Page 68 of Another Love, Another Time
“You’re right, I do.”
He continued, “I’ll have to get off soon, but I want to let you know they are letting me take leave in the next five to eight weeks. I want to make sure I can see you.”
“Really? I can’t wait to see you!” I can’t hide my excitement. “I should be in my new place by then. My mom will be excited to see you, too. We’ll have to go over to her house while you’re here. How many days do I get you?”
“I’m not sure how much time yet, but I’ll let you know as soon as I do. I have to go visit mom and my siblings too, so I haven’t decided if I’m going to come see you first or them.”
“You want me to go with you?”
“Yeah, if you want.”
“When you know more, I’ll check my schedule and see what I can work out.”
“Okay. Well, I have to go. Parpan wanted me to tell you he said hi.”
I miss those guys. “Tell him I said ‘hi’ back. I love you. Stay safe. Make smart choices.”
“Love you too, Rhondy. You stay safe, too.” And then he’s gone again.
I take a deep breath and let it out.
“You okay?” Auggie asks.
“Yeah. I just miss him.”
“I’m sure. I bet it’s hard to be away from him.” I see him swallow. “So, he knows about me?” He seems nervous now. He looks at me and then back at the road.
“Yeah, and he knows who you are. Why wouldn’t he? He’s my best friend.” I don’t say that to be mean. Or maybe I do. It’s true. After what happened, I had to distance myself from everyone. Baxter weaseled himself into my broken heart and has never left. He came along when I really needed him. I’d do anything for him, and I know he would do the same for me.
“Why does he call you ‘Rhondy’?” he questions.
“It’s a long story. It goes with the other stuff I’ve been putting off talking to you about. Let’s put a pin in it for later.” I look back at my phone, trying to distract myself.
“I get it. Just for the record, I’m glad you had him.”
I look out the window and let out a sigh. “Yeah, me too.” I smile as I think about Baxter and his nickname for me.
Chapter 19
Auggie
I’m not going to lie. It hurts to know that she considers her husband her best friend. I always thought that would be me. In the week that we have been partners, I’ve learned that her husband is not living here with her, that he is still in the Army.
She breaks me out of my thoughts by saying, “He actually reminds me a lot of you.”
Great. Now she’s comparing us, only he didn’t let her down. He didn’t betray her. He didn’t lie to her. I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself. I deserve this.
“How so?” I ask, not able to keep my mouth shut.
She looks at me. “You both want to be the hero.” She rolls her eyes. “A knight on a white horse. You both have a heart of gold. You’re both funny and easy to talk to. The difference is I can trust him to always have my back.” She looks out the windshield again.
I don’t say anything. I can’t. I have failed her too many times. I have to earn her trust, especially if we are going to be partners.
She senses I’m not going to object to what she just said. “You heard him; he’s going to come visit me. We still haven’t talked about it all, and I’m not ready. To be honest, I don’t think you are ready.”
I raise my eyebrows at her. I’m getting ready to say something, but she blurts, “I appreciate that you’re not pushing me, but I was hoping that when he does come to visit, we could hang out. He would love to meet you.”
I look at her in shock. “He wants to meet me?”
