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“Yeah,” he chuckled. “We take our coffee pretty seriously around here.”
“We?”
He let out a low whistle. “Damn Dakota, there’s so much you need to know. So much has happened.”
After fixing himself a mug, Jace crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter. Which was good, because it gave me an excuse to stare at those arms.
“Why don’t you start at the beginning?” I told him. “Last time I saw you was at my house, if you remember.”
He nodded slowly. “My going away party.” The grin beneath his beard widened. “That whole night was pretty fucking legendary.”
“Sure was.”
“I passed out cold, and you all shaved my head so Uncle Sam didn’t have to.”
I laughed as my mind traveled back in time with him. “I can still remember plugging in the buzzer,” I murmured. “I also remember being really depressed.”
“What? Why?”
“Because you were a hell of a lot of fun,” I told him, “all through high school. And it sucked that you weren’t going to be around anymore.”
Jace took a long, deep breath and let it out as a sigh. “Things always change, don’t they?”
“They sure do.”
He smiled again, and I felt that familiar pang of nostalgia. I could tell he felt it too.
“I remember you as Tyler’s little sister, always around. Always underfoot.”
“And I remember you as the tall, goofy kid who always got my brother in trouble,” I replied. “I was shocked when you said you’d signed with a recruiter. But I also figured the Army would straighten you out.”
“Oh, it straightened some things out,” Jace nodded. As he sipped his own mug I could see his eyes were still distant, still far away. “My God, boot camp seems like a thousand years ago.”
“Itwasa thousand years ago,” I agreed. “Or thereabouts.”
The sound of the front door unlatching echoed through the foyer, followed by cheerful voices that preceded their way into the kitchen. The first man through the archway was tall — even taller than Jace — and carried himself with a rock star’s swagger. His companion was equally well-built, with sprawling shoulders and a V-shaped body that only came with long, hard hours in the gym.
In fact, both men were covered in sweat. Their shirts stuck to their hard bodies in places I would’ve loved to spend more time looking at, if I weren’t already being introduced by Jace.
“Dakota, meet my housemates: Aurelius and Merrick.”
Merrick smiled and nodded politely, then began rifling through the fridge for something. But it was Aurelius, the exceptionally tall and goateed one, who took my palm and planted a kiss on the back of my hand.
“Congratulations on the wedding,” he winked.
