My cell phone rings, waking me from a fitful sleep. I grab it and hit the accept button, hoping it’s Toby.

“We need to talk,” Nicole says firmly.

Damn. The last person I want to talk to this morning. I close my eyes and plop back down on the pillows.

“Do we have to?” I ask. “What’s to say? Brad was an asshole the entire night and Toby got sick of it. Brad had it coming. He should be thankful Toby didn’t drag him outside and beat the crap out of him. If he did, I would have been right there cheering him on.”

“Brad has a nasty bruise on his neck this morning,” Nicole says. “We’re thinking about taking him to the emergency room. What if there is permanent damage? And how is he supposed to go to work and meet with clients looking as if he was in a bar fight?”

Nicole is being overly dramatic as usual.

“Put some ice on it. He’ll be fine. His pride is hurt more than anything. You and I both know that. I’m surprised this hasn’t happened to him before now. He’s been pulling this crap for years.”

“Last night was humiliating,” she whines. “It was an embarrassment to Mom and Dad too. Their friends and business associates were there to witness the whole thing. You can’t go around physically assaulting people. Can you imagine what everyone at the country club thought? Toby is lucky we’re not filing charges.”

I bolt straight up in bed.

“Nicole, I’m warning you right now. If Brad files charges against Toby or causes trouble for him in any way, I’ll never forgive you. I’m serious. Brad is a pompous jerk and always has been. Let it go. And as far as being humiliated, you should be humiliated by the way Brad acts. I don’t know how you tolerate him. Mom and Dad were probably more embarrassed by his obnoxious behavior than by Toby causing a scene.”

Dead silence comes from the other end of the line.

“I’ll talk to Brad,” she says after a moment. “I agree it would be better for everyone to forget this ever happened.” She sighs. “I know he can be an ass sometimes. On the drive home, he kept asking me what he said to set Toby off. He really didn’t have a clue.”

“Why does that not surprise me?”

“There’s actually another reason I called. I’m worried about your relationship with Toby. He has a weird psychological hold on you, and I’m concerned.”

I frown. “What do you mean?”

“He saved your life, and you were together during a very traumatic event. It’s only human nature that you would continue to cling to him after it ended. I think you should talk to a psychologist about it. I’m sure there’s a scientific term for it.”

I let out an incredulous laugh. “No way. You want me to see a shrink because you don’t understand my feelings for Toby? That’s not happening. Sure, he’s not my usual type and we never would have met under normal circumstances. I’ll admit that. What we have together is real and good. Better than anything I’ve ever felt before with another man. You make me sound as if I’m psychologically unstable. I’m not.”

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” she asks quietly. “No matter what, you know that I love you. You’re my baby sister and I want only the best for you. Your relationship with Toby scares me to death. What do you really know about this man? Be honest. Not for me. For yourself. My suggestion would be to take some time apart. Let the physical heat die down for a bit and see where things stand. A month from now, you might think back on this and wonder what you were ever doing with him.”

“It doesn’t matter because he broke up with me last night.” I choke the words out. “You don’t need to worry about me. It’s over now.”

“Are you upset?” Nicole asks. “I can tell that you are. I’m sorry about that. It’s for the best. Toby sees it too. You come from two different worlds and it would never work out between you. You’ve dodged another bullet with him leaving. Let him go. I know you can be a bulldog when you want something or believe in a cause. There are times when it’s better to leave things alone.”

“It seems I don’t have a choice now anyway,” I say. “I’ve got to run. I’ll talk to you soon.” I click the phone off without waiting for her to say goodbye.

I can’t help wondering about what she said. Could I be infatuated with Toby in some weird way because of the circumstances that threw us together? I know what I feel for him and how I feel when I’m with him.

Nothing has ever felt so real.

Or have I been so taken by the intense sexual chemistry between us that I never thought past the present? Our living arrangements would be one of the many hurdles to overcome. I have a great job in the city that I don’t want to give up. Toby is happy living in the mountains and could never be comfortable in Atlanta. He’s a country boy and I was raised in a high-society family.

Last night was a perfect example of the collision course we were on. All it took was a match to ignite the meltdown of our relationship. I couldn’t keep Toby hidden in a box forever. Whatever issues we have would’ve popped up sooner or later.

Still though, it’s hard for me to accept. If Toby didn’t care about me, it would be different. Last night I could see the love for me in his eyes and feel it in the way his hand caressed my cheek.

No way is this over.

My Daddy didn’t raise a quitter.

Nicole is right about one thing. There are still so many things that I don’t know about Toby. Especially about his time in the military. I wish I could talk to someone who knew him then. The boy soldier who returned a shattered man.

A man that I love with all my heart.

If I can’t talk to someone who knows him, I’ll do the next best thing. I’ll talk to men or women who have had personal experience fighting in the Middle East. Maybe they can give me insight and help me to better understand what Toby is going through.

There’s a veteran’s hospital on the other side of the city. I’ll pay a visit today and see if anyone would be willing to talk to me.

I’m not giving up on Toby.

Not now.

Not ever.