Boyfriend's Brother Read Free

they'd met—Jason thought Chloe had been an exotic dancer, one of Marc's stupid pranks—Jace wouldn't have dreamed he'd ever seek Chloe's input. But Chloe proved her mettle when she caught up to Jason outside the club. He still got a kick out of her turning the tables on Marc—
    "Jace! Suit up. It's time." Jagger made a thumbs-up sign.
    Jason grabbed his helmet and drew it over his head. He shoved every other thought aside and focused on what he loved best.
    Flying.
     
    * * * *
     
    Chloe let herself into the guest quarters and tossed her keys on the desk. As expected, she'd racked up the highest score in the sim run after the air show. She couldn't wait to get her hands on the new crafts when they started rolling off the assembly line.
    Still feeling a little at loose ends, she grabbed a shower and pondered plans for the evening. She could go home, but the thought made her twitchy. Rifling through the clothes she'd brought, she figured another night kicking back in one of her former haunts might be fun. Grabbing a pair of jeans, a button-down blouse, and her underthings, she quickly dressed and checked the wireless service for any messages, hoping and dreading Marc maybe called.
    After listening and deleting two promotional calls about sand and surf vacations, she flopped down on the bed. She should be at a beach with a cool drink in her hand, watching Marc frolic in the waves.
    "Damn you, Marc, for being so cryptic." She held her hand up, trying to imagine a ring on her finger.
    She sort of had to hand it to Marc. Being secretive and cagey definitely didn't count as his usual style. The guy couldn't keep a secret to save his life on a good day—unless it had to do with deployment or mission operations. Chloe snorted. She sometimes wished Marc respected information about their private life as much as he did need-to-know orders. He had a very bad habit of sharing intimate details with the guys in his platoon. Chloe sort of hoped now that most were married, their juvenile discussions would taper off. Gah. Married . She sat up and bolted off the bed.
    She needed to shut her brain down and move out before the edgy feeling creeping back up on her ruined the fun. She snagged her keys and base ID from the desk and decided to walk to her location. Flipping the lights off, she exited the guest quarters and blew out a long breath.
    Doing her best to shake off the nervous tension, she headed for the street.
     
    * * * *
     
    The air show brought on the usual adrenaline high, and Jason looked forward to hanging with his mates afterward. He grabbed a shower on base and changed into civilian clothes, meeting up with Deuce and Jagger. They piled into a cab and left to meet the rest of the crew at an ethnic restaurant not far from base. Since all twenty members of his squadron were attending, Jace figured they couldn't help having a great time.
    And without the usual gaggle of clingy females, the competitive vibe between the guys almost didn't exist. They had enjoyed their meal and started off a night of drinking right there in the restaurant. After a full-blown round of extreme ribbing, Deuce suggested they hit the favorite bar of each pilot, have a shot or a pint, and let off a lot of steam.
    With a pensive feeling crawling back inside his head, Jason put up a mental block to his bad mood and managed to mostly enjoy himself—for a few hours, at least.
    They'd hit Jace's choice ten minutes before, and he'd finally reached his wall of tolerance. Yet he didn't want to go home and be alone with his thoughts either.
    Deuce jibed him about his dissatisfaction. "Jace, my man, it's gotta be a phase." He slapped Jace on the back. "Whatever's got you twisted up will get straightened out. You'll see."
    Deuce might be right, but Jason felt like a time for change had come.
    A big one.
    Jason would finish up his current stint in less than a year, and a decision to re-up hovered in the wings. Jason honestly couldn't say he'd go for four more years.