Page 23 of The Fake Date (Brides of Beaufort 4)

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BEAU

Isquinted toward the targets, the bright sun making it admittedly hard to see. “Okay, now line up your sights. Good. All right, recruit, let’s see what you got.”

I stood back and analyzed the young future-Marine’s posture as he held his gun, his shoulders not shaking in the slightest.

When he finished, I stepped up and patted him on the back. “Nice work. Now, reload and get ready to go again. I’m gonna hydrate.”

“Yes, sir,” he replied.

I walked over to my canteen, took a huge pull, then wiped my sleeve across my mouth. A drill instructor I didn’t recognize came up and nodded at me. “Hey, did you say they weren’t supposed to advance to table two unless they had perfect scores on table one?”

“Yeah, that’s the word of the day.”

He snorted. “Great. I don’t see any of these guys hitting a perfect score for a while.”

“Guess we should prepare for a long day then,” I replied, more than a little bummed that I’d likely miss karaoke night.

Mickey’s Pub in Bluffton hosted it every Thursday night, and even though it was home to some of the worst singing I’d ever heard, it was a good time when paired with the right company. Paul, Shelby, Chase, Zac, Layla… andLyndi, of course. Though I told myself she wasn’t the reason I was excited to go. It was the others. It had to be.

Aria and Will were the only ones from our group who’d be skipping it, as they’d be home with their baby boy—who finally got a name right before they left the hospital. Oliver James Paxton. He was half a week old now, even though he wasn’t technically due for another four. But they were doing well, thankfully.

The new DI quirked a brow as he looked me over. “Big plans or something?”

“Nah.” I shook my head, laughing to myself. “I’m Beau, by the way. Beau Devereux.”

He took the hand I held out to him and gave it a firm shake. “Logan Grant. This is my first cycle.”

“Right on. Welcome to the jungle. Where’d you come from?”

Grant sighed heavily. “Hawaii.”

“No kidding? K-Bay?”

“You been stationed there before?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“No, but I’ve got orders there in a few months.”

I tried to look happy about it, too. Because I should be. I mean, getting orders to Hawaii was like a golden ticket for a guy like me. The number of weddings held there would surely knock this area out of the water, which was why I had to travel as part of the deal so I could have enough bookings. But having them all on the same little island? Gold.

Not only that, but it was Hawaii. I’d never surfed before, but I’d make the effort to learn while stationed there. Add in the general beauty of the place and the laid-back lifestyle that was sure to come with it, and I should be in like Flynn.

But instead, just the thought of moving that far away had my stomach clenching. Leaving my pops in his condition after being gone so long already… not being a weekend’s trip away… it gutted me. And thinking of him only brought one more reason to mind.

Lyndi. But I brushed her and her gorgeous eyes and shy smile right out the way it came in.

Grant let his head fall back and sighed. “Man, I’d kill to go back. I was there for four years and loved it.”

“I hear it’s pretty great,” I offered, reminding myself as much as I was telling him. “Bet it’s been a rough transition from there to here.”

“Worse for my wife than for me, honestly. She’s having a hard time.”

“Oh yeah? She’s not a fan of mosquitos and mold?”

He chuckled. “We had plenty of both in Hawaii. But her sister is pretty much her only family, and she’s still stationed there.”

“She’s a Marine?”