Page 36 of Be With Me
Chapter 18
Debbie couldn’t sit still. She kept fidgeting on the bleachers. The past few months had flown. It hadn’t all been sunshine and roses. She’d heard that Mr. Scott had finally joined his Eleanor. Debbie hoped that the love between Luny and her could be as long lasting. They’d made it through the first of what she was sure was many deployments.
Maggie Cassidy was next to her, rocking back and forth with Lexi in her arms. Cassidy hadn’t been able to be at Lexi’s birth due to scheduling of R&Rs so Maggie’s and Cassidy’s moms had been at the birth. Each had stayed a month to help out and spoil their granddaughter. They were both dressed in cute dresses in red, white and blue with stars. Debbie looked down at her sundress; it wasn’t in the slightest bit a patriotic outfit with the flowers in reds and pinks on the black background. Luny had bought it for her when they’d visited Miami during his R&R. It outlined her curves in all the right ways without being tacky.
She glanced at the families sitting around her. Maggie had found them seats in the second row, so they weren’t that far up, so she had to turn a bit to see those around her. Oh yeah, there was another family wearing matching patriotic outfits. Looking again, she recognized one of the other wives from the unit. Luny had “strongly suggested” that she attend the spouses briefing prior to him leaving and she was glad that she’d gone. Quite a few of the wives had become good friends over the deployment. They’d kept each other company when things got too lonely; helped take care of the specialist’s wife when they found out that their little boy was sick in the hospital; celebrated holidays together; made sure that someone remembered birthdays.
Luny had mentioned that he’d become good friends with two guys over ‘in the box’. He said they were as good as Mackey, Danny, Spook and Kevin.Guess the friendships that form a family works for the spouses too.
“Will you stop pulling at the hem of that gorgeous dress?” Maggie snapped Debbie out of her thoughts.
“Huh, I’m not pulling at my dress,” Debbie denied, as she reached for her skirt again. Maggie slapped her hand away.
“You look frickin’ amazing compared to us that are still trying to lose that fifteen pounds that we promised ourselves would be gone before our husbands got home.” Debbie checked out Maggie, from head to toe. Okay, as far as she could see with them squished on the risers.
“Uh, hello? You gave birth five months ago. You’re allowed to still have a few pounds on your body and if Bobby says one bad thing? I will make it my personal mission to make his life miserable and considering I’m married to his sergeant? Oh yeah, I can make that happen. You have taken care of that precious bundle by yourself for the past five months.” Debbie knew she was going all mama bear, but she knew how difficult it had been for Maggie with Lexi not getting enough from breast milk and having to switch her to formula. How she’d felt like a failure.As if.
“Damn it,” Maggie complained before handing the baby to Debbie. “Now you’ve done it. My makeup is going to be all over my face when Bobby sees me for the first time in months.” She bent over and started digging in the diaper bag at her feet.
“Hey princess. Don’t tell mommy that I just said that so we could have girl time,” Debbie play ‘whispered’ to the baby. “Who’s the most precious? Yes, you’re right. You are.”
“Debbie, you’ve lost it. I think you might have baby fever,” Maggie said as she sat up with a tissue against her cheek.
“Baby fever? Me? Nah. Luny and I haven’t even talked about kids. I’m not sure when we’ll move, but it’s probably going to be in the next year? I think I want to get that figured out without little ones to worry about.” Debbie hadn’t even thought as far as what they were going to do for Thanksgiving next month never mind starting a family.
“Ladies and gentleman, honored guests, please join me in welcoming back your soldiers,” a disembodied voice announced right before the Army song came playing over the speakers. Everyone in the stands stood as the unit marched into the hangar.
“Do you see them?” Maggie was standing on her tiptoes, straining to see. Debbie had a few inches of height on Maggie but there was no way that she could figure out which were their soldiers.
“I can’t tell any of them apart from this distance. They’ll find us. Luny said to stay put and he’d bring Bobby to us when I talked to him the other night before they boarded the first plane. We’ve been patient for a year, we can do it for another ten minutes.” Debbie looked at Lexi who was somehow sleeping through this all.I’ll need to ask Maggie how she managed to train Lexi to sleep with noise when we have kids… some day.
Debbie knew that it was the commander talking but she really couldn’t hear anything he was saying. The families were getting restless with their soldiers feet away.
“Battalion, dismissed,” the commander said and then chaos ensued. Debbie held onto Lexi tightly as someone from behind tried to shift around her. Lord, please don’t let anyone get hurt in this mess.
“Debbie, you have Lexi?” Maggie sounded worried.
“With all I have in me. You look for the guys. I’ll protect the princess,” Debbie said.
“As you wish,” Luny’s voice came from right in front of Debbie. When she looked up from Lexi, there was her husband. He looked a bit tired but otherwise, in good shape.
“Forget to mention something?” Luny teased as he leaned in and gave her a kiss. It wasn’t deep but it flowed through her system. Everything seemed to release. No tightness of muscles. No more waiting. The relief made her knees weak. Debbie shifted Lexi to the shoulder away from Luny, trying to get closer to her husband.
“Um sergeant?” Bobby’s voiced interrupted their kiss.
“Later,” Luny whispered as he licked her bottom lip. “Sorry Cassidy. I bet you’d like to see this little one.” Luny reached for Lexi and placed a kiss on her head before handing her to her daddy.
Debbie watched Maggie fuss over Lexi as her husband held their daughter for the first time. Debbie felt tears form and blinked rapidly. Damn, she might need that tissue from earlier. Luny, quick on the uptake, pulled his phone from one of the many pockets of his uniform and snapped a picture of the new daddy falling in love with his daughter.
“You take your family home, Cassidy. I’ll see you in seventy-two hours for debriefs,” Luny instructed Bobby. “She’s beautiful. Mrs. Cassidy, you drive safe.”
Bobby didn’t even look up from his daughter as he answered, “Yes, sergeant. Isn’t she the most beautiful baby you’ve ever seen?”
“Just like the nine million pictures you shared, Cassidy,” Luny teased. “Head home with her and your stunning wife and learn how to change diapers.” Luny turned to Debbie. “I think I’ll take my alluring wife home and ravish her.”
“Sergeant! Not in front of my daughter,” Bobby exclaimed as he looked up.
“I think she’s a bit young to understand my meaning, Cassidy. Now scoot.” Luny held out his arm to Debbie. She wrapped her arms around his biceps and put her head against his shoulder.
