Page 40 of The Soldier's Homecoming

“When you say you want to get past this…”

She leaned back like she hadn’t realized how her words had sounded.

“What I mean is that I don’t want to ruin our relationship so much that all we can do is fight. We owe Gabby more than that. Hell, we owe ourselves better than that.”

There was so much that needed to be said. So much they needed to talk about.

But tonight was about having dinner and putting what had happened behind them. He had hoped it would be a romantic date when he’d first planned it; now he was simply pleased they were sitting down together and talking. Without fighting.

They’d never fought in the past and he hated that they’d been reduced to that now.

He picked up the menu. “Do we even need to look?” he asked.

Penny seemed happy to turn the subject away from them. “No,” she said, laughing as she spoke. “Sizzling prawns in garlic to start with, and the slow-cooked lamb shoulder for a main.”

He snapped his menu shut and waved over the waiter. “Great choice.”

“And wine,” she said, visibly relaxing. “I think tonight calls for a good bottle of wine.”

Daniel couldn’t have agreed more.

“Do you remember that first time we came here?” he asked, not able to help going back into the past.

“Yeah,” she said, fingers playing with the edge of her napkin. “I was so nervous, but you won me over with the great food.”

He laughed. “Are you sure it was just the food?’

She beamed back at him, like old times for a moment. “Okay, so maybe it was the wine, too.”

Daniel bit his tongue as the waiter came back and ordered a bottle of red.

“If I remember correctly, you seemed to like something else about me when we left the restaurant.”

Penny gasped, hand shooting up to cover her mouth. “Daniel!”

He shrugged, leaning back in his seat and trying not to laugh at the look on her face. “Hey, you remember the food, I remember the fun outside later. Can you blame me?”

They sat in silence, looking at one another as their wine arrived and both glasses were poured. It was like they were on a tightrope, with no idea which way they would fall, or if they could possibly make it to the other side.

Daniel raised his glass and waited for Penny to do the same, clinking them gently together.

“To having you home,” he said.

“To being home,” she replied.

Their gazes met across the table as they both sipped.

Daniel could feel the connection they still shared, sense the past they were both remembering in such detail.

The only difference now was that while he’d once been able to reach for his wife across the table and caress her hand now he was forced to keep his distance. At least physically.

And not for the first time since she’d arrived home, not being able to touch her freely was like a stake being spiked through his heart.

Penny wantedto be angry with Daniel. Hell, he’d hurt her enough last night to make her want to hate him forever.

But that was juvenile. She knew that.

And a bigger part of her wanted to be happy with him, to relax in his company, even if it was simply to enjoy a meal together and talk about Gabby. About being parents. Whatever happened, they were bound by the child they’d created and loved together.

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