Page 6 of Oblivion

“Got sent those photos from a blocked number an hour or so ago,” I snapped, then took a long pull. “I was already on my way home, confronted Sadie, then kicked her ass out.”

Doughboy raised his eyebrows, surprised. “She’s gone? Just like that?”

“Just like that.”

“So, what? No explanation, just‘laters’?”He danced his hand through the air.

“I got all the explanation I needed. She cheated while I was on deployment. Once she saw the photos, there was no way she could deny it.”

Pittsy set his elbows on the table and leaned forward. “Who was it?”

“Dunno, and I didn’t ask.”

“Why the fuck not?”

Nausea rolled in my gut. I simply didn’t want to know. “Because it doesn’t matter who it was. It wouldn’t have changed the way I handled things.”

Pittsy lowered his voice and his light eyes radiated hatred. “It isn’t Ward in the photos, is it?”

My mouthful barely made its way down. “Nope,” I croaked grittily. “It apparently happened while he, Forrest, and I were on our last tour in Iraq. Did you guys not hear about her messin’ around on me? Ward seemed to think everyone knew.”

The guys shook their heads as no’s came from left, right, and center.

Carson “Doughboy” Reid grabbed my phone and punched in my pin. His eyes scanned the photos again, narrowing as he studied them closely. He was known for his attention to detail, and often flew under the radar. He’d originally joined the U.S. Army as an infantryman—hence why we called himDoughboy.

“Whose place are they at?” he asked without looking up.

I shook my head and lifted my beer to my mouth once more. “No fucking clue.”

He exchanged my phone for his bottle, then clinked it against mine with a smirk. “I’ll meet you at the bottom, brother.”

* * *

I glared hard at Forrest. “Take a fucking picture. It’ll last longer.”

He pursed his lips for a brief second. “You know what you need?”

I set my beer bottle down heavily. “Look, don’t go offering a blow job until you’ve at least shaved your beard and used lip balm. Chapped lips are an instant no-go for me, brother.”

A booming laugh came from the five-foot-ten wall of muscle. “I’ll break you in half and make you suck your own cock before my mouth goes anywhere near it!”

“Remove a couple of my ribs while you’re at it; make it really fucking worthwhile,” Pittsy boomed.

Forrest roared with laughter until he coughed and wheezed, setting off the other guys too.

We’d been knocking back drinks for the last two hours, and were well and truly shit-faced. Drinking with commiseration quickly turned to drinking with purpose, and the more fucked up I got, the less Sadie occupied my mind.

Forrest finally got his laughter under control, though his shit-eating grin remained. “Boys’ trip to Vegas. It’s long overdue.”

Jenny—fellow Green Beret teammate and close friend, Chen Huang—rubbed his hands together. “What better way to start afresh than getting rotten in Vegas?”

“I’m sure Mei will disagree,” I deadpanned, reaching for another drink.

His smile widened. “She’ll be fine as long as I don’t come home with three and a half grand on the credit card again.”

Pittsy cut in. “So fucking worth it. That party we ended up at was off the chartsinsane!The chicks in Vegas are dirty, and good thing for me, dirty bitches are exactly my type.”

Forrest snorted. “You’d fuck anything with more than one leg.”

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