“I’m sorry, but I have to go.”
“Sir, they won’t wait any longer,” his Sergeant said.
“Be safe,” Chiara called as he handed his boarding pass to the attendant. Hesitating in the door to the jetway, he turned to get one last look at her.
“Chi, I’d like it also if you were in that tiny airport when I got home.” With one last attempt at a grin, he broke into a jog toward the plane.
Epilogue
To:Chiara Scaletti
From: Liam Donnelly
My beautiful Chiara,
We arrived at camp late last night. I’m assigned to bunk with three other officers. None of them snore as sexy as you do. Is it too early to say I miss you? I need to report for duty soon, but I wanted to let you know that I miss you so much. Oh, and can you send a couple of naked pictures? Thanks. Love you.
Yours, Liam
Chiara had watched Liam’s plane pull away from the gate before running back to catch her own. She replayed Liam’s words over and over in her head until she thought her heart would burst. He had fallen in love with her, just as she had with him.
She could have avoided falling in love if it had just been about sex. But it was the way he made her laugh, his attention to her every need or want, the way he treated her family, the way he loved his own, and the streak of honor and duty that ran so deep through him it would never leave. Why had she ever thought she could let him walk away? Why had she been so arrogant that she thought she could fool her heart?
She was standing outside Donnelly’s handing out candy to the trick-or-treaters when Liam’s email reached her.
Since Halloween fell on a Tuesday this year, the city had designated the prior Saturday to celebrate. She had put on her sexiest rendition of a serving wench complete with an impressive push-up bra. Chiara was freezing, but she looked amazing. Pulling out her phone between kids, she laughed, reading the email.
There was no way she was sending naked pictures. That’s how people wound up splashed across the tabloids. She could just see the headlines now,School counselor bares it all for the troops. No, thank you. Liam would have to just settle for the next best thing.
“Hey, sweetie,” Andrea said, stepping outside. “Would you like to go warm up inside for a while?” Andrea had been smart enough to dress like Eeyore in a onesie.
“Can you take a picture of me first?”
“Sending Liam something to keep the blood pumping?” she asked with a wink. Chiara could feel her face grow crimson. Andrea laughed as she took Chiara’s phone. “Let’s give him something to want to come back for.” Chiara gave the camera her best sultry look, hoping it was enough.
“I’ll be back in fifteen minutes,” Chiara said.
“Take your time. I’m burning up in this thing.”
To: Chiara Scaletti
From: Liam Donnelly
My sexy wench,
Thank you for the Halloween picture. I now know they frown on jacking off in the communications tent. Who knew?! Something about time limits. I don’t know. I imagine there were a disproportionately large amount of dads dragging their kids over to check out your candy. I can’t wait to see what you have planned for Thanksgiving. Gotta get to work. Still waiting for thosenakedpictures. I love you.
Yours lustfully, Liam
Chiara threw herself into her work both on campus and at the bar, hoping the time apart from Liam would go faster. It seemed to work somewhat when she looked up from her desk one afternoon to the realization that it was the last day of the fall semester finals. The school always shut down for the holidays which meant she would be working full-time at Donnelly’s through the break.
With a sigh, she packed up her laptop and locked her office door. She only had one stop to make at the post office on the way to her apartment, then she could collapse for the night with her leftovers and Netflix.
She had been warned by Astrid that it would take a couple of weeks for anything sent to Liam to find him. They had been emailing back and forth daily with an occasional video call thrown in. He was usually just finishing dinner during the calls. She would watch him finish whatever bread he had found that evening while he commented on her skills behind the bar.
It had been hard to decide what to get him for Christmas. With the help of her mother, Chiara had boxed up enough cookies for his entire platoon to have several each.
Knowing he didn’t have room for anything large, she finally decided to buy him a leather bracelet with the coordinates for Donnelly’s etched on a bronze plate. She included a letter in the small wrapped box explaining why she chose his family’s bar. It would always be his home, no matter how far away he roamed. It was where she had first seen him in all his teenage belligerent glory and where she fell for the amazing man he had become.
