Page 43 of The Darkest Knight

He shrugged and the arm of the T-shirt slid upward showing off his detailed tattoo. Her finger started tapping, wanting so badly to run her fingers along the inked picture. “When I was younger I was made to involve myself in the Knight soirees, but once I got old enough, I refused to attend all the glitzy, fritzy social parties. I don’t think any of my brothers enjoyed it either, they just must in order to rub elbows with benefactors. It’s their job. I, on the other hand, decided early on that I’d be burning my own path.”

“You joined the military.”

“Never regretted it, even after—” He closed his lips tight.

She was certain he was talking about the incident in Syria. Wanting to prod him to talk, she realized sitting around a table with a bunch of masculine men wouldn’t be the appropriate time to get him to divulge feelings. She might need a rope and pliers to make that happen.

“The trainer is coming soon, right?” Gage asked from across the table.

She reluctantly tore her gaze from Seth and onto the other man. “Yes. He’ll want to inspect the property, make sure it’s appropriate for the dogs. Talk to Seth about the necessary housing he’ll need. It’s important to have a suitable space for them.”

Lex scrubbed his sandpapery jaw. “Suitable for dogs? All they need is a place to squat, food to eat, and a place to sh—” His cheeks flamed and he lowered his gaze. “Sorry.”

Chuckles were heard from the men who were quickly finishing up their meals.

“Service dogs need more than just the obvious. It’s a very task-taking course the dogs must go through to learn the job. For instance, Abby was in training for two years before she was suitable for being a service dog. Now, she’s a natural.” At the mention of her name, she lifted her ears, but didn’t bother to raise her head. “They’ll need a special diet, proper vet care, and patience from people as they learn what’s expected of them.”

“This’ll be real interesting watching it come together. Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of services for veterans above the basics,” Johnny added, pushing his plate away, then patting his stomach.

Reese was glad to see that every man had cleared their plate because the food was just that good, except for hers that still held a lot of steak. Feeling guilty, she stabbed a piece of meat and pushed it into her mouth, chewing the perfectly seasoned meat. The delicious taste urged her to gulp another three slices until she couldn’t manage another bite.

“Alright, men. Let’s head back to work. The cabins won’t fix themselves,” Seth commanded and every man at the table stood and disposed of their empty plates into the trash can. Seth didn’t make a move.

“You okay?” she asked.

“How about we take a walk and discuss the details of hiring Isla?”

---