Page 77 of Major Love

And to remind him what will be here for him if and when he decides to leave the Army.

I don’t say that last part but, from the way that Jason’s eyes search mine, I’m one-hundred percent sure that he knows what I’m thinking.

He says nothing for a beat before nodding and standing straighter. He’s so tall it’s crazy, and I tilt my head back so that I can look up at him.

“Alright.”

I lift my eyebrows. “Alright?” I ask.

“Yeah.” He looks me over. “It’s a good idea, if you’ve got the time for it.”

Then his eyes are flashing down to mine, silently asking me the same question he has been for weeks now – if I’m still working on stuff for Nashville and, by extension, if my life is going to stay there.

Maybe it’s my thermals, or maybe it’s the intensity of his irises, but I’m sweating so hard that I have to slip down off the counter, dying for a shower.

“I’ve got time for it,” I say at last, looking up at him from under my lashes.

It’s not a definitive answer but it’s all that I can give him at this second.

And from the satisfied way that his chest swells and his dimples deepen, I think that he’s okay with that for now.

He swipes the bowl from the counter and uses my spoon to steal the last bite of sundae, laughing as I gasp in mock-indignation and then smiling down at me.

“Alright.”

Chapter 19

Jason

“What do you mean, a party?”

Mitch watches me warily as I dismount the ladder, a screwdriver in one hand as I make my way down the rungs.

We spent the morning working on separate projects but now all the guys are here at Casey’s bar. We’ve just finished screwing in most of the lighting and, once we test that they work, we’ll be pretty much done.

Except for the furnishings, which Sunday now has plans for.

I step down onto the hardwood and head toward the switch panel.

“Self-explanatory,” I tell him. “Sunday thinks it’s a good idea to have the bar ready for when Case gets home from deployment.”

“When does he get home?” Knox asks, his expression wary.

And I understand why – because we aren’t used to doing up interiors.

We fix homes and build houses and make sturdy wooden hardware.

“According to Sunday? We’ve got around two months. But we can’t put an exact date on it because Case doesn’t have that information yet.”

It’s the Army, not a nine-’til-five, meaning that Case isn’t going to have official leave until whatever mission he’s working on is fully done and dusted.

“And we won’t be doing the finishing touches. We’ll be helping Sunday with any heavy lifting.”

Mitch’s brow rises slightly. “Sunday’s doing the finishing touches?”

I breathe out a laugh, letting out a gravelly, “Yeah.”

“Jesus Christ.” Mitch swipes his hand down his jaw. “That’s a little ironic, don’t you think?”

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