Page 38 of Come Back to Me

Guess what? Nettie baked you a cake for your birthday. Chocolate, your favorite. I saved you a piece in the freezer. Pete made you poker sticks. He said the ones you made were satisfactory, but this will work better for roasting marshmallows. He’s not wrong. They do work great.

My gift to you is the enclosed photo. Well, not the photo, but the finished project. It took a few days of sanding the swing and a couple of coats of paint, but I think it turned out all right. I can’t wait for you to see it in person. I can’t wait to sit on it with you and watch the sunset dip below the horizon every night.

Being at the cabin this time of the year is both the hardest and the best. I miss you more than anyone has ever missed another person. So much that it physically hurts. Maybe I ought to see a doctor about it.

Please come home soon, Cowboy.

Oh, and guess what? Nettie is pregnant! You’re gonna have a new baby cousin. And I’m gonna be a godmother.

Love you forever, Giana

Dear Leo,

We celebrated another one of your birthdays without you. Nettie is really stepping up her game. This time she added a chocolate ganache center. It was delicious. I tossed out last year’s piece from the freezer and replaced it with a slice from this year. I think you’ll like it better anyway.

Baby Jack is adorable. He’s almost six months old. Pete is an exceptional father. And Nettie, well, you know Nettie. She dotes on everything he does. I’m the fun godmother. I’ll be the first one to sneak him a beer. That is, if you don’t do it first.

Your sister, Sara, sent me a letter a few weeks ago. She’s got a scholarship for college from FFA. It sounds like Marco is doing a fine job running the family ranch. Apparently, he’s already got himself a steady girlfriend. I’m sure you’re mighty proud of both of them.

Nothing new with me. Still working at the diner. It’s not exciting, but it pays the bills. I’ve taken to learning how to play the guitar. I’m not very good at it, but it makes me feel closer to you. Sometimes I see you in my dreams. Those are my favorite nights.

Love you forever, Giana

CHAPTER 15

Giana

Dear Leo,

I’m not even sure why I’m sending this letter. Your family received word about an explosion in your camp. Only two men from your unit have been found alive. The rest of you are considered dead or prisoners of war. I know you, Leo. You’re a fighter. I’m holding onto hope that you’re still alive and you’re fighting to get back to me.

I can’t believe you’re gone. I won’t believe it. The possibility that you’re still out there gives me the strength to get out of bed each day. Please send me something. A letter. A sign of some sort.

I need you to come back to me, Cowboy. Please!

All my love, Giana

P.S. Nettie ispregnant again.

Pushing my fingers into my eyes, I shove away the exhaustion I feel all the way into my bones. Saying goodbye to little Jack and Elizabeth is easier when I’m this tired. I could tell Nettie wanted to sit down and have a chat but my excuse about having to work a double at the diner was true.

She’s worried about me. Everyone is. Shit.I’mworried about me.

My body aches like I’m a hundred. I blame it on too much heartache. It ages a person.

Even though resting my throbbing body in the tub makes perfect sense, I can’t bring myself to use the bathtub. Not since Leo left.

I take a quick shower instead and after drying off and dressing in fresh pajamas, I climb into bed underneath the covers. Cupping my hand around the compass that still dangles around my neck, I shut my eyes and visualize Leo. Tall, lanky, brown eyes that feel as if they see into my soul when they look at me. There’s a pang in my heart. It’s a kind of anguish that’s indescribable. I ache everywhere for him, not just in my heart.

My hands, my body, between my thighs.

Fresh tears spring to my eyes, and I draw my knees up to my chest, curling into a ball so tight I hope it takes away the dull pain throbbing in every inch of me.

Iawake in bed alone. Just as I always do. Despite my dreams sometimes promising me different. Outside, the sky is pitch black and clear. A thousand bright, twinkling stars show off above me as I climb into the truck and head into town.

Mary-Lou gives me a smile and nods when I enter through the back door of the diner. I give her a weak smile in return. Tim hands me a blueberry muffin after I’ve tied my apron. He knows it’s my favorite.

Everyone here is nice. And best of all, quiet. They don’t make me explain why I don’t talk as much these days. Or why I spend so much time up at the cabin alone.

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