The Second Chance Hero Read Online Free Page B

someday?”
    “Anytime.” His blue eyes locked on hers and she found herself wanting to drown in them. That was some powerful mojo he had going. “Nobody understands what you’ve been through better than someone who’s been there, too.”
    That was true. What surprised her was that Owen was dead serious about being available, but she also doubted he’d been through what she had.
    “Thank you, Owen. But I’m okay.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire
. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate his offer, but she wasn’t going to expose her bruised and battered heart to a perfect stranger. Her family didn’t even know the whole story, and right now it was best for Kim if the whole humiliating experience stayed under wraps. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s get moving. I hear they’re steaming a bushel of clams and I don’t want to miss it.”
    That was the way she’d been dealing with everyone lately. She changed the subject before the emotions hit her, before she lost control.
    Her reentry was uneventful considering she’d pretty much had a breakdown. Losing Tom was one thing, watching him die was something else, but the cheating put her over the edge. Everything she’d known to be true, everything she’d believed, was a lie. Kim was just about at the end of her service requirement when it all went down. When she opted for a discharge rather than another stint in the reserves, no one tried to talk her out of it. The psychiatrist at Bethesda wished her luck.
    They knew a basket case when they met one.
    It was better now, but instead of going back to her regular job as a critical care nurse, it took months of hiding out at a friend’s place in Hawaii for her to feel like she could face her family or Tom’s family, and it was awful because no one could really help. She knew her distance was breaking her parents’ hearts. That her brothers and sisters missed her. But they didn’t understand why she didn’t want to be around them. They didn’t understand why she didn’t go back to nursing. They didn’t understand anything.
    Because no one knew the truth.
    ***
    Owen fully intended to tease the crap out of Harper when he saw her. The very sophisticated, urbane, I’ll-never-settle-down director of operations had gone into full domestic goddess mode. Her house was a showpiece. The kitchen alone was bigger than several rooms in his house and equipped with every possible amenity. Apparently, Harper liked to cook. And bake. There were three large mason jars filled with different types of cookies.
    As he walked into the backyard at Meg and Jason’s house, he felt almost normal. Looking to his right, Kim practically skipped off when she saw the kids, and Owen turned toward his friends while still keeping his eyes on her. She was so damned adorable.
    “There’s our missing warrior!” Meg Rossi-Campbell, his friend Jason’s wife, greeted him with a warm, tight hug. Meg and Jason married to protect his niece from a custody suit, but stayed together because they were made for each other. Meg, a gorgeous bombshell blonde, had a big heart and an even bigger personality. It took Jason a while to realize how lucky he was to have her in his life, and he’d spent every day since that epiphany making her happy. She was now pregnant for the second time since they’d been married and adopted Molly. Child number three would arrive in a few months.
    “You should have come over sooner.” She slapped his arm and he warmed at the affection. Owen hadn’t really seen anyone except his parents and his sister Melinda. “We’ve been so worried about you.”
    “I know, and I’m sorry, but I needed some time to settle in.”
    “Hmmpf,” she muttered. “That’s what they all say. I guess I have to cut you some slack.”
    “Thanks.” He looped his arm around her shoulder and walked with her toward the larger group. He felt good, happy, as he approached. He loved his parents and sister, but these people had seen him through some