What Part of Marine Don't You Understand? (The Challenge Series) Read Online Free PDF Page B

would she bother?
    Clenching his fist, he rose. Breathe in. Breathe out. Pick up the basket, get Jethro’s leash, go for a walk. Offer to share lunch with her. Talk about her music. Talk about the weather ….
    Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he stared at it. He didn’t want to bother James with this, but maybe…he scrolled through his contacts and hit call on Logan’s number before he could over-think it.
    “Hey Matt, what’s up?” Logan Cavanaugh was the type of Marine Matt always imagined being, the ideal he wanted to live up to. Despite his injuries—or maybe because of them—Logan remained one of the toughest men Matt knew. In addition to his job as a counselor for incoming vets at Mike’s Place and a volunteer therapist, he worked on finishing a degree specializing in everything he already did.
    The man didn’t stop and didn’t allow anything to stop him.
    “I need a favor.”
    “Name it,” Logan said.
    Noise echoed in the background, weight machines, muted voices offering encouragement and the faint thrum of music. The clanging rattled Matt. Closing his eyes, he forced another noisy exhale.
    “Hey, Matt…just breathe through it, man.” The noise faded. Logan must have moved away from it. A door thudded closed and cut it off completely. “In for four and out for four. You know the drill.”
    “Yeah.” Dammit, he was better, why couldn’t he act it?
    “You know there was a guy once who fell in a hole and he shouted for help. This doctor comes by and writes a prescription, throws it in the hole. The guy is still down there and he shouts again, and a priest comes by. The guy asks for help and the priest writes him a prayer and throws it down. He even promises to light a candle for him.” Logan’s voice took on an easy cadence, and with every word, Matt’s breathing grew easier. “But the guy, he’s still in the hole and he’s getting hoarse from shouting. His buddy comes by and the guy yells up to him. His buddy jumps down in the hole with him. The guy can’t believe it, he clenches his fists and demands to know why his friend did something so stupid, now they’re both stuck. His buddy tells him, ‘but I’ve been down here before and I know how to get out.’”
    Matt’s heart rate slowed.
    “I’ve been in this hole, Matt. I’m down here for as long as you need me to be and we’ll walk out together, okay?”
    “I like this girl.” He blurted the words out before he could think too hard about it.
    “Yeah?” A smile rolled through the single syllable.
    “Yeah. She’s—her name is Naomi. She’s a songwriter. I keep running into her practicing and we’ve hung out.”
    “Okay.” He didn’t push, he didn’t prod, only waited.
    “Damon sent a lunch over and I wanted to take it with me today, you know—surprise her with it.” He pushed past the hesitation. “Am I insane?”
    “Because you want to take her lunch?”
    “No, I want a whole lot more than lunch.”
    “But you’re just taking her lunch, so that’s not crazy, and if she keeps going to the same spot to practice, you’re not bugging her. Is this Sparks? Congressman Sparks sister?”
    Her last name was Sparks, but he hadn’t drawn the connection to any political figures. “Maybe? I don’t really keep up on that stuff.”
    “Jazz mentioned her. She’s been doing some fact finding for her brother while she’s here. He’s one of our bigger supporters. Look—take her lunch. Eat food. Talk about the weather. It’s okay to enjoy yourself.”
    Really?
    Logan added, “I know it doesn’t seem like that and you’re probably feeling guilty for enjoying yourself. But you don’t have to. In fact—let’s make this an order. Go spend a couple of hours and forget everything but having a good time.”
    Oddly enough, that helped. “Yes, sir.”
    “You good now?”
    “I think so.” More than a little. His breathing relaxed and the shake in his hand eased. The thought of the sandwiches made his stomach growl.