Chapter 8
Pad walked down the ramp as slowly as he could, chattering with Wayne and making as much eye contact with him as possible. When he passed the secured area, he heard his name squealed out loud.
“Pad! Paddy!”
He scanned the crowd and saw four people off to his left. “Hey, Wayne, some of my family are here. Do you need a ride to the base or something?”
“Actually, I’ve got a ride from my unit personnel person. Supposed to anyway.” Wayne leaned over to shake his hand, and as Pad leaned closer, it turned into a half hug. “Don’t lose my number,” added Wayne, who stepped back to allow Pad to get a good look at him and his beautiful face.
“Oh, I won’t. You can count on that.” Pad grinned.
Pad turned to the twins. Jack and Jen Bradford stood next to his aunt and his aunt’s longtime b
