Hot SEAL, Confirmed Bachelor- Cynthia D'Alba Page 0,64
world had ceased to exist.
“I’ve missed you,” she said.
“Missed you, too. Katie said you’d need a ride to the reception. Want to go with me?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Shouldn’t you be inside taking pictures or something?”
She chuckled. “Bethany had us all here hours before the wedding to take the pictures.”
“What about seeing the bride and bad luck?”
“In Bethany’s opinion, that was the stupidest thing ever, and the last thing she wanted to do was inconvenience her guests. Of course, her mother had a hissy fit, but Bethany stood her ground.”
“I like your new sister-in-law.”
“So do I. Ready to head to the reception?”
The reception was held at the la Spiaggia Country Club. Due to the size of the crowd in attendance, the event room doors opened to air-conditioned tents set up in the yard. A string quartet played, and the waitstaff handed a flute of champagne to each wedding guest as they entered.
The guests were served a plated meal, followed by the cake cutting, and finally dancing.
Benjamin could hardly wait to get Holly back into his arms, if only to dance.
She ran her finger along all his ribbons and metals. “What do these all mean?”
“That I was somewhere the government sent me, and I made it home alive. Don’t be too impressed. Some of them are, at best, participation trophies, if you will.”
“You’re too modest. You may be one of the bravest men I know.”
Maybe so, but he was still too chickenshit to tell her how he felt.
At one point, Seth Garrett sat down at their table to talk. Benjamin hated that Seth was an agreeable fellow. Easy to talk to. Quick to laugh. Courteous to Holly.
And then Seth asked Holly to dance.
She’d looked at Benjamin and he’d waved them on. It was obvious to anyone with a lick of sense that Seth had his eyes set on Holly and Benjamin could understand that. The question was, how did Holly feel about Seth?
Benjamin’s dad’s voice screeched in his head. You’re not good enough. Nobody could love someone like you, and heaven help them if they do. You’ll kill them just like you killed your mom and your aunt. You’re worthless, boy. Nobody cares if you live or die. You’re just too chickenshit to do the world a favor and kill yourself.
One of the reasons Benjamin had joined the SEALs was he’d figured he’d die young, but he hadn’t. So many missions and so many other fellow SEALs gone before their time, but not him.
He watched the woman he loved dance with another man. She was smiling, and now laughing at something he’d said. Seth was the kind of guy Holly should be with. Not a guy like him who couldn’t give her more children.
Before he left on this last mission, he’d make sure to push her in Seth’s direction. It was the least he could do for her. Odds were, he wouldn’t come home alive anyway. Every plan they’d devised showed multiple casualties on the U.S. side.
Seth brought Holly back to the table. “Thanks for the loan of your girl,” he said to Benjamin.
“She’s her own woman,” Benjamin said.
Holly looked at him in surprise.
“Thank you, Holly for the dance. I enjoyed it. I hope to speak with you soon.” Seth held out his hand to Benjamin. “Good luck on those missions. Come back safe.”
Damn. Did the guy have to be so fucking pleasant?
Holly retook her seat. “You’re here, but your mind is a million miles away.”
“Yeah. Sorry.” He turned his chair toward her. “Can we walk outside or go somewhere to talk?”
“Sure.”
She led him out the front door and around to an empty side patio that overlooked the eighteenth green.
“What’s up?”
He rubbed his neck and paced to the rock wall and back.
“Our arrangement was for the summer through this wedding.”
She nodded. “Yes, I know.”
He sighed. “Things didn’t quite work out the way we’d planned, did they?”
Her brow furrowed. “In what way?”
“I missed a lot of the parties you’d wanted me to escort you to.”
She scoffed. “No big deal.” She stepped over to him and laid her hand on his forearm. “We had fun, didn’t we?”
“We did. It could’ve been the best summer of my life if not for the last six weeks.”
“You’re a SEAL. It’s your job. You do what you swore to do. I understand that. I respect you for standing by your word.”
“What you said in May,” he said, fighting himself to say what he needed to say, “you were wrong.”
“Wrong? What are you talking about?”
“You shouldn’t spend your life alone.