Chapter Twelve
Sloane
It might have been harder to leave Ashley’s side in the morning, had I not remembered that the sooner I left, the sooner I could get back to her.
“Are you sure you aren’t going to need your car, sweetness?” I whispered against her ear after I’d gotten dressed.
She squeezed the pillow I’d been using against her middle and, eyes still closed, mumbled, “No, I’m not going anywhere.”
“Okay, then I’ll see you later, baby.”
“Hurry back,” she lazily replied, then rolled over, taking the pillow with her.
“Count on it.”
As I started her Camry, I reflected on how thoughtful she’d been from her very first letter, and now here she was, loaning me her car. While I’d much rather be driving my Jeep, I appreciated that I hadn’t had to take it out of storage and make it drive worthy only to turn around five days later and re-prep it to sit long-term again.
The last two days with Ash had been incredible—fucking storybook worthy, but I couldn’t help but go back to worrying about if I was being fair to her.
Not just asking her to wait for me to return, but knowing there was a real possibility that I might not seemed even more selfish. The more I grew to care about her, the shittier I felt about it.
How was that for irony?
I was so fucking conflicted. Meeting with two commanders to iron out the details of the mission didn’t make things easier. As we chose the childless men to take part in the operation, all I could think was I needed to cut her loose. Something I knew was going to be easier said than done because I was a selfish fuck.
Just before lunch, my phone dinged with an incoming text.
Ryan: Don’t forget—O’Malley’s tonight. 6:30. It’s a party in your honor, so you better be there.
Me: I’ll be there, albeit under protest.
Ryan: Come on, dude. People miss you. They want to celebrate you’re home, even if it’s only for the weekend.
Me: I’d just much rather hang out with my core group of friends.
Ryan: Tomorrow night.
I snorted when I read his text.
Tomorrow night, my ass.
I was going to spend Saturday alone with Ashley, and maybe Tank, depending on what we did. Although, my first choice was more of what we’d done when we got back to her apartment last night.
That had definitely not been pet-friendly.
Me: We’ll see. I kind of wanted to have some alone time with Ashley.
Ryan: You can have alone time at night. We miss you, too, man.
I knew I was a lucky son-of-a-bitch to have people who cared about me like family. Especially when my own family hadn’t given two shits about me my entire life.
Me: I know. I miss you guys, too. And I appreciate everything you’re doing for me with Tank.
Ryan: Don’t sweat it. We all love that dog. But we love you, more.
Goddammit. How was I supposed to beg off tomorrow when he said shit like that?
Me: You guys are my family, you know that. I’ll see you tonight.
Ryan: You’re still bringing Ashley, right?
Duh.
Me: Absolutely. Why?
Ryan: Just double checking. There were some single ladies who were asking.
Me: Not interested.
Ryan: I figured, but I thought I’d make sure.
Me: Come on, dude. You know me better than that.
Ryan: Actually, I’ve never seen you with someone longer than a weekend.
Me: Yeah, well, Ashley’s different.
Ryan: So, I’m gathering. I’m happy for you, man.
I wanted to tell him not to get too excited. I still wasn’t sure what I was going to do come Monday. My head was telling me one thing while my heart had countered with, don’t even fucking think about it .
I was trying to be cavalier and tell myself it was a problem for Monday morning, but that wasn’t how I operated. I was a planner by nature. Not only did I have a Plan A, I had Plans B, C, and D—it’s how I’d kept me and my Marines alive.
That’s why I was so worried about this upcoming mission. It was a different animal altogether, and we were going to be flying by the seat of our pants.
Being able to alter course on a dime wasn’t anything new—it was a normal occurrence in my line of work. But that’s where Plans B, C, and D came in. The problem with the next operation was there was no Plan B. Plan A either worked or people were going to die.
Which brought me back to my current dilemma.
Me: I’ll talk to you more about it tonight.
Ryan: You’re not thinking about doing anything crazy and marrying her this weekend, are you?
Me: Are you fucking nuts?? No, I’m debating if I should end things after this weekend.
Ryan: I’m so confused. I thought you said she was special?
Me: And therein lies the problem.
Ryan: You’re not making any sense.
Me: I’ll talk to you tonight when she’s not around.
Ryan: This oughta be good. Can’t wait to hear the jarhead logic behind this one.
Me: Fuck you.
Ryan: Love you, too, man.
Ryan: Don’t forget—O’Malley’s TONIGHT at 6:30 SHARP.
Ryan: Okay, maybe not SHARP, but 6:30!
I chuckled as I slipped my phone in my pocket. Damn, I loved that guy.
****
Ashley
“Please tell me you’ll come,” I begged Tammy after getting Sloane’s text reminding me about his party tonight.
“Gee, meet the hot Marine you’re crushing on and his single Marine, fire fighter, and cop friends? Twist my arm!”
I let out a big sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
“So, what are you wearing?”
“I think the dark jeans that make my butt look good, brown boots—”
“Over the jeans?”
“Yeah.”
“I approve. Continue.”
“I was going to wear my beige sweater but since it’s a bar, it will probably get warm, so maybe just my maroon blouse—”
“The V-neck one?”
“Yeah.”
“Your boobs look amazing in that one. Good choice.”
“Thanks. What about you? What are you going to wear?”
“I’m not sure yet. Jeans—obviously, but I’ll have to look in my closet to figure out what shoes and top.”
I hesitated to ask the next question, since I was pretty sure I already knew what Tammy’s answer would be.
“Do you think I should cover my birthmark?”
“You haven’t done it yet, why start now?”
“I don’t know. I guess I don’t want Sloane to be embarrassed to be seen with me.”
“Sweetheart, if he’d be embarrassed to be seen with you, then he’s not worth your time, and I’m putting my pajamas on and staying home.”
“Okay, fine. No makeup.”
“Well, don’t get crazy. Wear makeup, just no foundation.”
“That’s what I meant.”
“Just making sure. What time is this shindig?”
“We’re going to get there around six-thirty.”
“Okay, I’ll get there about a quarter to seven then.”
“Thank you again for doing this for me. I mean, his friends have all been super nice, but it would just be nice to have someone on Team Ashley.”
“Babe, I’m Team Ashley all the way. I’ll see you tonight.”
I knew Tam always had my back, and I was grateful for that.
I don’t know why I was so nervous about tonight. I’d already met his close friends at the base when he got off the plane. But Sloane had mentioned O’Malley’s was going to be a lot bigger crowd than Wednesday’s. Crowds weren’t my favorite thing.
Still, I’d suck it up for him. The fact that Tammy was going to be there made it that much easier.