Chapter 16 #2
“Nah…I just wasn’t thinking.” Jeremy shook his head.
“Remember Cameron Overton, that prick from high school? Well, he went to ODU. We weren’t friends, but he hung out at some of the same places I did.
Fucker posted some pictures on social media of me locking lips with some girls at a bar.
I was wasted and don’t even remember kissing anyone, but damn, if that wasn’t the night I was taking dares like crazy. ”
“And Emily saw them.” Jack shook his head at Jeremy’s bad luck.
“Oh yeah. I didn’t know until the next time I had leave and showed up at her house. I thought we could go out, but she told me that I was the last person she wanted to be with. Then she slammed the door in my face.”
“Oh damn,” Jose mutters under his breath.
“It gets worse,” Jeremy admitted. “Aiden opens the door, doesn’t speak, but holds up his phone with the pictures on a rotating screen. I knew then I was fucked.”
“Jesus, man.” Jack winced. “That's rough.”
“Now, she won’t take my calls or talk to me if we see each other out somewhere.” Jeremy took another drink while Jack and Jose shared a lifted-brow, bug-eyed look.
“Let me guess,” Jack said quietly. “You want her back.”
“Exactly.” Jeremy met his eyes. “She’s the only woman I want in my life.”
Jack felt the words hit uncomfortably close to home.
“Can't blame them,” Jose said, glancing at the bar. “You broke her heart and walked away. They're just protecting their family.”
“I know.” Jeremy's misery was palpable. “And the worst part is, Emily won't even look at me. I've tried calling, texting, showing up where she works. Nothing. She's completely shut me out.”
Jack took a sip of his beer, his mind churning. “You ever think that maybe she needs time? That you can't just waltz back in and expect her to forgive you immediately?”
“Every damn day.” Jeremy looked up.
The table fell silent for a moment. Jack felt the weight of Jeremy's situation settling in his own chest. How many chances did you get before you had to accept that some mistakes couldn't be fixed? “I'm in the same boat, you know,” Jack said quietly. “With Rachel.”
Both men looked at him with surprise.
“Rachel Ayers?” Jose asked. “I thought you two were endgame. Everyone did.”
“We were supposed to be.” Jack traced the condensation on his beer glass. “But I fucked up. Multiple times. Broke up with her twice because I thought I was doing the right thing. Thought I was protecting her from the Navy life, from deployments and uncertainty.”
“And you weren't?” Trevor asked.
“Maybe I was. Or maybe I was just protecting myself from having to balance duty and love. From having to choose.” Jack met Trevor's eyes. “Either way, I hurt her. And now I’ve heard she might be dating someone else, so I have to work harder to have her give me another chance.”
“But you want to,” Jose said. It wasn't a question.
“More than anything.” The admission felt like ripping off a bandage. “I'm building a life here. But none of it means anything if Rachel's not a part of it.”
“So what are you going to do differently?” Jeremy asked. “Sounds like you’re still maxed out… full-time job and coaching part-time?”
“Now, I’m older and hopefully smarter.” Jack shook his head. “Show up. Be present. Prove that I'm not leaving again. Hope that eventually she'll trust me enough to give me one more shot.”
“That's my plan too.” Jeremy nodded. “Though it's not going so well with the MacFarlane protection detail breathing down my neck.”
“I’m outprocessing the Marines,” Trevor said, shaking his head. He looked at Jack and grinned. “Hoping to get on with the Sheriff’s department.”
“You getting back with your high school girlfriend?” Jose asked. “Rosanna?”
“No way… that ship has sailed. But who knows? I’m hoping to run into someone here. Just don’t know if it’ll happen.
Jose laughed, but there was sympathy in it. “We’re a bunch of fucking messes.”
“What about you?” Jack asked, grateful to shift focus. “Anyone back home you're trying to win over?”
Jose's expression darkened slightly. “Emma Bunswick. We dated in high school. I was crazy about her.”
“Bunswick? Is that Terry Bunswick’s daughter? The Drug Task Force captain?”
“Yeah.”
“Damn, that’s about as bad as me with Emily.” Jeremy laughed.
Jose snorted. “You’re not telling me anything I don’t know.”
“And? What happened?” Jeremy prompted.
“I joined the Marines right after graduation. Told her I'd come back for her, that we'd make it work.” Jose's jaw tightened. “But she headed to college, and we just went in different directions.”
“Where is she now?” Jack asked.
“You wouldn’t fucking believe it. She’s also back on the Shore.
” Jose's smile was sad. “I see her around town sometimes.
She's always friendly and asks how I'm doing. I just never worked up the courage to ask her out again.” Jose raised his glass.
“So here's to us. Four idiots who thought we were being heroes by walking away from the women we loved.”
Jack, Trevor, and Jeremy raised their glasses with Jose, the clink of glass against glass somehow both celebratory and mournful.
“So what do we do?” Jose asked. “Just accept that we screwed up and move on?”
“No.” Jack's voice was firm. “We do what we should have done in the first place. We fight for them. We show up, day after day, and we prove that we're here for them.”
“And if they don't want us back?” Jeremy asked quietly.
“Then at least we'll know we tried,” he said. “At least we'll know we didn't give up without a fight.”
Jeremy nodded slowly, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. “You're right. I just wish Aiden would give me five minutes to explain. To apologize.”
“Maybe he will, eventually.” Jack clapped Jeremy on the shoulder. “But first you've got to show him you're serious. That you're not going anywhere this time.”
“To staying,” Jeremy said, raising his glass again.
“To not being idiots anymore,” Jose added.
“To second chances,” Jack finished. “And to the women brave enough to consider giving them to us.”
They drank, and Jack felt something settle in his chest. He wasn't alone in this. Jeremy, Trevor, and Jose understood what it meant to walk away and regret it. To serve their country but lose their hearts in the process.
Through it all, Jack felt the last pieces of his decision clicking into place.
This was where he belonged. Not on a ship halfway around the world, not in a barracks in California, but here.
Among people who knew his history, who'd watched him grow up, who'd welcome him home without judgment or expectation.
They said their goodbyes, and Jack climbed into his SUV. As he drove back to his parents' house, his mind replayed the evening. The American Legion meeting. The conversations at the pub. The easy way he'd slipped back into the rhythm of Baytown life.
This was right. Coming home was right.
Now he just had to figure out how he could make it work with Rachel. How to show her he was serious about staying and building a life here. How to earn back the trust he'd broken.
But that was a problem for tomorrow. Tonight, Jack just let himself feel grateful for the community that had welcomed him home, and hopeful for the future that was finally starting to take shape.