Page 15 of Saving Luke

Once in the car, I turn to Brooke. "Take the long way back?" I ask.

"I can do that," she says.

We play music and talk about the carnival and Christmas traditions our families had growing up. She’s laughing and smiling, and this is how our day should have been.

When she pulls into Oakside, I stop her from getting out of the car.

"Even with everything and Gabbie’s behavior, I'm really glad you asked me to go. I had a good time.” I tell her.

"I did, too," she smiles.

Then, I lean in and kiss her, wrapping my hand around her neck and pulling her into me. She wraps her hands around my neck as she responds to my kiss, but by deepening it. Her soft, warm lips on mine are like a drug I can't get enough of.

When one of her hands trails over my shoulder and down my chest to rest just above my heart, I feel like this kiss gets taken to a new level. I trail kisses down her jawline.

"Luke," she whispers.

I keep kissing down her neck to her collarbone and then back up the other side of her neck to her ear. Exploring her, learning what she likes, and soaking in every little moan. I give her earlobe a light tug with my teeth, and she gasps. My lips meet hers again, and she trails her hand to my waist and then slips under my shirt. When the heat of her hand rests on my stomach, it's my turn to gasp with pleasure.

Pulling slightly away, Brooke’s luminous eyes move over my body, and then she looks into my eyes. Then, she leans in and gives me a quick kiss again, before moving away.

"Let's get you inside. You have a busy day of appointments tomorrow."

She wasn't lying. My day starts off with a visit to my physical therapist. He puts me through my paces, which kicks my butt.

"You’re looking very good!" Vince says. "If you keep up this progress, I don't see any reason we shouldn't have you walking by Christmas."

"Really?" I ask, a bit shocked.

"Yes. Now, you won't be running marathons or anything, but you should be walking around here pretty easily. Keep doing your exercises each morning and night, and I will see you tomorrow," he says.

My next meeting is with my counselor. Each person at Oakside is assigned one, and they are supposed to help with the transition from Oakside back into civilian life. According to the packet of papers I got from here, this included everything from further education to job finding to getting us set up with VA benefits to helping us line up a place to live, reaching out to family, and more. Basically, we are supposed to go to the counselor for anything we need.

"Hey, Becky." I greet her when I get to her office.

Becky is always bubbly and upbeat, the kind that makes you wonder where she gets all that energy. Then, when you leave her, you can't help but feel better no matter how you felt when you got there.

I’ve also learned that she’s Lexi’s sister-in-law and best friend.

"Luke! So today, we are looking at your plans for after Oakside. Have you thought about it since the last time we talked?"

"A little. I always help set up my unit's deployments, and was wanting to see how that could translate into a civilian job," I tell her.

"We can do that. Let's go over what you would do, and I will make some calls," she says.

She listens, as I tell her everything I would do to get ready for deployments, gear checks, itinerary setups, making sureeveryone’s papers were in order, etc. After I finish, she has a few ideas for me, and we set up a time to meet next week.

My last appointment of the day is after lunch, and it's a meeting with my therapist. This is by far my least favorite appointment, but I know he has to clear me to leave Oakside, so I try.

"Luke, come in," Dr. Tate says. "I thought we'd start working on your issue of confined spaces."

It's a small thing, but the guy earns points for not saying fear of small places. I hate it when Gabbie says it like that. But for her, I grin and bear it.

We spend time talking about the accident, about how I couldn't get out of the Humvee, as it started rolling, and then being thrown from it a second before it exploded. The nightmare it's been causing and how it's led to my issue with confined spaces. How I'm okay in a car, as long as the windows are open, but in an elevator, I almost hyperventilate.

He asks questions, and I answer them. As much as I don't want to talk about all this, I have two very good reasons to push forward. Two girls depending on me to work on myself, and who will drag me kicking and screaming from this dark place, whether I like it or not.

Chapter 6

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