Harper took the stack. “Absolutely.”
“Great! Then we’ll see you two Friday.”
***
“You don’t have to be my new therapy buddy,” Aldo said, back in the car.
“I don’t mind. But I’ll understand if you’d rather have your mom take you.”
He smirked. “Very funny. Want to grab some lunch?”
Harper’s stomach growled. “More than anything in the world.”
They went through a drive-thru and put the top of the VW down in a sunny waterfront park.
Harper chowed down on her burger while Aldo picked at his fries.
“Have you talked to Luke?” she finally asked.
“A couple of times. Not since I came home though.”
Harper waited and stewed.
“He sounds like he’s doing okay,” Aldo said.
“Does he?”
“He won’t let me thank him.”
“For what?”
Aldo turned to look at her. “He didn’t tell you that he dragged my ass out of there under fire while ordering everyone else to pull back?”
Harper dropped the cheeseburger in her lap.
“He what?”
Aldo swore. “It’s all kind of a red blur to me. One second I’m driving down this stretch of road, the next I’m falling out of the truck. I couldn’t hear or feel anything. All I knew was I couldn’t move. I thought I was dead.” He took a steadying breath.
“Then there’s Luke hovering over me. Looking like he’s screaming. He dragged me behind a truck, used my belt as a tourniquet. I passed out, but they tell me he carried me under fire while the rest of the guys laid down cover.”
“Why the fuck didn’t he tell me?” Harper said, grabbing her soda with unnecessary violence.
“Why the fuck won’t he let me say thank you?”
She leveled a look at him and he shook his head.
“Because he’s Luke,” they said in unison.
At least Luke was an equal opportunity information withholder. “I’m going to type an email in all caps to him when I get home tonight,” Harper announced.
“I’ll mail him a thank you card with all caps.”
“So why are you avoiding Gloria?”
“Anyone ever tell you you’re tenacious, Harpoon?”
“Oh no you don’t. I live with Luke ‘Jeopardy’ Garrison. I will not be put off by you trying to turn Q&A into Q&Q. Aren’t you interested in her anymore? Did your feelings change?”
“Harper, look at me.” Aldo pointed at his prosthesis. “I can barely fucking walk. How am I supposed to sweep her off her feet like she deserves?”
“Okay, I don’t even know where to start with your assininity.”
“Not a word.”
“Totally a word. First of all, you think you’re somehow less of a man because you’re sporting a new leg? That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. And I’ve heard a lot of stupid shit. Your leg has nothing to do with the man you are. Your attitude on the other hand,” she poked him in the chest, “has everything to do with it. This ‘woe is me disabled cowboy’ crap act is not doing you any favors. Man up and be the rock star you always have been.
“And second, Gloria isn’t some fragile flower. She’s funny and smart and she’s clawing out a brand new life for herself. One you could be a part of. You know what would be amazing for her? Some guy who is willing to be vulnerable in front of her. Someone who needs her. Do you know what that would do for her confidence? Finally being in the position to help someone else?”
Harper grabbed a handful of fries out of the box and wielded them at him. “She blushes every time someone says your name, and she survived the Mrs. Moretta Inquisition”
“Inquisition? Oh shit.”
“By the end of it, your mom was asking her for her jam thumbprint cookie recipe.”
Aldo dropped his head back against the seat. “This is too much to take in.”
“Eat your burger. You’re weak with hunger and stupidity.”
He reached into the bag, unwrapped his burger, and took a huge bite.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
To:
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject: ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?
DEAR LUKE,
YOU’LL NOTICE I’M WRITING IN ALL CAPS TO CONVEY THE FACT THAT I AM SHOUTING AT YOU. HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY NEGLECT TO TELL ME YOU SAVED ALDO’S LIFE WHILE PUTTING YOUR OWN AT GREAT RISK? YOUR LIFE IS GOING TO NEED SAVING WHEN YOU GET HOME.
RESPECTFULLY IN ANGER,
HARPER
To:
[email protected]
From:
[email protected]
Subject: Puppies and fluffy things
Dear Harper,
Please accept the attached pictures of puppies and kittens as my attempt to distract you from your anger. You can’t be mad at tiny puppies frolicking. It’s against your genetic code.