Up in Flames (Crash and Burn, Book Two) (A Military Romance) Read Online Free PDF

of a PI when I relayed the strange phone call with my brother, but maybe I could look into it quietly. Just to keep tabs on him and make sure he’s okay.
    When my cell rings, I peek one eye open and glance at the screen. My heart kicks hard against my ribcage. Just the person I wanted to hear from right now. “Hello, kitten,” I say into the phone on a low breath.
    “Hey, you,” Lauren says. I can hear a hint of concern in her voice. Knowing she’s worried about me takes away some of the pain in my chest. “What’s wrong? You don’t sound right.”
    I give a tired laugh. “I said two words. How can you tell what I’m feeling based on just that?”
    “I know you.” The words are simple but true. She’s right—she does know me. Some of my lingering unease fades away as I settle deeper into the leather chair and let the warmth of her voice wash over me. The cadence is a sheer pleasure to listen to. “I figured you were busy at work and are trying to relax, but…I just wanted to talk to you for a moment, to say hi.” There’s a tiny, almost indiscernible edge of vulnerability in her tone, along with notes of something else.
    Did she miss me? Think about me all day the way I did her? Was she waiting for me to call? I planned to shortly, but I wanted to regroup first.
    I can’t be the only one feeling this. Lauren called me before I even got a chance to ring her up. That has to mean something.
    “Work was crazy, yeah.” I pause. “Heard from Dad earlier.”
    “Crap. I’m guessing it didn’t go well,” she murmurs. “Are you okay? Wait, let’s not do this over the phone. I’ll come get you. We’ll go to the park and talk.”
    I can’t help the grin that spreads on my face. So many hours of our youth spent there, sitting on the swings or doing lazy circles on the merry-go-round, talking about everything under the sun, from how badly we bombed the math quiz to how much I desperately wanted to be a different person, anyone other than myself. Haven’t been back there in years. “Sounds good.” I suddenly feel more perked up. Wasn’t planning on seeing her today, so this is a nice surprise.
    “I’ll be there in fifteen.”
    We hang up. I groan as I rise from the chair, stretch the tight muscles of my lower back. I have to get back in a gym, back to a regular workout routine—I’m getting too fucking lazy if standing on my feet all day is making me this sore. Lame. After working at the bar the last several days, I have an all-new respect for Xander, who does this daily, no complaints. And he has a wife and a kid, too.
    Maybe I’ll be in his shoes soon.
    The thought of Lauren’s belly swollen with my child, her hands resting on the curve, feeling a little foot kick against my palm… I have to fight off the protective, yet also sexual, reaction that sweeps over me. Putting the cart before the horse, I tell myself. I gotta take this in steps. Can’t rush it.
    I change out of my faded T-shirt into a long-sleeved dark gray shirt and grab a bottle of screw-top pink wine from Dad’s small wine cooler, for old time’s sake. Lauren pulls into the driveway a few minutes later. I stroll down the front steps toward her, and I can’t help the small thrill of cockiness I feel when I realize her gaze is fixed hard on me. Guess my laziness the last couple of weeks with not working out regularly hasn’t yet impacted the way I look. I try not to smirk.
    I slide into the passenger seat of her sedan. Before she can say a word, I reach over and brush a soft kiss on her plump lips. She sighs against my mouth, and I feel her warm and relax toward me. This is how I want her, not wound tight or overthinking everything. Just feeling. It’s so fucking tempting to plunge deeper, but I pull back and exercise the few scraps of control I manage to retain around her.
    “You brought wine,” she says in a breathless voice, and I chuckle.
    “We have to stick to our tradition.” Also per our tradition, I didn’t bring any