The Purple Heart (20 page)

“
So your call is it’s going
to be girl?” Out of everything I said; she focused on the one thing
that wasn’t a compliment to her. So typical of Cheryl.

“
Oh I don’t know. It’s just
what came out. It’s what I felt. She. I feel a little girl is on
her way to us. Yeah, that’s my call. I just know it’s a little
girl. It’s almost like there’s an angel whispering it into my
ear.”

“
An angel, huh. That’s
because you’ve been in heaven for the past few hours.”

“
Yeah, I have. What time
are you coming over?” I asked.

“
I think somewhere around
seven. Is that too late, too early?”

“
Nope, it’s perfect. Gives
me a few more hours to have sex!”

“
Goodbye, Sydney. I can
hear your bubbles popping.”

“
Goodbye,
Cheryl.”

It was the perfect day to stay home and
in bed, especially with Aiden. The weather was terrible. I could
hear the small pellets of sleet hitting the roof and windows. I
moved the curtains back to take a peek outside. It was gray and
somber.

“
Don’t look out there. It’s
much warmer inside here with me,” Aiden whispered into my ear as he
came up behind and wrapped his arms around me.

“
Warm would not be my
choice of wording. I’d say it’s pretty hot in here and about to get
a lot hotter.”

“
Yes, it is. Our bath
awaits you, Madame.”

“
I’m very excited about it,
too. You can reach all the hard to scrub spots.”

“
I plan on making sure
every inch of you is squeaky clean.”

* * *

After we took our bath, we put on comfy
clothes and then took them off again for sex, and then put them
back on. This was the way it seemed to go. I ordered lunch in from
the local deli, the only one that actually delivered.

I was so happy to be cuddled up with
Aiden the entire day. Presently, we sat in bed playing dirty
scrabble.

“
That
is not
a
word,” I said.

“
It most certainly
is
,” he countered.

“
What the hell does it
mean?”

He reached between my legs and
pointed.

“
You’re kidding me? I never
heard it called
that
before.”

“
You don’t get around much,
do you?” he laughed.

“
Now that I
have
heard.”

“
I’m really glad you don’t
have to go in to work. The weather looks really bad. The roads are
probably treacherous.”

“
I agree. It’s really
looking icy out there.” We were snuggled on the couch, feeding each
other gooey homemade oatmeal chocolate chip cookies over our board
game, when I received a phone call from work telling me I needed to
pick up important paperwork for Aiden’s case. I had completely
forgotten about him being a case at all. In my head, he was my
lover, my boyfriend.
Hell, he was my future
husband.

“
I guess you spoke too
soon. I have to run in to work. They have some of your final
paperwork that needs to be signed so you can become civilian again.
And officially mine and not the Army’s anymore.”

“
Sydney.” He looked
distraught.

“
What’s wrong? I’ll be
right back. Are you missing me already?”

His face took on a tortured look and I
was starting to worry about his reaction to my leaving.

“
Sydney, I would be so
happy to stay like this forever with you. But...”

“
I’m already not liking the
‘but’ part.” I was now afraid that if I left, he’d be gone when I
got back. I didn’t want to go through that again.

“
Sydney, you have a life
here and I can be part of it to a certain capacity, but not
completely. I want to start over. Start over completely from
scratch with you. Come away with me.”

“
Aiden, I don’t understand
what you’re saying. Why can’t you be a part of my life here? I hate
the thought of leaving Cheryl and Gina, and of course, the baby is
on the way, too. I want to experience the whole pregnancy and birth
with them. I mean, you’re already here and you have nothing holding
you to anywhere else, right? Is there something I’m not aware of?
Should I be concerned about the paperwork I’m picking up? Is there
a hidden wife somewhere?”

The second I started to doubt him
again, he flinched, like my words had burned him. He seriously
looked in pain.

“
Aiden?” I rubbed my hand
up and down his arm to console him.

“
Sydney, there’s no one but
you. I promise you that. I just don’t think this is the best place
for us. We can go anywhere we want to. Do anything we want. Just
not here.”

“
I’m not opposed to it. I
think we can talk about it more. I can’t imagine letting you walk
away from me again, so yes, it’s a possibility.” This seemed to
relieve him and he smiled and caressed my cheek.

“
My beautiful Sydney, I
know you have to go. I hate to let you leave, though.”

“
I’ll be back before you
know it. Gina and Cheryl are coming over to meet you tonight, so I
really won’t be long because there’s no way I’m leaving you alone
with those two. They’ll tear you to shreds!” I laughed so he’d know
I was really only kidding, although they would have a blast with
him.

I threw on more appropriate clothing
and when I got to the bottom of the stairs he was waiting for me.
He pulled me tight and crushed his lips to mine.

“
Wow, that’s some hell of a
goodbye kiss. I’ll only be gone an hour. Really. Unless … are you
going to be here when I get back?” Now I really was worried he
would leave again. I didn’t want him to. I was starting to feel
panicked.

“
I’m never going to leave
you. Not even if you asked me to. I can’t. It’s not possible. I’m
bound to you.”

“
I feel the same way. I
want to be with you forever.” I ran my hand down his cheek and
softly kissed his lips in the sweetest way I possibly could to say
goodbye for now. I wanted him to know I was coming back to him and
soon.

The roads were complete crap. I was
driving as slowly as I could because there was black ice everywhere
and my car was sliding at every turn I made. I hated driving in icy
weather, especially in such a small car. My fifteen-minute drive
turned into half an hour. There was no way I was making it home in
an hour as I had promised Aiden. He had looked so worried when I
left the house. I thought about calling him to let him know I had
arrived safely but it slipped my mind once I finally pulled into my
parking space. I drew in a deep breath of relief. I hadn’t realized
how scared I had been the entire trip here.

When I finally reached my office, I ran
to my desk, but there was no paperwork anywhere to be seen. I
checked my inbox … nothing. I ran to the mailroom to check there.
Nothing.
What the hell?

I took this opportunity to head over to
see Cheryl.

“
Hey there,
babe.”

“
What the hell are you
doing here? I’m surprised you can even walk the way you said you
were going at it.”

“
Ha. Ha. That’s very funny.
You’re a laugh riot. Did you ever think of becoming a professional
comedian? I received a call at home telling me that I needed to
come in and pick up some paperwork for Aiden to sign. But I can’t
seem to locate it.”

“
Isn’t it
there?”

“
Nope, it’s MIA. So are you
excited to meet him?”

“
Oh yeah, I want to meet
the man who has my girl tied all up in goofy love
knots.”

“
Well, you only have to
wait a couple of hours now. I’m preparing him. So be
nice!”

“
I promise to be nice. I’m
always nice.” I shot her a
who-the-hell-are-you-kidding
look. “Whatever,” she said flatly.

“
Listen, I want to tell you
something now, so you don’t freak out tonight if it comes
up.”

“
What now? Let me guess,
you’re pregnant?”

“
Right, I got pregnant
sometime between this morning and last night, and I already know.”
I rolled my eyes at her.

“
Fine. Tell me.”

“
Aiden and I are in love. I
mean full-blown love. Words said and everything.”

“
Well, I figured that was
coming so I’m not surprised. Is that the big news?”

“
No, but it’s a part of it.
He asked me to move away with him so we can make fresh start for
both of us. Together.”

Cheryl’s face went blank. I found this
completely disturbing. It meant she was about to blow a
gasket.

“
What? Are you fucking
kidding me? Why? Why in the hell would you do that? Why would you
even consider it? Why would he even suggest that? Is he hiding
something?”

And there it was, the blown
gasket.

“
I don’t think so. I think
he just wants a fresh start. Together. No one’s past to get in the
way. I’m even thinking it might be a good time for me to leave the
military, too. I’ve been toying with the idea of opening a private
practice. I think I’ve been spoiled lately, not having to come into
the office.”

“
I don’t like this one bit.
You meet this guy and in less than a week you’re in love, then he’s
gone, then he’s back and now you’re moving away together? This
doesn’t sound bizarre to you?”

“
It did. But then I thought
about it and I don’t want to be without him. We’ve already seen
what affect that had on me. I told him it was worth further
discussion. I mean, I’m not tied to this place. I could rent out
the house. Hell, you and Gina have been looking for a place. You
can take my house over. It’s already going to you,
anyway.”

“
I can’t believe
I’m
even having this discussion with you. This is ridiculous. When did
this all happen? Last night? This morning?” she quizzed
me.

“
Why does it matter? Look,
Cher, I have no family left. I only have you and Gina here. I could
have the chance to move someplace beautiful and warm all year
round. You know how much I detest the snow and ice.”

Cheryl just glared at me, shaking her
head, while she tapped her finger on the table. She was most likely
trying to think of what to say next.

“
Please, Cheryl. Just keep
an open mind about all this. I’m not saying I’m leaving
tomorrow.”

“
He just comes out of
nowhere, with no past to speak of, moves into your life and your
house, breaks your heart, and then shows up, only to want to kidnap
you. Who the hell is this guy?”

“
Aiden,” I said
flatly.

“
Aiden what? You never even
told me his last name.” Cheryl was furious. She was no longer
butting out of this situation.

“
Are you planning on
running a background check on him or something?” I accused
her.

“
Maybe. I do have the
clearance, you know.”

“
Cheryl, it’s really not—”
I wasn’t allowed to finish my sentence. I felt like a child being
scolded by a parent.

“
Tell me his
full,
real
name. I want to know exactly how it was listed on his
paperwork,” she demanded.

“
Sergeant First Class Aiden
Thane.”

I watched as all the color drained from
Cheryl’s face. She looked like she was going to throw
up.

“
Are you okay? What’s wrong
with you? You look really pale right now.” I was starting to
seriously worry about why she was having that reaction. My stomach
moved into my throat.

“
Sydney, did you just say
Aiden Thane? Sergeant First Class
Aiden Thane
?”

“
Yes. Why?”

“
I have his file,” Cheryl
looked visibly upset.

“
What? That’s ridiculous.
Why would you have his file? You only deal with the deceased. It
has to be a mistake. He’s obviously not dead. He’s at my house. I
just left him there.”

She picked up a file from behind her.
She started to read from it. Her hands were shaking.

“
Sergeant First Class Aiden
Thane. Purple Heart. The Army Commendation Medal. The Army
Achievement Medal. Army Distinguished Service Cross. Killed in the
line of duty. Four shots to the chest. One taken directly to the
heart. Fatal shot. Died protecting his troop.”

Now I could feel the color draining
from my face. I felt as though I was going to heave all over her
desk. A sweat broke across my brow. I tried not to
panic.

“
No, it’s a mistake! That
can’t be right. He’s at my house. He is
not
dead.”

“
Sydney, it says he died
the day you met him.” Cheryl could sense my panic and began
speaking in a soft, calming tone. She was used to talking to
frantic, grieving people. I wasn’t happy to be on the receiving end
of her talents at the moment.

“
No, it’s a mistake!” I
screamed at her.