Devastate Me by Emma Castle

Author:Emma Castle [Castle, Emma]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-952063-20-6
Publisher: Emma Castle

One month later

Colt was strangely nervous as he parked his truck in the VA lot. Noah and Ophelia were with him. It was the first time he’d brought Ophelia here, and he wondered what she would think. Seeing wounded veterans could be hard on some people, and in some cases it didn’t affect a person at all, which was somehow worse.

He wasn’t testing Ophelia, not exactly, but he did need to see how she handled his world. He and Noah belonged with the veterans, and helping them mattered. Any woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with would need to understand this part of him, as well as the wounded men and women who’d served this country.

“You ready?” he asked her.

“Of course.” She handed him Noah’s leash, and they headed for the entrance. The usual gathering was in the lobby, waiting for Noah to arrive at his expected time.

“They’re really all here for him?” Ophelia asked.

“They are. When we serve in dangerous locations, we have trained working dogs with us. I can’t quite put it into words, but a dog makes you feel like you’re home. Safe. It makes the soldiers feel more connected—to the dog, the mission, and each other. When they see Noah here—I don’t know, it just helps the emotional healing somehow.” His throat constricted as he explained. He’d always known it in his gut, but he’d never been able to put it into words until now.

“It’s incredible.” Ophelia’s tone was one of genuine pride. Ever since the attack, she’d lost all fear of Noah, and he’d taken to following her around whenever he wasn’t under orders to stay put. Their unlikely alliance had Colt smiling.

“Well hello there, stranger.” Nancy walked over to him. “I thought you’d forgotten all about us.”

“Not in a million years,” said Colt.

Her eyes lit up when she saw Ophelia. “Is this who I think it is?”

“Nancy, this is Ophelia. Ophelia, this is Nancy.”

Ophelia smiled. “It’s so nice to meet you. Did you serve with Colt?”

“No, but we’ve known each other for a couple of years now. Ever since he started coming to the center.”

“I didn’t know he’s been coming here that long.” Ophelia looked to him in amazement.

“Yeah, he started coming here almost the day he moved in.” Nancy nudged Colt playfully.

“It felt a bit like home being around the other vets,” Colt explained. “I didn’t feel the need to hide or put up barriers.” He couldn’t believe he was admitting that to Ophelia, but he wanted her to know why this place mattered to him.

Nancy caught a passing veteran with a wave. “Hey, Jeremy, why don’t you introduce Ophelia to the guys?” Ophelia left with Jeremy, holding Noah’s leash, to meet Colt’s friends.

“So, let’s hear it.” Nancy looked at him expectantly.

“Hear what?”

“Admit it—I was right. You took my advice and got back into the game. And damn, honey, you did good. She’s as sweet and adorable as you said.” Nancy patted his arm.

Colt smiled. “She’s also brave as fucking hell.

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