“What in the hell, Danny? You don’t get to come in here after nearly a week of silence and—”

“A week of silence, my ass. I came here the very next fucking day. Woke up with a pounding head, an empty apartment, and no memory of how the night had ended.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I wanted to see you, damn it. Ask you what the fuck happened between us.” His head snapped to the far right side of the bar, and he snarled, “I left my goddamn number with that worn-out redhead before I left.”

“You came here… to find me?”

His hazel eyes blazed so hot they singed her skin. “Uh, yeah. But clearly you’ve moved on. So…forget it.” His broad shoulders were tight, his face stony as he turned to leave, and Julie knew she’d never see him again.

In a voice loud enough for him to hear but quiet enough not to cause a scene, Julie called, “Danny, I’m serving drinks, that is all you saw. As for you stopping by this week, no one told me. I didn’t know.”

Julie’s mind was spinning. He had come. He’d tried to contact her and left a way for her to reach him. She was going to kill Bunny—unless he got there first.

“You.” Danny’s growl carried over the voices as he made his way toward Bunny.

Julie watched, entertained as Bunny’s eyes went from soft and flirty with the thought that a male was looking for her, to round with awareness when she realized just who it was and what she’d done.

As the place quieted, Chester made his way in from the deck. His eyes landed on Julie. “Things okay?”

“Yep.” Julie grinned. “Nothing Bunny can’t handle, sir.”

Chester flicked his gaze over to an angry but reined in Danny and a typically drama-filled Bunny before turning his back. “Yell if you need me,” he called over his shoulder.

“Sergeant Marcus, what a pleasure—”

“Do not pull that syrupy shit with me.” Danny’s chest expanded and depressed, his demeanor every bit that of a well-trained leader. “Did I or did I not come in here five days ago looking for Julie Bell?”

Bunny tucked a stiff chunk of hair behind her ear. “Well, hmm, I can’t exactly remember what day it was that your fine ass graced my eyes.” She bit her lip and looked at Julie before looking back at Danny. Oh yeah, guilt covered her face as clearly as the mascara on her lashes.

The muscles in Danny’s jaw clenched, leaving Julie to wonder just how much pressure it could take before the bones shattered. “Okay, ma’am, do you remember when I handed you my phone number and asked that you to give it to Julie?”

“Hmm.” Bunny tapped her bright pink fingernail on her matching pink lip.

Unfortunately for her, Earl came out from the kitchen with cases of beer and grinned when he saw Danny. “Hey, man, good to see you again.”

As if she could physically see the tension leaving Danny’s body, Julie exhaled the breath that had been held prisoner in her chest.

“It’s Earl, right?” Danny asked the bar back. When the guy nodded, Danny’s brow lifted. “You remember seeing me earlier this week?”

“Uhh, is this some sort of a test? Yeah, dude, I remember seeing you. I just said hi, didn’t I?”

And there went Danny’s jaw, tight as a spring. “Yes, Earl, you did, thank you. Do you remember why I came by?”

“He can’t answer your questions, Sergeant,” Bunny interjected. “Look at him, poor boy obviously doesn’t know anything, and we are clearly busy here.”

“He was here looking for Julie,” Earl grunted over Bunny’s shrill voice. “And you didn’t seem to think I was such a lil’ boy when you were on your knees, purring like a cat, with my dick down your throat.” He clenched his fists tightly, then released one to wave his hand in the air. “You didn’t seem so convinced I was useless when you were begging to have it shoved up your ass. I was pretty fuckin’ great then, wasn’t I?” Earl’s chest heaved as he looked around the silent bar, then from Danny to Julie. He scuffed the toe of his boot on the floor before speaking softly. “I’m sorry. I should have told her you came callin’. Obviously I’m not as smart as I thought.” He threw an aggravated look in Bunny’s direction before he slid out from behind the bar and headed to the deck.

The room remained quiet as stares darted from Bunny to Julie and back. If not for Bon Jovi’s apropos “You Give Love a Bad Name” blaring from the juke box, Julie might have exploded into flames of embarrassment. Leave it to JBJ to save the night.

“Next round is on the house,” Chester boomed, coming from who knew where to join the women behind the bar.

The crowd erupted in appreciative delight.

Had Julie not been standing as close to him as she was, she wouldn’t have heard him grumble, “Two choices, Bertha: finish the shift and get paid for the night, or walk now and don’t. Either way, your time here is over.”

“What?” Bunny’s eyes grew wide as her jaw fell open. Hmm, no wonder the men appreciated her. “Screw you, Chester!”

“Been there, darlin’, and it ain’t worth losing customers. Previous offer’s officially off the table. You needed to make a scene, I can make one too. Leave my bar now.”

“Well, I don’t need this shithole place,” she huffed, attempting to fluff her Aqua Net-hardened hair while shimmying past the bartenders frantically filling orders.

Something in Julie snapped. After everything she’d lost, everything she’d survived, she had finally found some semblance of happiness at Chester’s Bar. And while she had no clue as to what would happen between her and Danny, she couldn’t just let that woman get away with what she’d said…with what she’d done.

“Hey, Bunny,” Julie called, stopping the irate woman in her tracks.

“What the hell do you want, you little bitch?”

Julie reached into the bucket behind the counter and pulled out two quarters. Summoning her sweetest smile, she dropped the coins into Bunny’s hand. “I figured you’d want these, you know, since you worked so hard for them. There’re a bit…sticky, but they’re all yours.” With her parting shot, Julie turned her attention back to the customers, doing her best to ignore the applause her action received.

***

ROOTED TO THE ground, Danny watched Julie work, her movements just as fluid as the drinks she poured. When his buddies had suggested they go out for beer after a long day of softball between 1st and 2nd platoons, followed by them helping him unpack his shit and settle into his new living quarters, he could hardly refuse. When they decided on Chester’s Bar, he could have come up with at least three different options, but his suggestions would have led to questions, and the questions would have led to razzing, which was the last thing he felt like dealing with. However, he wanted to avoid seeing Julie after she’d so blatantly blown him off, so he’d suggested they sit on the deck and his friends agreed.

Each time a server had approached them, Danny found himself caught between wanting to see the shiny strawberry hair and wanting to purposely ignore her. Finally, he inquired about Julie’s whereabouts. His every instinct screamed for him to find her, confront her, then walk away as easily as she had. What he hadn’t planned on was how her smile made his pulse race or the way her tank top showed just the perfect hint of cleavage to make his cock twitch in his jeans. What he never would have guessed was how the pale pink hue of her cheeks aimed at another man would release a possessive feeling that he’d never felt before. Mine.

Logic told him she was no more his than he was hers, but logic wasn’t making his feet move toward her. Logic wasn’t propelling air through his lungs. Logic had no place in his mind when he’d nearly ruined everything with speculation and accusation. Thank fuck the woman understood Caveman, because clearly logic had left the building. It took every ounce of military training and composure Danny had not to throttle the smaller man receiving Julie’s delight, but Danny knew she saw past his thin mask of civility. She saw what must have looked like confusion or, embarrassingly enough, desperation, and she nicely dismissed the other dude, who made her smile before a bigger scene was made.