Page 13 of Wrong Number Right Grumpy Navy SEAL

“Shooting gallery?”

“Twelve for twelve.” Cole smiles.

Jared pinches the bridge of his nose. “Showing off for my sister. Winning her a stuffed animal the size of a goddamn pony.”

Cole doesn’t blink. “Damn straight.”

The fight drains out of Jared’s face, replaced by something that damn sure better be acceptance. He looks at Cole for a long beat, then at me, before exhaling heavily and picking up his duffel bag.

“I’m not happy about walking in on my sister’s bra next to a stuffed bear in my living room. I want that on the record.”

“Noted,” Cole says.

“And you’re not fucking here.” Jared points at both of us. “Get a hotel room. I mean it. I don’t want to hear it or see it under my roof. I don’t want to think about it.”

“Jared—”

“I’m serious, Dahlia. I love you and I love him and I cannot be in this apartment while—” He holds up a hand. “No. Get a hotel room. That’s a rule. And take that goddamned stuffed animal with you.”

I laugh. Absurd, and exactly my brother. “Deal.”

He looks at Cole one more time and narrows his eyes. “You hurt her and I’ll kill you. That’s not a figure of speech.”

“I know,” Cole says. “I’d let you. But know this: this is me being in love with your sister. That’s not changing, so you better get used to it fast.”

Gerald is buckled into the middle seat of Cole’s truck because Cole insisted. I think I might actually be in love with a man who buckles in a stuffed bear. The highway hums under us, and Jared’s apartment shrinks in the side mirror.

My pulse is still kicking from what just happened. Not the confrontation, but what Cole said.

He told my brother This is me being in love with your sister. He said it with a certainty that took my breath away. And somehow it wasn’t a surprise. Because that’s what the last couple of days have felt like. Being supported. Having someone care enough about how you’re doing to pay attention and then lift you up when you’re low. Having someone genuinely compliment and admire you.

Fuck. Did I ever feel like that with Jason? I must have, but the hurt of him cheating has stopped me from remembering anything good about him.

I look at him. His mouth is a flat line, hands steady on the wheel, eyes locked on the road, and he’s back in that buttoned-up mode where everything is controlled and contained. I need to know if he meant it or if it was adrenaline and a shirtless standoff with my brother.

“Did you mean it?” My voice is quiet and I’m half-scared to ask the question. “What you told my brother.”

He glances at me and nods. “I don’t understand it. A few days. That’s all it’s been. But I love you more than I thought it was possible to love someone. I can’t make sense of it, and I’m not trying to. I just know I can’t imagine a day without you. An hour without you.”

My eyes burn. I press my lips together and stare at the dashboard because if I look at him right now, I’m going to cry, and the last thing I want to do is cry right now.

“No one’s made me laugh, real actual joy, in longer than I can remember.” His voice is low and stripped bare, his words heavy between us. “I came back from my last deployment, and the world went gray and stayed gray. Then you showed up in a pink dress, and my life was technicolor.” He shifts his grip on the wheel. “I’m sure as hell not giving up the woman who makes me feel something other than broken.”

The backs of my eyes sting, and my ribs feel too small for my heart.

He’s quiet for a beat. “I know you just went through hell with your ex. You don’t have to say it back. We’ll figure it out as we go. I’m certain, and I can wait. Whatever time you need, I’m not rushing you.”

I watch his profile, the way his hands grip the wheel like he’s holding himself to the road because everything else just tilted sideways. This man. My man.

“I’m certain too,” I say, my voice cracking. “This is different than anything I’ve ever felt. I don’t understand it either. But I don’t want to let go of you, Cole. I’m not letting go.”

He looks at me for half a second before his hand finds mine, and he squeezes once.

He releases my hand when the light turns, and I put my hand on his thigh.

“Dahlia.”

“Mm.”