Page 104 of Protective Heroes

“Because he was dating your girl?”

A growl shot up his throat before he could stop it. “Damn him, he knew I had my eye on her.”

“Apparently that didn’t matter. You and Ford always did have the same taste.”

“Don’t remind me.” He raised his beer to his lips. “Thing is, I think Ford is a decent guy. I just wish he’d stay away from Allison.”

“Nice name,” Colton said, finally getting a beer into his own hands.

Lincoln shot him another glare. “Not you too.”

“No, not me. I’m not interested in fighting over a female. They’re more trouble than they’re worth.” He looked toward the corner of the bar where Liberty was talking to some guys. She and Colton were on again, off again. Or fuck buddies one minute and enemies the next. Looked to be enemies right now, the way Colton was grinding his teeth.

“Allison’s not trouble to me.” Lincoln chugged half his bottle.

“What are you gonna do about this? Have you spoken to her since the fight?” Colton asked.

He shook his head. “Don’t know where to find her. I asked around a little, but I won’t risk acting like a creeper-stalker. She works in triage, but I haven’t been back there. She requested that I stay away. What the fuck am I to do? Show up on her door step. Tell her my dick and heart have been in knots since we last spoke. Can I come in?”

Her words still stung, but he knew she was just protecting herself from more pain. Damn whoever had hurt her in the first place. He’d made Lincoln’s job twice as hard, but he was determined.

“She wants you to stay away, so is it smart to keep thinking about her?”

He set the bottle down a little too hard, and Liberty gave him a warning look. She was one hard-ass woman. Barbed wire spritzed with alluring perfume. Nobody fucked with her. The only one she let close enough to think about it was Ren.

“I can’t just stop thinking about her.”

“You have feelings for her.”

“I don’t know how, but I do. We’ve seen each other very few times, but I have this connection to her I can’t explain. And the kiss. Fuck, man. I feel like I’ve known her my whole life from a fucking kiss. We haven’t even slept together yet. What the holy fuck is wrong with me?” He raised his bottle to his lips, only to find it empty. When he waggled it to call for another, Liberty lifted her chin in acknowledgement.

Colton leaned his elbows on the bar. “Sounds like you need to get around seeing her in triage, and it’s unlikely she’ll come back here.”

“Right.”

“So you need to get creative with your strategy. What does the Army do when we can’t get through a roadblock?”

Lincoln pushed out a breath and stared at his friend. “Send in reinforcements.”

Colton grinned as he took a swig of beer.

“Great idea, Ren. You’ve just been deployed.” He clapped him on the back. “Your first mission is to carry a message to her.”

A thick black brow shot up. “And how do you propose I get in there?”

“You were shot in Afghanistan, right?”

He nodded.

“Old injury flaring up.”

Colton shared a grin with him. “What’s the message?”

“You mean you’ll do it?” Lincoln shouldn’t be surprised—they all had each other’s backs.

“Of course. Tell me what you want to say. I’ll complete the mission.”

Lincoln thought for a long minute, formulating the words. When he finally told them to Ren, he made his friend recite them twice to make sure he wasn’t improvising. No, this message had to reach Allison exactly as stated.

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