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“And Megan pegged me for Special Forces and started flirting with me the night we met.”
“I did not,” Megan protested.
“Really?” Reece raised an eyebrow.
“Okay, it wasn’t hard to guess you were in the Ranger Battalion with the high and tight haircut and the fact that the groom was also a Ranger, but I wasn’t flirting. Much.”
Graham couldn’t help but snicker. Subtle had never been Megan’s M.O.
“She wanted the bride to switch things soI’dwalk her down the aisle after the ceremony.” Reece aimed a cocky grin at Megan, who gave a casual shrug and smiled back at him.
“And did she?” Erin asked.
“No. She’d become a bridezilla, and we had to go in the order of the program, which paired me with her younger brother because I was the shortest bridesmaid. Like it mattered since, in the heels she made us wear, he only came up to my chin.”
Erin laughed. “Did you know who her dad was?” she asked Reece.
“Not until the wedding reception the next day when I saw her tent card with her name at the wedding party’s table. I was in the Second Ranger Battalion, and he was the lieutenant colonel. Holmstrom’s not exactly a common name.”
“I’m glad that didn’t scare him off. I liked him better than any of her other boyfriends,” Graham said lowly to Erin. With Megan’s independent nature, she needed a strong-minded man. Growing up exposed to the Special Forces community also made her an ideal match for an operator because she knew the hardships that life entailed, and many marriages didn’t survive them. It was partly why he was in this predicament. He could see Erin as the kind of woman who’d fit into this life with the responsibilities that came with it. Be a role model for the younger wives in the unit—if only she were open to marriage.
* * *
“Arewe having dessert before or after we play games?” Jace asked after finishing two plates of ribs and sides.
“After. Even I can’t eat anything else right now.” Reece pushed his chair away and started clearing plates.
While the family used to play games after dinner, they hadn’t since Bethann had died. Graham considered it a good sign that Jace wanted to revive the tradition and include Erin. “Do you play games?” Graham asked her.
“Yes, to card and board games. I stink at video games. They tried to teach me how to playCall of Dutyat a USO game night. Half the time, I was dead before I figured out which button did what. And if my video game driving skills carried over to real life, it would result in death or at least losing my license.”
Jace laughed. “You ever play a card game called Generic?”
“No,” Erin answered.
“No one seems to know it. The Withams taught us while we were at Fort Lewis, and our family got addicted,” Graham explained to Erin. “It’s similar to a game called Hand and Foot.”
“A quarter of the 82ndAirborne knows how to play after our deployment. There were only so many video games to go around. I’ll get the cards.” Jace got up.
“Let us clean up first.” Exasperation crept into Megan’s voice.
“I’ll help.” Erin stacked Graham’s plate with hers.
“We’ve got this. You’re company.” Megan quickly claimed the plates. “Jace can explain how to play.”
Graham cringed inwardly at how the wordcompanysounded like a reminder to Erin. Maybe this was moving too fast for Megan with dinner and games, but he hadn’t expected Jace to suddenly resume game night. “You need the same number of players on each team, so we haven’t played in a while. We should do two teams of three while she’s learning.” The game would go faster too.
“We should probably put you two on the same team so you don’t throw the game,” Jace suggested.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Graham said.
“I do want to see how competitive you are and if you’re a good sport.” Erin eyed him.
“He’s typically a good sport. With his years of military service, he’s also a master strategist,” Reece added.
“But you can’t control the cards you draw,” Graham countered. That proved to be the case, with them losing after less than an hour of play.
“Sorry,” Erin said.
