He should feel relief that she didn’t want anything more than what they’d shared. Sex, she called it. For some reason, that pissed him off.
“Sure. Thanks.” He stomped his feet into his boots.
Why the fuck was he angry again?
She watched him tie his laces. “So I’ll see you,” he said when he was done.
“Bye.”
He looked at her lying there and felt something shift in his chest but had no idea how to identify it. His feet carried him back to the bed. Bracing a knee on it, he leaned down and kissed her until her arms went around his neck. He didn’t want to pull back but had to or he’d strip off his clothes and make love to her again.
“Bye.”
He got off the bed and left, closing her door softly behind him. It was still early, but it wouldn’t be long before the others woke. Luke walked into the room he was sharing with Joe and found his brother lying on the bed drinking coffee. He raised a brow but didn’t say anything.
“I’m taking a shower.”
“Did talking to Quinn make you feel steadier?”
“I’m steady.”
“Your world is not going to change, Luke. You know that deep inside. But this, seeing Nixon and seeing yourself as you were again, is hard. It’s okay to be angry and upset about it, but your past needs to be left there. You’re the man you are because you rose above it.”
“Quinn said something like that.”
“I like her.” His brother had a small smile on his face. “How about you, little bro?”
“How about me what?”
“I heard you two talking when I woke.”
Luke was fairly sure he’d heard more than that but was being polite.
“She’s nice, and easy to talk to. Quinn doesn’t want anything from me.”
“You really like her,” Joe said.
“Sure, what’s not to like? I asked her about Lionel.”
“The diner dude?”
“Apparently, the assface is of the belief that women shouldn’t be pilots and didn’t hold back in letting Quinn know how he felt.” He felt pissed off all over again just thinking about it. No one deserved to make anyone feel small so they could feel bigger.
“Doesn’t make it right, but I guess that happens when you exist in a man’s world,” Joe said. “Wish I’d known, though. I wouldn’t have been so nice to him.”
Luke nodded. He really needed a shower. Zero sleep, sex—really good sex. He could feel the fatigue.
“Joe?” Luke said before he stepped into the bathroom.
“Yeah?”
“We have to take him home with us.”
“We will, bud. Nixon’s ours now. But you need to promise me one thing.”
“What?”
“If your head is all over the place, you talk to me. Jack and I haven’t seen you lose it like you did yesterday in a long time. It scared us.”