The Matchmaking Twins. Christy Jeffries
because he hadn’t been the one behind the wheel on the night she’d died didn’t mean he wasn’t to blame.
Yet here he was, staring at Carmen, shamelessly taking in every glorious detail about her. The boys barely remembered their mother, and it was up to him to keep her memory alive for them—not get all hot and bothered about some incredible-looking female cop who had a soft spot for his kids. A flood of shame weighed him down, making him feel like he was closer to two feet tall.
Officer Delgado had her hands shoved into her jeans pockets and appeared to be reading the specials on the menu board several feet away. She obviously couldn’t even bring herself to look at him. His toes flexed inside of his hiking boots and he clenched his jaw in disgrace.
“Well, you boys have fun at poker night,” Kylie said, probably trying to lessen the awkwardness. “I figure I have about sixty-three minutes to get a bit of sustenance before Drew is gonna need me to head back over and feed the girls. So if I don’t get some garlic knots and fettuccine Alfredo in me before then, there will be three very unhappy Gregson ladies.”
Just then, a waitress walked up balancing four large pizza boxes and a couple of white paper sacks filled with Italian subs, and Luke had never been so glad for an excuse to get away. Even though he didn’t think he’d be able to stomach a single bite.
“C’mon, monkeys,” he said, peeling some bills out of his wallet and putting them on the hostess stand before taking the food from the server.
He maneuvered himself and the boxes out the door while the twins said their goodbyes and gave Kylie her usual three hugs, a ritual they’d started when she and Drew had been looking after the boys last year. The cool air felt great on his overheated face, so he decided they would walk the few short blocks to Maxine and Cooper’s apartment above the Sugar Falls Cookie Company.
He liked his cabin out in the woods, but Luke couldn’t deny that the Victorian buildings lining downtown held their own appeal. If the boys didn’t need so much space to run around, he’d gladly move in to one and try his hand at renovation. It might also shorten his commute. But then he’d have to interact more with the townspeople.
And, as he’d just displayed, he sometimes ended up looking like a complete ass when he did.
His life certainly hadn’t turned out the way he’d expected. His training had conditioned him to always be ready to adapt and overcome—to put the mission goal first. However, just because he was ready to move on didn’t mean he knew the direction in which he was headed. Maybe he should focus on figuring out a new mission instead of standing there like a tongue-tied fool who had no business lusting after his children’s volunteer mentor.
They climbed the stairs and Cooper let them inside before grabbing the pizza boxes, carrying them to the white kitchen and opening them up on the counter. “Okay, kids, grab a slice and head on back to Hunter’s room.” Their host handed them each a paper plate then pointed to his stepson’s bedroom down the hall.
Setting the rest of the food down, Luke said hello to Drew, who was pushing his sleeping daughters’ double stroller back and forth, and to Alex Russell.
Luke was still somewhat new to the group, but Drew and Cooper had been stationed in Afghanistan together, and Alex coached both Hunter’s baseball team, as well as Aiden and Caden’s.
A knock sounded, and Coop grabbed a slice for himself as he walked to the door to let in the newcomer. Garrett McCormick had been Cooper’s knee surgeon at the nearby Shadowview Military Hospital before opening up an orthopedic clinic in Sugar Falls after his discharge. Garrett had married Mia a few months ago—or had it been longer than that? Hell, Luke could barely manage to remember details from his own marriage, let alone all these dudes in Sugar Falls who seemed to be drinking from the same Kool-Aid cup.
“Sorry I’m late,” the doctor said. “I had to drop off Mia’s coat at Patrelli’s. Her hormones are all kind of whacked out and she’s been forgetting everything.”
Alex, the only other single male present, covered his ears. “This is an estrogen-free zone, gentlemen. I do not want to talk about anything but baseball, beer and Clint Eastwood movies.”
“Speaking of Clint Eastwood movies,” Drew said as he piled food high on his plate. “Kylie and I were watching Bridges of Madison County the other day on TV and...”
A collective round of “No” and “C’mon” and “Yuck” went around the room. Someone threw a plastic pouch of red peppers at Luke’s twin, who made the catch and then sprinkled some on his pizza.
“Actually, speaking of estrogen...” Garrett paused when he saw several packets of parmesan cheese aimed his way. “Wait, let me rephrase that. I was gonna say that when I stopped by Patrelli’s, I saw Officer Delgado sitting with the ladies, and I hardly recognized her out of her uniform.”
Luke’s ears buzzed as the rest of the guys settled back into their seats. This was his chance to find out more about her without bringing too much attention to himself.
“Hey, Coop.” Alex took a swig of beer. “I was meaning to ask what her deal was.”
If anyone knew Carmen, it would be Chief Cooper, who was the woman’s boss and had previously worked with her before as an MP when they were both stationed stateside. Luke held every muscle still, not wanting to miss the scoop and not wanting to grab the coach by the shoulder and tell him to back off.
There was that weird jealousy feeling again. What was up with that?
“What do you mean?” The police chief arched a brow. Yeah, what exactly did Alex mean? Was he interested in the female cop?
“I mean, does she do anything outside of work for fun? We have that intramural softball team we’re trying to put together for the Western Idaho League and, well, I don’t want to stereotype, but I’ve seen her out running and she looks like she’d be pretty athletic.”
Luke let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
“Oh.” Cooper got up and brought a foot-long Italian sub sandwich over to the table. “I thought you were asking about personal stuff, which you know I can’t give out.”
“I’m not looking for a date, man,” Alex said, and laughed. “I’m just looking for a shortstop.”
“Why wouldn’t you want to date her?” Luke felt the words coming out of his mouth before his brain could process them. Just a second ago, he’d felt like shoving Alex’s face into his pizza for even inquiring about Carmen. Now he was accusing the man of not finding her worthy enough of his interest. Get back on solid ground, Gregson.
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t date her. I said I wasn’t looking for a date. Any date. At least not with anyone locally. Don’t get me wrong, I know love and babies and rainbow-colored unicorns are running rampant in this town—” Alex looked pointedly at Drew, Cooper and Garrett “—but that pile of marriage crap you guys stepped in isn’t for me.”
“Amen.” The word was out of Luke’s mouth before he could stop himself. He tilted his beer toward Alex’s and they clinked their bottles.
“Wait.” Drew held up his hand. “Luke, I can’t believe you just said that. Hello? You were married once, too.”
“That was a one-time deal and it turned out I wasn’t cut out for it, either.” He didn’t want to talk about Samantha or the shame-inducing lapse of forgetfulness he’d just had at the restaurant in front of witnesses. He didn’t want to think about his marriage at all. He tried to keep all thoughts of that disaster hidden away in that footlocker in his mind and wasn’t sure why everyone else on this planet suddenly wanted to bring it up.
“Don’t you think you could be happy with someone again?” Garrett asked him.
A vision of Carmen’s long hair framing her face, her glossed lips smiling at his sons, was the first thing that ran through his mind. But an occasional smile wouldn’t be worth the inevitable heartache that would result