The Returning Hero Read Online Free PDF Page A

hands and slapping him on the back at the same time. They hadn’t seen each other in months.
    “How are you, stranger?”
    Brett shrugged. “Better now I’ve seen you.”
    They stared at one another, so much unsaid, but it only lasted a moment. Logan knew what had happened, would be the only person in Brett’s life who would ever come close to understanding what he’d experienced, although even he couldn’t imagine how disturbing it had been, how violent. They hadn’t seen each other in a long while, had a lot of catching up to do.
    Brett shook off his thoughts. “What are we drinking? My shout.”
    “Start with a beer or straight to bourbon?” Logan asked.
    Jamie laughed, and Brett angled his body to better include her. He’d been so wound up in seeing Logan again that he’d almost forgotten about her. Brett touched his palm to her back, moving her forward between them and taking a step back to make room for her.
    “I think we’ll start with beer. How about you?”
    Jamie smiled. “Um, maybe a cocktail for me.”
    Logan raised his eyebrows and Brett laughed. “So maybe we’ll start with bourbon then, if you’re hitting the strong stuff straight away.”
    Jamie leaned over the counter to reach for a menu. “It’s been a looong time since I’ve been out. Can’t you tell? The only cocktail I can think of is a Cosmopolitan from Sex and the City , but there must be something else….”
    “Long Island iced teas,” Logan announced. “Three of them.”
    Jamie pushed her shoulders up, shrugging, an innocent expression on her face. Brett needed to warn her.
    “They’re kind of potent,” he said.
    Her smile was sweet enough to make him feel dirty for admiring her cleavage when she leaned forward.
    “Lucky I have you two to look after me then, huh?” She put an arm around each of them, her smile infectious. “I need a night of just having fun, so order away, boys. I’m in.”
    Brett did as he was told and watched her walk off with Logan, looking for a quieter, more comfortable place to sit. They all had a lot to talk about, or maybe they didn’t. Maybe tonight was about letting Jamie have fun without feeling guilty, just being there for her and making sure she had a good time and got home safely at the end of the evening.
    He just had to remind himself that he would have plenty to be guilty about if he ever let himself give in to the way he was feeling about her. Brett paid for the drinks and stuffed his wallet back in his pocket, before carrying their drinks to the table. He could see Jamie leaning toward Logan, talking, touching his shoulder as they discussed something that had her smiling. Logan was rock-solid, the perfect guy to be spending time with Jamie, because he would honor his word and never do anything that would jeopardize their friendship or the one he’d had with Sam. Trouble was, it wasn’t Logan who was spending time with Jamie, because he was still working.
    “Drink up,” he announced, placing the tall glasses on the table and sitting down beside Jamie.
    The way she looked at him took him by surprise, made him hope that Logan hadn’t noticed it, but maybe he was just being oversensitive.
    “To Sam,” Logan said, holding up his drink. “A good soldier, a damn good friend and husband to the sweetest woman I’ve ever met.”
    Brett glanced at Jamie, saw her eyes were damp. He held up his own glass. “Cheers to that.”
    They all took a sip, but Jamie was spluttering as soon as she’d swallowed her first mouthful.
    “Are you guys trying to kill me? This stuff is like poison.”
    Brett laughed. “It gets better. Just keep drinking.”
    “Has Brett shown you his new tattoo?” Logan asked.
    Jamie shook her head, looking at him. “Nope.” She took another sip and grimaced again.
    “Brett had his done as soon as he was out of recovery, and I got mine when I touched down in Australia.”
    “You have new matching ones?” she asked. “Can I see?”
    Logan pushed his T-shirt