Red’s was jumping. A wave of sound broke over Aaron as he stepped into the bar, reminding him why he’d been home alone playing Call of Duty instead of out celebrating. He’d ignored Rick’s call initially, assuming his buddy was intent on dragging him out as a last minute date for some friend of Linda’s. On a break between missions, his curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he’d checked his messages. If Rick was drunk enough that the bartender had confiscated his phone and started looking for somebody to come ride herd on him, something had gone horribly wrong. Aaron suspected that meant Rick had been dumped. One night of getting s**t-faced had always been his go-to coping mechanism for that eventuality in college. Not the kind of behavior one expected from an honors student or
