Epilogue
Brain was happy for his teammates, but Trigger and Lefty also annoyed the crap out of him with their constant discussions about how great their girlfriends were. And now they were both torturing the rest of the team with their wedding plans.
Gillian and Trigger were planning on going to the courthouse soon and having a laid-back party afterward. And Lefty and Kinley were actually going to tie the knot in San Francisco. His mother was throwing a huge-ass party for the two of them, and they figured they might as well do the deed there.
Brain loved his friends, but the thought that he’d never have what they had was weighing heavily on him lately.
He was the smart guy. The tech guy. The go-to guy when they needed research.
He was also the last one hit on when they went out.
It never used to bother him, but witnessing Trigger and Lefty’s happiness every day made him realize how much he wanted a woman of his own.
But wanting someone to love and knowing how to find them were two completely different things.
When they’d first been stationed in Texas, Brain had bought a house.
It seemed like a good investment. The housing market at the time favored buyers, and if the Army changed his duty station, he could always rent it out.
But living in the three-bedroom house in a nice neighborhood only made him feel even more lonely.
Brain sighed. He’d put off heading to the bar to hang with the guys long enough.
Not really in the mood to be social, but knowing if he didn’t go, he’d just sit in his house and wallow about shit he couldn’t control, Brain grabbed his wallet, slipping it into his back pocket and headed to his garage.
He climbed into his Dodge and backed out of his driveway.
Brain arrived at the bar and took a deep breath before forcing himself to get out of his car. He was already mentally going over what he’d use as an excuse to leave early as he opened the door.
One second he was standing just inside the bar, looking around for the guys, and the next, a woman was walking straight toward him with a determined—and nervous?—look on her face.
He had time to appreciate the fact that she was almost as tall as he was, around five-nine or so, and was probably around his age, as well.
She wore black jeans that clung to her body in intriguing ways.
A pair of Converse sneakers and a T-shirt that said “Will give medical advice for tacos” completed her outfit.
Her brown gaze seemed to pierce his own as she continued toward him.
Brain smiled at her—and was shocked when she walked right into his personal space and put her arms around his neck.
“I’ll give you twenty bucks if you kiss me right now like you mean it.”
Her voice was husky, and Brain could swear he heard desperation. He didn’t have time to tell her that he’d happily kiss her, but not for money, when she put her hand on the back of his head and leaned forward.
At first their kiss was awkward, merely a brushing of their lips. Then Brain wrapped an arm around the woman’s waist and took a step forward, bending her backward.
She gasped in surprise and switched her hold from around his neck to latch onto his biceps.
Brain took advantage of her mouth opening, and he changed their angle just slightly…and kissed her like he hadn’t kissed a woman in a very long time. Slow and deep.
The little moans she made weren’t encouraging him to stop anytime soon. He could tell she was muscular and strong, but at the moment, tilted backward, she was completely helpless in his arms.
And he liked it a hell of a lot.
Hearing a few catcalls around them, Brain knew he had to stop, but it took a moment for his brain to communicate with his mouth and limbs. Finally, he eased his mouth from hers and brought her upright once more. They stared at each other for a long, intense second.
Brain registered that they were both panting, and he really liked how her lips looked, all swollen and pink. He couldn’t help but notice that her nipples had puckered under her shirt and bra.
“All you had to do was tell me you’d moved on, Aspen,” an irritated voice said from behind her.
The woman licked her lips and sighed in frustration. Brain saw her mouth “sorry” to him before she cleared all emotion from her face and turned toward the man behind her. She wrapped an arm around Brain’s waist, and he had no problem tugging her into his side.
“I did tell you, Derek. I told you a month and a half ago when I broke up with you. I told you at least three times in texts. And I told you again tonight, when you showed up here begging me to get back together. I’ve moved on. It’s time you do the same.”
The man looked to be in his mid-thirties, and the pout on his face definitely wasn’t doing him any favors. But it was the glimmer of pure, unadulterated anger in his eyes that had Brain concerned.
“When did you meet him? I mean, you’re training with the rangers every day.”
“We’ve known each other a while,” Aspen said.
Knowing things could get awkward very quickly, Brain held out his hand toward the other man. “Name’s Kane Temple. But people call me Brain.”
Derek looked in disgust at the hand Brain was holding out to him then frowned at Aspen. “Brain? Seriously?”
She merely shrugged.
“Fine. Don’t come crawling back to me when he breaks your heart,” Derek bit out.
“I won’t,” Aspen assured him perkily.
“I think it’s time you ran along,” Brain said, annoyed that the other man wasn’t taking the hint.
When Derek opened his mouth to say something he’d probably regret, Brain was done. “Come on, baby. I see my friends. I’m sure they’ve saved us some seats.” He walked them away from the heartbroken, angry man and steered Aspen toward his teammates.
She looked back once, and Brain assumed Derek had left because she stopped in her tracks, and he had no choice but to do the same.
“Thank you so much, and I’m so sorry for involving you in that. But he wouldn’t leave me alone, and the only thing I could think to do was give him concrete evidence that I’d moved on.” She started to reach for the small purse strung across her body.
“If you even try to pay me for that kiss, I’m gonna be pissed,” Brain told her.
She froze and looked at him with wide eyes.
“How about we start over?” Brain suggested. He took a step back and held out his hand. “I’m Brain.”
“Aspen Mesmer,” she said as she placed her hand in his.
Brain shook it, then brought it up to his lips and kissed the back.
“You really don’t have to hang out with me, I’m sure he’s gone,” Aspen said. “My friends just left, and I should be going too.”
“Don’t be scared of me,” Brain ordered, not liking the nervous look in her eyes.
Her shoulders straightened, and she stood taller. “I’m not scared of you.”
“Good. I wasn’t lying. My friends are here waiting for me. And Trigger and Lefty’s fiancées are too. You won’t be the only woman in our group, and everyone will get a huge kick out of what just happened.”
She hesitated.
“At the risk of sounding like the nerd I am, it’s been a very long time since my toes have curled when I’ve kissed a woman. And letting you leave without getting to know you will make me feel like I’ve been used.”
Her lips twitched. “Well, I did kind of use you, didn’t I?” she asked. “I suppose the least I could do is buy you a beer.”
“Good, it’s decided,” Brain said, feeling more excited than he’d felt in a very long time. “And since we’re now dating, I suppose it’s only fair that you meet my friends.”
“We aren’t dating,” she argued, but she didn’t pull away when he reached for her hand.
“But you just told poor Derek that we were. It wouldn’t look good if he was hanging around waiting to talk to you in the parking lot and we didn’t leave together, would it?”
“You think you’re pretty smart, don’t you?” she asked.
Brain shrugged. “I didn’t get the nickname Brain because I’m stupid.”
“Lord save me from conceited soldiers,” Aspen said, rolling her eyes.
“How’d you know we were soldiers?” Brain asked.
“I deal with people like you enough in my line of work.”
“And what’s that?” Brain asked.
“I’m a combat medic,” Aspen told him.
Brain tilted his head as he studied the woman next to him. That was the last thing he’d expected her to say, and he couldn’t deny it intrigued him. But before he could ask her more about it, he heard his name being called.
“Yo, Brain, ’bout time you got here!” Oz called out.
“Who’s your friend?” Doc asked as they neared.
“Everyone, this is Aspen. My girlfriend.”
“No, I’m not,” she countered.
Brain couldn’t help but laugh at the confused looks on his friends’ faces. This was going to be fun.