Page 2 of Tyler

Life…

Ty stilled and closed his eyes for a moment.

What was wrong with him? How long was he going to allow those negative thoughts to hold his mind hostage?

He opened his eyes and straightened his spine.

What he needed to feel was gratefulto still be alive, and hewasgrateful, but his zest, inspiration, motivation, joy—all of it was gone. He was just going through the motions now but occasionally managed to smile and laugh around his sister and older brother. Rylee and Gabe were the reason he was in Texas.

Once Ty was discharged from the hospital, Gabe had shown up and whisked him to Harland County, where he also set up a consultation for Ty with a local, well-renowned ophthalmologist. Two surgeries later, and with the help of a pair of prescription glasses, he could see out of his injured eye…just not adequately enough for the Navy.

So now he lived in Texas with two of his three siblings and had to admit it was great to be near family again. He especially loved spending time with his young nephew and seeing his sister so happy as a mother and wife. It was also fun to watch his big, tough, stubborn brother reduced to mush around his wife, a feat Ty had never thought he’d live to see.

God, it was entertaining as hell.

Several years ago, after leaving the SEALs, his tough-as-nails older brother had moved to Texas to work for a military buddy who had opened a private security company, but somehow, Gabe had ended up becoming the local sheriff instead. Ty wasn’t surprised, though. After all, Gabe had been a cop before joining the Navy.

Their sister, Rylee, on the other hand,wasworking for ESI—Eagle Security and Investigation—and had talked Ty into working there, too. Most days, it kept his mind occupied, and he liked the rest of his coworkers. Seven were former Delta Force and three were former SEALs that had served with Gabe.

He could tell by the shadows that sometimes invaded the guys’ expressions that they’d all seen and experienced some shit. Miraculously though, they each had a healthy attitude, and at the end of the day, they went home to someone who loved them.

Envy strangled Ty’s heart. He wasn’t so naïve as to assume working here and living in Harland County would bring him the same results, especially since things still felt off. Life here was good, but not exactly a good fit for him.

“Give it some time.” Dean dropped down next to him on the bench, gaining Ty’s attention.

He blinked and gripped his dumbbell as his surroundings came back into focus. Several of the guys were still sparring on the mats, a few were pumping iron in the corner, one was beating the shit out of a heavy bag, while another tried like hell to steady it, and his sister and her husband were using the leg machines.

“Yeah, Ty,” RJ agreed, grabbing a set of dumbbells from the rack before sitting on Dean’s other side. “Give it more time.”

If it were any of his other coworkers, Ty would’ve said something non-committal and moved to a different part of the room. But both SEALs had been Navy lifers like him, and just like him, they’d been medically discharged and tossed into civilian life against their will.

They understood him probably better than he did.

Using his knee to support his elbow, Ty resumed his arm curls. “Is it that obvious, or do you two read minds now?”

“It’s not mind reading,” RJ answered. “Just experience.”

Dean nodded. “We’ve been in your boots. Lost. Floundering.”

“Wondering why life is so unfair,” RJ added.

Shit.

Yeah. “That about sums it up.”

Ty never would’ve admitted that to anyone. Hell, not even to his own brother, but these men got it. They knew and understood because they’d lived it too. Both SEALs had been injured in a helicopter crash that had claimed the lives of three of their friends. RJ had broken his back, and Dean’s arm had nearly been severed, but both had overcome their injuries and regained their lives.

He was nowhere near that type of progress.

“Like we said, it takes time,” Dean said. “Don’t get discouraged.”

Since Ty wanted to drop the subject, he didn’t respond, just concentrated on his dumbbell routine, and soon the others followed suit.

Ten minutes later, he stood and put away his weights, feeling slightly better.

“It didn’t happen overnight for us though.” RJ said, racking his weights too.

Ty inwardly sighed. He’d thought they’d dropped the subject.

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