skiing again in the morning. Two pieces of sushi weren’t enough calories for her.
    The worst part was that he knew exactly why she was starving herself. Lorena had done the same thing. Probably still did. If her body wasn’t exactly the shape that she thought it was supposed to be, she simply didn’t eat.
    It was weird that Paul had brought up Lorena, and weirder yet that he’d done it in front of Emily. Those were memories Rafa had thought buried, and bringing them up to the surface reminded him of a pain he’d rather have left forgotten.
    Rafa tried to take a piece of tuna, but fumbled it with his chopsticks. They were hard enough to use right-handed, and using his left hand made them nearly impossible. Everyone pretended not to look as he tried a second time and barely managed to get the fish to his mouth.
    Paul held up his phone. “You guys catch the weather update on the way into town?”
    “No,” Emily said. “All we saw were flurries.”
    “There’s a pretty serious snowstorm coming. You might not want to go back to the cabin.”
    Rafa looked over at Emily. His stomach fluttered at the thought of not staying the night with her. Even if he had to leave Boulder, he wasn’t sure he could leave her. A woman like her was once in a lifetime, and not something a man could leave behind. Certainly not a man like him.
    “So what you’re saying is there’s going to be fresh powder in the morning?” Emily grinned and poked Rafa’s arm. “There’s nothing like fresh powder. It’ll make it easier for you to turn.”
    “That sounds fun.” If only that were true. He’d agreed to the weekend for the opportunity to spend time with her. Skiing was secondary to that. He just didn’t know how to tell her that without hurting her feelings.
    Paul snagged a piece of salmon and paused, inspecting the pink flesh. “If you get stuck in the cabin and need a lift out, call me and I’ll bring the truck out Sunday.”
    “Alright.” Emily practically beamed.
    Being stuck in a snowbound cabin for a weekend wasn’t the worst thing in the world. Rafa let his eyes follow her curves. He didn’t understand why any woman would worry so much about her appearance, but Emily truly looked