11:15 pm

“One dollar drinks?” Lee repeated over the thumping music in Club Overtime.

The bartender leaned closer, making his biceps flex under the black t-sirt. “One dollar drinks until midnight!” he said with a nod.

It took about two seconds for Lee to produce her bank card. “Vodka cranberry…start a tab!”

He gave her a dimpled smile and turned around. Cute, Lee mused gazing at his ass. Too bad all bartenders flirted shamelessly to up their tips. She could never take anyone working behind a bar seriously.

“What are you drinking?” Terry asked coming up beside her.

“Just about everything considering drinks are a dollar a piece!”

Lee’s eyes went completely round. “Hell yeah, I’m starting a tab!”

“Don’t bother, I already started one…just put it on mine.”

“So generous,” said Lee clasping her hands under her chin and batting her eyelashes.

Lee put an arm around Terry and squeezed. “You are so worth it!”

Two vodka cranberries in, Lee gazed around the club from her seat at an empty table; most of the tables were empty since almost everyone was dancing to Clothes Off by Gym Class Heroes. The lighting was awful, as were the neon accents. The roof was low due to the fact that all the space was upstairs in the sports bar…there were windows and everything up there! The dungeon feel was a bit disconcerting, but the music was up-tempo and the crowd was definitely into it.

Kate and Jermaine were further up the bar flirting shamelessly wondered how she did it. How did she work it so easily? Surely it helped that Jermaine was inexplicably drawn to Hispanic women with sexy accents…and Kate was definitely that. She had long black hair that looked wet and wavy. Her jeans were positively painted on and her red shirt showed plenty of cleavage.

Lee sighed and looked down at her drink. This was their third stop for the night and she’d yet to say anything to Logan. Scanning the crowd she spotted him at a pool table. The plan was so not working.

“Don’t make that face,” Terry said slipping her arm around her waist and putting her head on Lee’s shoulder.

Lee shrugged. “I think I’m ready to go home.”

“No way!” Terry groaned, “We just got here.”

Lee rolled her eyes.

“Quit being a chicken shit and talk to him already! Wasn’t that the point of this whole evening?”

Lee’s gaze went back to the pool table. Logan picked up his beer bottle and took a long swig. “I can’t.”

It was Terry’s turn to roll her eyes. “Fine, just sit here.”

After Terry walked off, Lee downed the rest of her drink and licked the remnants from her lips. She glanced at her watch, twenty more minutes of cheap booze.

Lee slipped off the stool and made her way through groups of twos and threes to the bar. She ordered another vodka cranberry from the dimpled bartender and waited while he flirted with the girls that had ordered before her.

When she finally got her drink, she turned to see Logan behind her.

“Hey, Terry said you wanted me to walk outside with you.”

“Uh…yeah,” Lee stammered glancing around to give her friend a glare. Not finding her, her gaze settled back on his face. “I guess I could use some air,” she shrugged.

He gave her a weak smile, took her elbow, and guided her through the crowd. There wasn’t much air to be had in the humidity of an early June night in Florida. Lee people watched as they walked around. Dozens of rail-thin blondes draped themselves over their dates; two brunettes danced with each other…about two minutes or a half a drink from making out on the dance floor. A group of scantily clad black girls rolled their eyes at Lee even though they openly ogled Logan. Speaking of haters, she thought as she rolled her eyes right back at them.

Lee stopped by the stage and watched a group of girls put on a burlesque-like show. It was basically a strip tease. Well, if you considered tiny shorts, tinier skirts and tube tops clothes.

“What about her?” Lee said pointing to a slender blonde in white Capri pants, black stilettos, and a lime green tube top.

Logan followed her finger and shrugged. “What about her?”

“To get you back in the game,” Lee explained.

He smirked. “I’m not much for blondes.”

Lee nodded. That’s right, the ex had brown hair. “Well, everybody wants to get you laid tonight. It won’t happen if you don’t start talking to someone besides the people you see every day at work.”

“What if I don’t want to get laid?”

Lee laughed. “All men want to get laid!”

Logan shrugged.

She silently slipped her drink and continued watching the blonde dance. “Are you heart-broken?” she asked after a few moments.

“Nah, more like pissed the fuck off.”

“Why?”

Logan glanced around and took her elbow. They tucked into a dark corner where the music didn’t quite reach.

“Nobody at work told you?”

“No, I mean…I heard some stuff but…”

He smiled, but not really. “She’s pregnant.”

Lee took a sip of her drink to keep from doing or saying anything to betray her shock. Could she have been so wrong about Logan? She never thought him the type of guy to get a divorce because of an unplanned kid.

“Wait a minute…I thought you guys were trying to have a baby!”

“She’s four months pregnant.”

The gasp she’d previously swallowed escaped this time. “But…but…we just got back from Iraq in April.”

“Exactly.”

Lee took a deep breath to calm down…she was running the emotional gauntlet: anger, sadness, pity, jealousy. “Damn, Logan…I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he growled.

“No…no, I’m serious. You don’t deserve that…six months in a warzone, eating sand, and taking fire…”

“Don’t talk about it like I’m some kind of hero. I was just doing my job.”

“I was there! I know what you did.”

There was something more genuine in his smile this time. “I know you were there. Every guy in my tent talked about you for six months.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, you were a popular topic…especially the fact that you didn’t give any of them the time of day.”

Lee laughed and ran a hand over her hair. “I wasn’t interested in sneaking around for a few quick fucks.”

“You’re better than that.”

She smiled. “I’d like to think so.”

Logan’s fingertips brushed through her hair and she held her breath. “You are.”

Lee blushed. “I just don’t get it,” she said studying his face. “What happened between you two?”

Logan dropped his hand. He’d been leaning into her but he suddenly stood straight. “The deployment, most likely. This was our first separation…I mean two week TDY’s here and there, but no remotes or deployments until this one. I guess she got lonely, or bored, or –.”

“Idle?” Lee offered.

“Yeah…what’s that saying? The devil makes work for idle hands.”

“Or other body parts,” mumbled Lee.

Logan chuckled.

“Sorry,” Lee said quickly, “I shouldn’t joke.”

“It’s okay; I’m not that sensitive about it.”

“Seriously,” said Lee, “Maybe it’s the mental health tech in me, but you have to feel something.”

“Regret,” quipped Logan.

“So, you told me that you’re shy, how’d you get married in the first place?”

Logan studied the empty beer bottle for a second and Lee almost told him he didn’t have to answer the question. “We dated on and off in high school. Then, I left and went to Basic Training. I graduated and started training…one day I called her up and proposed.”

“Oh,” Lee said with a grimace. “That’s the wrong time to make relationship decisions…after six weeks of showering with a bunch of guys.”

“I know.”

Lee shook her head. How many of their patients had made that same mistake?! Then they came in depressed or angry with serious marital problems. It was a wonder anyone in the military stayed in their first marriage. Then again, maybe it was nice to have someone to share a life with, unlike her who’d never had a relationship that lasted more than four months.

Logan sighed. “I just feel like I stayed out of obligation…I loved her but…I’ve known for years that something wasn’t quite right.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Lately I’ve had this feeling that I’m missing out on something.” His voice dropped and he leaned into her again.

“It was probably just that seven-year-itch thing.”

“No, that was three years ago and it was more of a general malaise than this crippling need to wake the fuck up.”

Lee found that breathing was becoming a bit difficult. “Are you awake now?” she asked.

Logan’s fingers returned to her hair. “Wide awake.”

She looked up and was lost in the intensity behind his eyes. He leaned down, a fraction of an inch, barely noticeable, except she was keenly aware that his lips were getting that much closer to hers.

“Hey! We’ve been looking all over this place for you guys! We’re headed out to Night Crawl!” Terry exclaimed, shattering the moment and startling them both.