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PROLOGUE
“No, Dena.”
“You can’t tell me no, Wizard. The last time I checked, I was over eighteen. I can do whatever I want.”
Wizard started changing the television channels, trying to bring an end to the conversation with his sister. He was well aware that the more he told her not to do something, the more determined she would become. His gut sank when he recognized the obstinate expression on her face.
Sitting up from his lounging position on the couch, he muted the television. “For God’s sake, Dena, joining the fucking Navy just because I did will get your ass killed.” Slinging the remote aside, he took in his sister’s pale face, yet he couldn’t stop himself. “What happened when you were determined to join the swim team because I did?” Wizard didn’t give her time to answer. “You cracked your head on the diving board. What happened when you joined the track team because I did? You tore your Achilles tendon and spent six months in a boot. Do you need me to go on?”
He hated being so harsh with Dena. They had a close relationship, and he felt as if he were tearing it to shreds each time he opened his mouth. Fear clutched his stomach. Dena was too impulsive for her own good.
“No, I don’t need any more reminders of my mistakes. You constantly throwing them in my face is enough.”
Wizard caught the shimmer of tears in her eyes before she turned and hurried into the kitchen. With a regretful sigh, he followed her. Standing in the doorway, he watched as she pulled eggs from the refrigerator.
“I can’t stand back and watch you fuck up your life.”
“How is joining the Navy going to fuck up my life but not yours?” she asked, placing a skillet on the stove. “When you joined, I was happy for you. We went out to eat to celebrate. I tell you I’m going to join, and all you’ve done is tell me I’ll get myself killed.”
“I’m not trying to be a dick,” he reasoned as she started making an omelet. “I love you, sis. I want you safe and sound at home, where my buddies can keep an eye on you—”
“I don’t need Joel or—”
“Have I ever tried to stop you from doing what you wanted?”
“No—”
“Dena,” Wizard cut her off, “this is real life we’re talking about. Joining the military is a life-changing decision. If you’re not happy, you can’t just quit and run home. I won’t be there to nurse you back to health—”
“I don’t expect you to.” Flipping the omelet, she turned to stare at him. “I know joining the Navy won’t be a walk in the park, but it’s my life, and I’m going to do it regardless of what you say.”
His jaw firmed. “You’d better not,” he warned, his anger getting the better of him.
She stubbornly stared back at him. “You can’t stop me.”
“If you do this, knowing how much I don’t want you to, you’ll be dead to me.”
Her face turned ashen. “You don’t mean that …”
His expression hardened. It was killing him to be cruel to her, but it was for her own good. She might hate him for a while—a long while—but eventually, she would realize he was right.
“I do. I mean it, Dena.”
Striding out of the room, he went to the front closet and took out his jacket.
Dena ran out of the kitchen after him. “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to stay with Joel until I have to be back on the ship.”
Tearfully, she grabbed his arm as he started to open the door. “Saint … please don’t go like this!”
He paused in the doorway. “Dena, you’re the only bright light I have in my shitty life. If anything happened to you …” He paused to catch his breath, fear for her robbing him of oxygen. “You need to think long and hard before signing on the dotted line.” He turned to face her. “I never plan to marry or have kids of my own. When I think of the future, do you know what I imagine?”
“No,” she answered huskily.
“Me coming over for Thanksgiving dinner. I’d play with your kids while you and whoever you marry cooked. Then we’d hang out and watch football until it was time for me to go home.”
“Saint …” She squeezed his arm. “Just because I might join the Navy doesn’t mean I won’t have a family. Besides, even if I do, you’ll have your own. Eventually, you’ll find someone. One bad experience shouldn’t keep you from loving another woman.”
