Page 36 of Embracing Trust

Julia beams. “Perfect. I haven’t been there in ages. You know they do serve the best margaritas in Texas, right?”

“I’ve heard.”

I shouldn’t be nervous. This woman was my girlfriend for two years in high school. I’m feeling the pressure to woo her and show her that I can be trusted. She deserves so much better than what she’s had.

Once we’re seated at Taco Casa and some of the initial awkward conversation has run its course, I begin to feel more comfortable.

“Tell me all about you,” I say after the waitress brings chips and salsa and takes our drink order.

Julia shrugs. “What’s to tell?”

“Fill me in on six years.” I pop a chip in my mouth. “Tell me about the life of Julia.”

“I kept my nose in the books for four of it. Graduated from Texas State with my degree in Graphic Arts, took that summer off and got a job in the fall with Meier Consulting.”

The waitress brings the margaritas and makes her way to the next table.

“School was more difficult for me. You know how I felt about math.” She takes a sip of her margarita and licks the salt from her glossy lips.

Turned on much? Don’t look at her lips.

“It’s okay,” I say with a chuckle. “You creative types don’t need math anyway.”

“I ended up with a tutor, but I got through it all.”

I nod as I study her. Her eyes glow in the low lights of this table.

“What about you?” She takes a chip from the basket, and I notice her long fingers that used to…

Don’t go there.

I take a drink of the margarita, grab a chip from the basket, and pop it into my mouth. “Basic training in Georgia. Fort Benning. Then I went on to AIT—"

“Sorry to interrupt. AIT?”

“Advanced individual training. That was in Missouri. After I finished, I was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.”

“Did you like it?”

“Being in the Army?” I take a drink.

“Yeah.”

I nod and grab another chip. “I did. It got me away from my parents and I had to think for myself. Think on my feet. Depend on myself, you know?”

Julia smiles and my skin tingles. My chest expands. I can’t get enough of seeing her eyes light up when she talks to me. Her voice is soft though. “You needed that.”

“I was stationed in Afghanistan for sixteen months, back to North Carolina for about six months, and then home.”

“In Afghanistan? I did hear you’d been deployed overseas.”

“Hot with lots of sand.” I chuckle.

I’m not about to get into any details of my time. Most people seem satisfied with my generic description.

She takes another sip of her drink and runs a chip through the salsa. “Do you miss it? Being in the Army?”

I consider her question. “Yes and no.”

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