Bound for Keeps (Men of Honor) Read Free Page B

he’d heard something else through the noise.
    Both men went to the guest room to find it empty. Reed immediately went for his gear while Keith opened the door to the deck and tried to see out into the night.
    When he came back in, Reed was already dressed for the weather, gun and flashlight at the ready.
    “The kid’s got a death wish,” Keith grumbled, but Reed knew he was more pissed that Reed would be the one to go after him. Reed knew Keith’s pissed-off attitude translated as worry for Reed, who appreciated that worry more than he could ever say. But while Keith had the brawn, Reed always had the tracking skills plus the necessary speed.
    “You’re just pissed he gave us the slip. Means we’re getting old. And I’ll be fine,” Reed insisted.
    Keith glowered at the getting-old remark. “If you’re not back in twenty minutes—”
    “I will be,” Reed promised. In the cold was where he worked best, since his body always seemed to run hot, some kind of medical anomaly.
    And although he never wanted to be near the desert again, hated the sand and heat and much preferred this weather, the snow that surrounded him could easily trigger his claustrophobia. To be fair, sometimes anything could, but now that he couldn’t see his goddamned hand in front of his face, he had to stop, bend over and stare at his knees, because his boots were buried.
    Ground yourself, dammit.
    If he wasn’t back in time, Keith would come looking for him. Knew he was already on shaky ground because of the holiday and Shane’s arrival.
    He drew a deep breath and then another, flashed back to the box with the vent and the wet on his lips, just like the wet from the snow. But this was freezing and that water hadn’t been, and he was free to continue walking.
    And finally, he did, pushed forward toward the side of the house and quickly followed Shane’s path down the slanted land that led to the main road.
    Reed had no problem catching up to him. Shane was weaving a little, although he had to give him credit for trying. Hell, he gave him credit for still being on his feet and having forward motion.
    Definitely military.
    He called Shane’s name a few times so he didn’t startle him, and Shane finally stopped, but he didn’t turn. He accepted Reed’s hand on his shoulder. And when Reed realized it wasn’t going to work, he picked him up over his shoulder and double-timed it back to the house.
    Keith was waiting, opened the door and took Shane from him.
    “Hey, it was well under twenty minutes,” Reed called as he stripped.
    “Yeah, you made it by half a second,” Keith told him as he put Shane down on the chair and got his clothing off so he wouldn’t get the bed wet. By the time Reed got there, Keith had him tucked in and had the IV running.
    “You warmed the blankets?” Reed asked.
    “Shut up, Reed,” Keith warned.
    “I know when to cut my losses,” Reed told him, buried his face against Keith’s chest as a form of thank-you, because he still had trouble saying the words after all these years.

Chapter Four
    Cold. So goddamned cold. He shivered, despite the fact he had long johns on under his uniform and tried to concentrate instead on the task at hand.
    You’re not back in Iraq with Kyle. You’re feverish. In the Catskills somewhere.
    But the dream pulled him in, and he could see Kyle’s serious face as the older man placed a blanket over him and handed him a hot cup of bad coffee.
    He was on the hard ground, unable to be moved. His ears were ringing.
    Kyle. Staring down at him.
    “You’re okay, brah. You’re going to be just fine.”
    Shane couldn’t actually hear the words, thanks to the roadside bomb exploding so close to him. But he read Kyle’s lips and his eyes, because the man had always had such expressive eyes.
    He put a hand up to Kyle’s cheek. Wanted to express, yeah, I got you , but Kyle’s eyes widened in surprise. It took Shane a few seconds to understand. Kyle’s mouth opened, and Shane wanted