Page 15 of Love Without Demands

I didn’t really like talking about myself—though I’d had no problem doing so with Lehra yesterday—but I wanted to play nice with these guys.

“I’m thirty-one. Grew up in Galveston, Texas, but went into the Marines right after high school.”

“I’m from Houston,” Kai said quietly, holding up a fist for me to bump. “Nice to see another south Texas guy.”

“Same. How long have you lived in New York?”

“Six years. I was a sniper in the Army before that.”

“Kai here can shoot a booger out of a fly’s nose from a thousand yards,” Maverick commented.

“Do flies have noses?” Jayden asked, and we all chuckled as the waitress approached.

“Another round, fellas?” Everyone nodded, and she turned to me. “What can I get for you, New Fucker?”

I grinned and shook my head. They even got the staff in on their little game. “Beer. Whatever you have on tap is fine.”

“You have a woman?” Curly asked me, and I shook my head.

“No. So you’re all single except for Mav?”

“Yep, I’m holding out for Curly’s mom,” Jayden commented, his lips curling into a mischievous smile when the bald man flipped him off.

The server brought our drinks, beer for everyone except Mav, who was drinking soda. “Sober for fifteen years,” he informed me as he took a sip.

I really liked these guys. They razzed the hell out of each other, and it felt good to just hang out again. I hadn’t done that in a while, not since leaving the military. Besides work, my family had been my focus the past couple years.

At the end of the night, Curly slapped me on the shoulder and said, “Same time next week, New Fucker. See you then.”

Pleased, I went home with a smile on my face.

Chapter 4

I rushed into theButterfly Martini Bar on the Friday night before Christmas, walking beneath the hundreds of multicolored butterflies suspended from the ceiling. This place was gorgeous and had such a fun vibe.

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” I said, dropping into a chair. My friends Artie and Nicolette were already waiting for me.

“No biggie,” Artie said, kissing the chill from my cheek with a smack. “We just got here. They have a special menu featuring Christmas martinis.” He handed me a leather-bound card.

“I’m getting the cranberry one,” Nicolette informed me, pushing a loose strand of dark, wavy hair behind one ear. My friend was gorgeous, with the most striking green eyes I’d ever seen, but she hid herself behind thick black glasses and prim buns.

“Hmmm.” I perused the selections and made my decision just as Charmaine, our regular server, approached.

“Merry Christmas, y’all,” she said. Charmaine was originally from Arkansas and still retained most of her adorable accent. “Did you see our specials?”

“Merry Christmas,” I told her, stripping off my black wool coat and hanging it on the back of the chair. “We saw them. I’m going to try the peppermint one. Vodka, not gin.”

“Oooh, that’s a good one, honey. Very snappy. What about you, Nicolette?”

“Cranberry Chill.”

“I like that one too.” She placed a hand on her hip and turned to Artie. “Are you trying something new tonight?”

“No, I’ll have the regular. A dirty martini.” He stroked his closely shorn red beard and lifted an eyebrow. “Very dirty. I’m talking, I want it to beanal sex with a hobodirty.”

We all cracked up. We lived to hear how Artie was going to embellish his standing order every time we met.

“Got it, you crazy freak,” Char teased, tapping him on the head with her butterfly-shaped order pad. “Be right back.”

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