It's part of the process I've been told. You go through the motions and eventually it hurts less. [Maybe his circumstances weren't so different from Ernest in the beginning, but at least he could be confident in the sacrifice he had tried to make. It apparently didn't work out that well when one considered a part of him came back in that beast.] Maybe? I suspect one breather mission is to help us put our guard down so we can be challenged again in a completely new way.

[Even if she wasn't there when he returned home or when he left to head for a work shift, there were signs of her presence in the apartment. There was the anticipation that they would see each other at some point at every day even when their work shifts conflicted because if he came home real late, she was still in the bed where he could nestle up to her.

And these post-mission dates were a good idea. Maybe that's why he started this one a little on the early side because they had gone two weeks apart, and it felt painful to wait and 'behave' themselves on the last day.]

No? You don't think I could pin you to a tree and have my way with you standing up even with a bummed knee? [Vander shot her a look almost like 'challenge accepted', even if this wasn't the time and place. Plus trees? The bark would definitely be a problem.] Nah, I always heal. [A comment which was opposite to the point she was trying to make.]