Page 21 of The Soldier's Homecoming

“I mean this whole not-telling-her thing,” she corrected. “She’s going to figure it out soon, and I think we need to figure out what to tell her.”

Daniel sipped his chocolate slowly. “What do you want to tell her?”

Penny raised her shoulders before letting them fall again. “Honestly? I don’t know, Daniel, but it doesn’t feel right pretending.”

“So let’s not pretend,” he said, eyes shining.

What? “You want to tell her?”

He shook his head, eyes burning the deepest of browns, as dark as the rich chocolate she’d stirred in the pot. “No.” he said firmly. “I want to prove myself toyouso we don’t have to pretend toher. I want another chance, Penny. I want it so bad, but I don’t know what to say or do to convince you to say yes. I know we said we’d wait until tomorrow night, but we’re here now and I think we need to talk.”

She shook her head.No.

This was not a conversation she wanted to be having right now. She didn’t feel strong enough to go there.

“Penny?”

“Daniel, I…”

He held up a hand, as if he didn’t want to hear what she was going to say. Didn’t want to give her the chance to say no.

“I know you’re angry with me, Pen, and I know I deserve it. Hell, do I know I deserve it,” he told her. “But you’re only here for a week, right?”

She nodded, scared of where this was going. “Six days as of right now.”

He put his mug down and reached for her, then folded his hands back against his own body, as if he wasn’t sure what her reaction would be to his touch.

She was glad he hadn’t made contact.

Touching him right now would be too soon. She was still too raw.

“We can pretend for Gabby’s sake. And I mean really pretend. But at the same time, I want to give us a go for real.”

Penny’s head started shaking all on its own.

She wasnotjust going to pretend like everything was normal. Not to that extent.

But then, hadn’t they been doing exactly that already for Gabby’s sake?

“Please, Pen. Let me prove myself to you,” he said, his voice quiet yet powerful. Deep and strong. “If you want to walk away from us, from our marriage, by the time you get back on that plane, then I’ll file for separation. You can move on and start over.”

She gulped. “What’s the other option?”

This time Daniel smiled so genuinely that his eyes crinkled in the corners. “We fall in love again and give our marriage a second chance.

Penny stood still, unmoving, in shock.

She couldn’t answer him.

Instead she turned sharply and walked down the hall.

Daniel didn’t say anything, but her mind was racing. Ideas, realities,possibilitiespowering through her mind.

She reached the end of the hallway, not sure what she was doing, or what she should do.

But one niggling thought in particular wouldn’t leave her alone.

What if she did have the ability to forgive? To forget?

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