Page 76 of No Regrets

Kelly wiped her eyes. “Doesn’t matter. Dex and I are just friends. He is free to do what he wants. I’ll message him my condolences, tell him I’m thinking of him, just like any good friend would. But that’s all I can offer him right now.”

“OK. Will you be alright? I can stay.”

“No. It’s late. Thank you for coming over, Sophie, you are an amazing friend.”

“Any time. Please don’t bottle this up. Talk to Claire if you need to.”

“I will.”

Sophie left, and Kelly sat outside, gazing up at the stars. Dex was just a few houses down the street. Was he sitting on his back deck too? Listening to the waves, thinking about his father? Or was the blonde there, holding his hand, soothing him?

You have no right to be jealous. He’s a single, hot blooded, gorgeous, loving man. It was only a matter of time until he found someone else. You’re just friends now.

She pulled out her phone and shot off a text.

I just heard. I’m so sorry Dex. I will miss him so much. Thinking of you. K

There, that was the kind of text a friend would send.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Dex straightened his tie. It was going to be a long day. He would’ve preferred a small service of family and close friends only. But his father had been well-known in the Navy and there were a lot of people that wanted to pay their respects. He wouldn’t deny them that; his father deserved it. The three days since Pops death had left Dex numb and, despite his team rallying around him, very lonely.

“Dexter, the car’s here.” His Aunt Mary’s voice floated up from the first floor. She’d flown in from Tampa with her daughter Maria. Mary and his father had not been very close, so Dexter had only seen her a dozen or so times in his life. But she’d insisted on coming today, knowing Dex had no other blood family here.

On his way downstairs, he heard voices. Rounding the corner, he found Joe and his wife Lynne standing in his living room chatting with Mary and Maria. He’d met his former CO’s wife several times at Navy events.

“Joe, Lynne, good to see you.”

Lynne gave him a hug, kissing him on the cheek. Joe shook his hand.

“Dex, I know you’re setting off soon, but I have some news I wanted to share before we go to the service.” Joe gestured toward the front porch. “Won’t take a minute.”

Dex followed him out, seeing the hearse waiting outside. The thought of his father in that casket caught him off guard. He leaned on the porch railing to take a breath.

“You OK?”

“Yeah.” His voice was raspy. “What’s the news?”

“LAPD found the driver.”

That got his attention. “Who?” He straightened.

“Nineteen-year-old kid called Carlos Ramadas. He stole the SUV as a dare. Lost control.”

Dex looked at the hearse. Thirty years in service, too many deployments and operations to count, and Pops was killed by a goddamn kid on a joy ride.

“Thanks for coming to tell me, Joe. Not sure if it makes me feel better or worse.”

“Hopefully it gives you some closure. He’ll get jail time for this.”

Dex nodded, not able to speak.

Joe placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll see you there.”

He watched them leave just as one of Onyx’s black Cadillac SUVs pulled in. Surprising the hell out of him, Sam stepped out. He’d called before, leaving him a voicemail offering his condolences and telling him to take whatever time he needed, but he never expected him to come. They still hadn’t really spoken since Sam handed him his ass after that op. He walked down the steps to meet him.

“Dex, I’m really sorry for your loss. I’d have come over sooner, but I couldn’t ditch Nyx.”

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