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“Didn’t realize you were still following that case.”
“I’m not,” he says defensively. “Just hard to miss when her face is splashed everywhere.”
Two months ago, my former brother-in-arms and good friend Lennox was reunited with his long-lost love. She dropped into his life rather dramatically and with her surprise appearance she also brought with her some drama.
Turns out, the con man who had been blackmailing Katrina was also tied up in some dark shit. Namely, the kidnapping and ransoming of a foreign princess. Katrina was free of her dark past now, but the trail of corruption was still being unearthed.
Not that he would tell anyone, but Cohen took the discovery of the princess being in danger harder than any of us. The last mission he completed, before being discharged with honors for medical purposes, was the rescue and extraction of the princess. Learning that he had been only partially successful was a bitter pill to swallow.
“There’s nothing we can do, Cohen,” I say in a low voice. The diner is crowded and there’s a buzz of chatter all around us but it’s instinct to be cautious. “It’s out of our range. We can’t get involved.”
“I know that.”
“You can’t keep—”
“Drop it,” he grunts, seconds before Mable slides our lunch plates across the table.
“Enjoy, boys,” she sings, already moving on to another table.
I give my brother one last glance over to make sure he’s okay and nod. There’s no point forcing the subject with him. If he wants to talk more, he’ll come to me when he’s ready.
“So, what did you end up getting Nox and Katrina as an engagement gift?”
His fork pauses halfway to his mouth. “We had to get them an engagement gift? I thought going to this thing was enough.”
Chuckling at his logic, I shake my head. “It’s an engagement party. Gifts are kind of expected.”
“Well fuck that.”
Continuing to laugh, I fight back the heavy feeling in my gut. I don’t want to call it jealousy but—fuck it, that’s exactly what it is. I’m happy for my friend. He was a grumpy bastard before Katrina came back into his life and now everything’s changed for him.
While I love the town and the mountainside property that my brother and I own, it’s hard to have much of a social life here. I’m the most outgoing between Nox and Cohen and have moments of feeling pent-up when I’m secluded in my cabin. They enjoy the solitude. Yet it feels like I endure it most days.
So yes, I’m a little jealous of my friend for finding love and celebrating the start of their life together. One day I hope to do the same. I just have to find her.
“When do we have to be at this thing again?”
“An hour.”
Cohen curses and I smile as I take a large bite of my burger.
Halfway through our meal Cohen’s cell buzzes on the table. I have to stifle my laugh at how fast he picks it up. I bet he set a notification to get updates on the princess whenever they were published online.
When he slams down the phone after a brief glance, I’m confused. Seeing my brow lift, Cohen shakes his head and continues eating.
“Just Mom, hounding me about a new project she has going.”
“Project? Like knitting? Or a new charity event?”
He grunts, not giving me a firm answer. Since he’s dropped the subject, I do too. I can always call Mom later and see what she’s gotten herself into. She always knows how to lift my mood.
A bright glare catches my attention and my eyes dart out the window to see a sleek red car zoom down the road. Must be an out-of-towner. Not many flashy cars in this town, so newbies were easy to spot.
I wonder about the stranger for all of a second before focusing back on my burger. I push away the silly notion that I should have continued to watch the car, make note of every detail. That was my past training coming to bite me in the ass. Always having to be suspicious of anything that may appear out of place.
I was home now. My Special Ops days were long behind me. I didn’t have to constantly worry about shit like that.
Yet the image of the red car didn’t leave me, and I had no clue about the chaos the small bundle inside would cause me hours later.
