Letters from Home (Love Beyond Reason #1)(5)
Unbelievably tough, strong-willed, and determined, she looked particularly vulnerable standing there. Years ago, when they’d been stationed together, he’d seen her do forty-eight-hour shifts and hardly blink a tired eye. All the worry about her leaving for Iraq came back full force. She would have seen the worst of it in the hospitals. “Sure.”
He pulled one of the handmade afghans out of the hall closet, the green and purple one. Noise floated up the stairs. Someone played the guitar, probably Lucas, and laughter was carried on the low murmurings of a dozen different conversations. Zack paused at the top of the stairs, where he could see Phillip putting a coat on. Carlos Rodriguez spoke quietly to the man, shook his hand, and showed him out.
Maybe he was a nice guy.
Maybe.
It was possible he liked Lena. Who didn’t?
Zack scowled. Only a jerk would leave just because the guest of honor had disappeared. If Phillip really liked Lena, he’d stay and get to know her family. Shaking his head, he stopped in her bedroom. “Lena.”
No response. He unfolded the blanket and covered her. Moonlight shone through the window and spilled across her face. Her eyes were closed, her breathing even. He went to tuck the blanket around her and found the small, folded piece of paper on the bed in front of her, the one that had been in her pocket before.
Pulse pounding, he picked it up and unfolded it. His eyes widened as recognition dawned. One of the letters, this one dated in October. She still has it.
His mind racing, Zack rubbed at the script on the page and read a few lines.
I think that’s when I first fell in love with you…
Zack felt a rush of embarrassment heat his neck, but he smiled.
Christmas morning, let’s meet at the gazebo in the park.
He’d saved her life there once. Well, saved might be stretching it, but when you’re nine, a bleeding head and scraped elbows can seem pretty harrowing.
She’s been going on about some guy…
Lightning flashed inside his head as he realized where he’d miscalculated. Heart pounding in his chest, Zack glanced behind him. Dim light filled the hallway, but all was quiet. Slowly, he refolded the paper and slipped it into his pocket.
There was another man alright. It was him.
Chapter Three
“Did you take it, Cat?” Lena crouched on her hands and knees to look under the bed and shuffled through the loose shoes and few storage boxes. “I know I had it in the pocket of my shirt last night.”
“That’s your first problem, Lena.”
Lena rose and leaned on the bed, the frustration eating at her. “What?”
Giving her a quick glance, Catalina leaned toward the mirror above the dresser and applied a liberal amount of mascara. “A shirt with pockets…and a collar and buttons.”
Lena frowned. “So. It’s my favorite shirt. It’s comfortable and has purple and pink pinstripes.”
“You lost me at comfortable.” Cat slipped the wand into the bottle with a snap and twisted the top. “Honey, it doesn’t matter how many love letters this guy sent you. You need to get a little uncomfortable if you want a man to notice.”
The youngest of seven and still in high school, her sister Cat, in turn, could be aggravating or cute. This fit both bills.
“I don’t need a man to notice me, for crying out loud.” An unexpected warmth rose on her neck, and she cleared her throat. “Besides, Phillip didn’t care what I was wearing last night.”
“Because he’s desperate,” Cat said, picking up her coat from the chair.
“Hey.” Lena didn’t usually let her sister bug her. Her brain knew Cat had a lot to learn about life in general, but her heart took that particular punch in a soft spot, and it hurt. She’d spent most of her life in school or the Army, and never had a serious relationship. She knew that made her the oddball. She’d always been outside the norm. Still… “Phillip seemed like a nice guy.”
Cat dropped the coat and came around the bed to take Lena in her arms. “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. Not desperate because he likes you.” She pulled back and held Lena’s shoulders.
Lena almost had to look up. When had her sister gotten so tall? Just like Papi.
“He’s got the kids, no wife,” she continued. “He needs someone to take care of them.”
“Maybe he’s lonely, too.”
Cat shrugged. “Just be careful. Don’t get all wrapped up in his life on a chance he might have written some love letters. There are other resolutions to loneliness.”
She’d been hearing the warnings since letter one. Around letter four, she’d hit a wall—lonely, tired, sick—and that letter had been the one thing keeping her head above water. The person who’d written those letters had known exactly what she needed. How?
She didn’t know. But even if nothing came from meeting him, she was going on Christmas morning to thank him for being a friend. “I need to find that letter.”
“I’ll help you look…later. I’ve got a hot date right now.” Cat waggled her eyebrows with an infectious grin. “Todd is taking me to the park, then to the movies, a matinee. Afterward, we’re going to eat at Tremonts.”
Lena rolled her eyes as she rummaged through her top drawer. She was listening to advice from her high school sister. “That’s sweet. Todd’s a nice guy?”