Free Chaos (Havoc Series Book Two) by Xavier Neal

my
spine.
    “Oh...” she nods and politely stands up
turning her attention back to my best friends. Tossing a look over
her shoulder she sighs, “Good for you.”
    I didn't put a ring on it. I put tags on it.
But I may be putting a ring on it when I get home. God, look what
Glove's done to me. Now I'm referencing it. I hate him.
    “But I'll be more than willing to take all
the Single Ladies;” he follows up with as a blonde slides happily
onto his lap; another round of shots is heading for our table.
    The girls giggle and Snow White invites
herself to sit on Lordy's lap. Instead of complaining, he wraps an
arm around her waist and shoots a remark at our own Hef, “First the
Gossip Girl reference. Now Beyoncé. If you make one more girly ass
reference, I'm canceling our cable subscription.”
    Laughter breaks out across the table
including from me. While the girls clearly have banging them on the
agenda, they stick around for a couple more drinks and chuckles. I
may not have another beer and I may be checking my phone often
waiting for it to ring, but I can say that for the first time, I
don't mind being out with them like this. Even though Glove is only
getting louder and his comments dirtier. And even though Lordy is
becoming more and more a carbon copy of him with each passing sip.
I don't mind. Not one bit.

29 Days Til School
     
    On active duty, there are often cold nights
with time to think. Think about your regrets. Think about the
mission. Your decisions. Your failures. Time to wallow in
self-pity. Time to be accessible to the shit you're afraid of. The
shit that is slowly driving you insane. There's also time to think
about all the shit you got right. The people who matter. The woman
you love. There's all this time to think about how perfect their
smile is. The glow from their eyes. Complexion flaw free. You start
remembering their laugh sounding like a necessary melody to
function. What it's like to have their arms wrapped around you.
Body warming yours. Sometimes you get so wrapped up in the thoughts
of them, your mind starts to play tricks. Have doubts. No one could
possibly be that beautiful. No one could possibly smell that great.
No one could possibly be that perfect. Yet somehow, Haven is.
    The sliding glass doors of the airport
release us to the warm September air and into the arms of the one
person I couldn't spend the rest of my life without.
    “Clint!” Her arms fly around my neck.
    Waiting for her to be back in my arms was
like waiting to breathe. My bag drops to the ground as I cradle her
close to my chest, my arms encompassing everything that matters in
my life. I squeeze tighter. With a long inhale, I enjoy the
simplicity of just having this angel back in my arms. Fuck. I'm
such a sap.
    I pull away, slide my fingers through the
back of the hair on her neck, and tug her to me, lips mounting
hers. Fuck that's good. She pushes her body further into me, lips
moving slowly. God they're softer than I remember. Sweet. Sticky
from lip gloss. Our lips stay touching until her mouth opens
inviting me in to dance. To twist around and sample every inch of
what I've been missing. Her tongue teases mine. How the hell do I
ever leave this girl?
    Someone clears their throat and the warmth of
her body and the heat of her tongue leaves me. I don't know how
long I can hold out on keeping my hands off of her, especially now
that I've had the chance to taste her again.
    “Slugger!” Mindy reaches out for me.
    Dragging myself out of Haven's grip, I hug
her softly. Her small frame that's cloaked in an expensive designer
burgundy suit, expensive designer black heels, and from the smell
even more expensive designer perfume nestles against my chest.
Comfort. Gratefulness.
    I open my mouth and she points at me,
“Mindy.”
    “Mindy.” My smile is huge. Genuine.
    With that, I turn to my dad who is in his
uniform, arms folded across his chest, a stern look on his face.
Prepared for the cold welcoming I usually receive,