Chapter 6
It was four-fifteen, and Brain was standing in his kitchen talking to Oz. The others were either outside or sitting in his living room. His house was packed, but he loved having his friends over.
“Is Aspen coming?” Oz asked.
“She said she was,” Brain replied.
“Everything going okay with her?”
Brain nodded. “Yeah. Almost too good.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just that. She’s hardworking, nice, funny, smart…she seems too good to be true,” Brain told his friend. “I haven’t been the best judge of character in the past and the last thing I want is to fall for her, only to have her change once we’re together.”
“I can understand that. You haven’t hung out with her much though, right?” Oz asked.
“No. Just twice. But we’ve talked on the phone and texted a lot. I feel as if I already know her better than anyone else I’ve ever dated,” Brain said.
“I don’t want this to come out wrong but…you want me to watch her when she arrives? Not spy on her, but give you my opinion on how she interacts with the others? Sometimes it’s easier to see someone’s true nature when you aren’t lusting to get into her pants.”
Brain knew he was blushing but did his best to ignore his discomfort. “I mean, I’m always open to your opinion, but I absolutely don’t want you spying on her. It would make her uncomfortable.”
“You know she wouldn’t even know what I was doing,” Oz said.
“I know, but still, no. I like her, Oz. A lot. And I think that’s what’s making me uneasy.”
“I’m happy for you,” his friend said, clapping him on the shoulder.
“Thanks.”
“Just remember that she’s not perfect. No one is. If you look too hard for her faults, you might overlook all her good qualities.”
“Not a chance of that,” Brain said with a small chuckle. “Her goodness shines so bright it’s impossible to see anything else. Which is a part of my worry.”
“What can’t you see?” Kinley asked as she came into the kitchen, Lefty at her heels.
“Anything when someone as beautiful as you is around,” Oz quipped.
Kinley blushed but rolled her eyes.
“You hittin’ on my girl?” Lefty asked, throwing an arm diagonally across Kinley’s chest and pulling her back into him.
“Nope, wouldn’t dream of it,” Oz said with a smile. Then he gave Brain a chin lift and squeezed past the couple into the other room.
“When’s Aspen getting here?” Kinley asked.
“I might get a complex with everyone asking about Aspen,” Brain joked.
Kinley frowned and shook her head. “No, I’m always happy to see you, Brain.”
“I know you are,” he told her. “I was kidding. And I’m hoping any time now. She had some stuff she needed to get done today, so she might be running late.”
“Have you called or texted her?” Kinley asked.
Brain shook his head. “I didn’t want to bug her.”
Kinley rolled her eyes again and pulled out her phone. “What’s her number?”
Brain hesitated. He wasn’t sure he should give it out without Aspen’s approval, but at the impatient look in Kinley’s eyes, he caved and rattled it off.
Kinley’s fingers moved quickly over the keyboard on her phone and she nodded. “There.”
It was seconds later when her phone vibrated in her hand. Lefty read the text she’d just received out loud from over Kinley’s shoulder. “I’m about to leave. Running late, as usual. Sorry.”
“Don’t be upset, Brain,” Kinley said, always wanting to be a peacekeeper. “I’m sure she’s not always late.”
Brain couldn’t help but laugh. He’d just been bitching to Oz that he hadn’t found any flaws in Aspen, and now he knew at least one.
She hadn’t been late last night when she’d come to his house, but that was probably because she’d come straight from work.
He thought back to their phone calls over the last week and a half and realized that, most of the time, if they’d planned in advance, she had called later than they’d scheduled.
But he could deal with her being late. He pulled out his own phone and shot off a quick text.
“You aren’t yelling at her for running late, are you?” Kinley asked.
“What? No,” Brain said firmly. “I just told her to take her time, to not get in an accident or a ticket racing over here.”
“Good,” Kinley said. “I like her. I don’t want you doing anything to make her break up with you.”
Brain rolled his eyes. “I think that ship’s sailed,” he told her honestly.
“I’m overbearing and overprotective. I fell asleep on her last night, and even when I woke up at two in the morning, I didn’t apologize and get her home, I let her sleep on top of me instead.
I also bad-mouthed her team and made her cry.
I’m not sure I’m batting a thousand here. ”
Kinley simply shook her head. “Overprotective isn’t a bad thing,” she argued, looking back at the man holding her. “And believe me, waking up on top of the guy you like isn’t a hardship. Cut yourself some slack,” she ordered. “But also, don’t be a dick so she wants to stick around, okay?”
Both Brain and Lefty chuckled. “Got it. I’ll do my best.”
“Good. Let me know when she gets here,” Kinley told him.
“Uh, the house isn’t that big, I think you’ll know,” Brain told her.
“I might be outside,” Kinley said, then turned, towing Lefty out of the kitchen behind her.
At one point, Brain might’ve rolled his eyes at his teammate and accused him of being pussy-whipped over his girlfriend, but he had a feeling if Aspen was the one towing him around, he wouldn’t complain one whit about it. He’d follow her wherever she wanted to go.
The get-togethers at his house were once all about him and his teammates eating burgers and talking shop until late in the night, but now that Kinley, Gillian, and Devyn had joined them, they had all kinds of side dishes with their burgers, and he’d even bought a blender to make margaritas for the women when they wanted them.
Winnie came over more often than not, joining in the fun.
And typically, after Trigger and Lefty took off with their girlfriends earlier than usual, everyone else slipped away soon after.
The changes were fine with Brain. He loved seeing his teammates happy, and having the women join their group made them talk about work less and simply enjoy being together.
Brain hadn’t had that before he’d joined the Army.
If he was invited to get-togethers, they were study groups, and he’d always left before any alcohol had come out.
He loved being a part of this group. That was one of the reasons he always invited people over to his house, so he could be in the thick of things.
He’d just finished making another batch of margaritas when he heard a knock on the door. Knowing enough time had passed for Aspen to arrive, he intercepted Doc and opened the front door himself.
Aspen was standing on his doorstep, looking delightfully mussed.
“I’m sorry I’m late. I actually fell asleep, if you can believe that.
I did all my errands, but my legs were sore from training and I sat on my couch for a small break and woke up three hours later.
I had to finish the potato salad, even though it probably didn’t sit in the fridge long enough, and then get changed. ”
Brain didn’t comment, simply reached out and pulled her into his house. He kissed her hard, but way too briefly for his peace of mind. “I’m just glad you came,” he told her.
“Me too,” she whispered.
“And, I’m glad to know you aren’t perfect.”
“What? Who said that? I’m far from perfect, Kane.”
He shook his head. “I can handle you being late. Especially if it’s because you napped. You obviously needed it.”
“I’m not always late,” she protested.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Okay, maybe I do tend to be late more often than not, but it’s not on purpose,” she protested. “And what about you? You’re pretty damn perfect yourself. What are your flaws, so I don’t feel so disgruntled that you already know about my tendency to be late?”
Brain opened his mouth to say that he had plenty of flaws, but Gillian spoke up from behind him before he could.
“Brain doubts himself way too much,” she said.
“And his feet stink!” Trigger said with a grin. “Seriously, when we’re on a mission and he takes off his boots, we all nearly pass out.”
Brain flushed and turned to his friend, glaring at him. “Shut the fuck up.”
But amazingly, he heard Aspen giggling. He turned back to her. She stepped toward him and hooked her arm in his. “I’ll work on you doubting yourself, and I can handle stinky feet.”
“I thought you were never going to get here,” Gillian told Aspen, breaking the intimate bubble between her and Brain. “Brain made margaritas, and somehow they taste so much better tonight than in the past. You have to try one.”
“That’s because I made them extra sweet,” Brain said, not taking his eyes from Aspen’s. He saw the moment his words registered.
“Thank you,” she mouthed, before she let Gillian drag her off toward the kitchen to drop off the bowl of potato salad she was holding and to get a drink.
“Gillian’s been talking about seeing Aspen again all afternoon,” Trigger told him. “She really likes her.”
“Good. Aspen could use some friends,” Brain said, watching Aspen laugh at something Gillian said. Before long, his small kitchen was packed full when Kinley and Devyn joined the other women. They all topped off their cups and made a toast.
“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Trigger said.
“What?” Brain asked, tearing his eyes from Aspen to look at his friend.
“Wanting happiness for someone else more than you want it for yourself.”
Brain thought about Trigger’s words for a second, then he nodded. That was exactly how he felt. What he wanted didn’t seem to matter as much when Aspen was around. He only wanted her to fit in, to find the camaraderie she’d been looking for her entire life.
“Come on,” Trigger said, throwing his arm over Brain’s shoulders. “I’m hungry. You’ve got burgers to grill. She’s fine. The girls’ll take care of her.”
Brain nodded. He knew his friend was right. Aspen was in good hands.