“Yeah, he will.”
Gloria exhaled a shaky breath. “I emailed him Friday night after you gave me his address.”
“Then he’ll have something to read when he wakes up,” Harper smiled. “So, speaking of Aldo, would you mind giving me and my two stinky mutts a ride to Mrs. Moretta’s house? I left my car there last night and I wanted to check in on her.”
Gloria glanced down at her denim shorts and pink t-shirt.
Harper grinned. “Are you nervous about meeting his mother?”
“It’s Mrs. Moretta! She’s terrifying. Who wouldn’t be nervous about meeting her?” Gloria said, eyes wide. “Oh, screw it! Just let me brush my hair and bag up some of the cookies I baked this morning.”
***
It went better than expected. Mrs. Moretta opened the door with the announcement that Aldo was awake, and after learning that everyone else in the unit was okay, he demanded a cheeseburger.
Gloria held her own under Mrs. Moretta’s inquisition that covered all facets of life, including religious faith, how many children she planned to have, and all the ingredients in her jam thumbprint cookies.
At the end of the question and answer, Ina Moretta had merely harrumphed and nodded.
“I feel like I just got steamrolled,” Gloria said, shell-shocked.
“I think it went well,” Harper said, loading the dogs into her car.
“I can’t tell. I’m not sure.” Gloria sagged against the side of her car.
“She kept the cookies. That’s definitely a good sign.” Harper offered.
“What was that ‘huh’ noise there at the end?”
“I think that’s her seal of approval. She’s recognizing that you’re more than good enough for her son.”
Gloria shook her head. “I think I’m going to go home and take a nap.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Harper snatched her phone off the coffee table at the first ring of the video chat alert. She fumbled with the icons once, but in seconds was treated to the face she had been missing.
“Hi, baby.” Luke looked exhausted.
It had been two long weeks since Aldo got hurt, and Luke’s reluctance to video chat told Harper that he wasn’t dealing well. Seeing his face confirmed her suspicion and her heart hurt for him.
“Hey there, handsome. How are you?” Harper sat back on the couch, hugging a pillow to her chest.
“I’m okay. How’s my girl?”
“I miss you.” She fought back the tears that welled up. Seeing him intensified everything. “I’m worried about you.”
He sighed under the weight of the world. “Baby, I’m fine. Everything’s okay.”
“Look, I know you’re not much of a talker. But I can’t have you stumbling around half a world away fucking things up because you’re distracted by a misplaced sense of responsibility and guilt.”
He blinked. Luke’s mouth opened and then closed.
“I see I have your attention,” Harper said primly.
“I would say so.”
“Luke, do you think there is any way that Aldo blames you for what happened?”
He sighed. “No.”
“In fact he’s probably already told you that you’re not to blame.”
Luke stared off. “Fine. Yes.”
It was like trying to get answers out of a brick wall ... or a basement. “Great. So did you place the IED there?”
He rolled his eyes at her. “No.”
“Did you tell Aldo to drive over it?”
“No.”
“Did you know it was there and not tell him?”
“No. Harper —”
“Not done, yet. So logically you can agree with the entire rest of the world that you are not to blame.”
He sat stoically without moving for a few seconds. “Was that not rhetorical?”
“Luke, it hurts me to see you hurt like this. I don’t know how to help you.”
“Harper, baby, you can’t make it better. I get what you’re saying. I know that I’m not to blame. But I feel responsible for my friend. His life and the lives of everyone in this unit are in my hands. If I don’t lead responsibly, people can and do get hurt. People die.”
“Aldo didn’t die.”
“No, but others have.”
The men he lost before, Harper remembered.
“I lost good men because we had bad intel. Ultimately that responsibility lies on my shoulders.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“Am I to blame? No. But I’m the leader of this unit, and that makes me responsible for everything that happens within it.”
It was Harper’s turn for silence.
His sigh was heavy. “All I know is I can’t get the blood out of my head. I saw it happen and we started running towards the truck. He was just laying there in a fucking river of blood.” Luke stared down at his hands as if seeing it again. Harper shuddered.