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Yeah, I m fine.
He looked over at her like he was checking to make sure there wasn t frost on her eyelashes or
something. Just turn it up or down if you need to.
Ronnie nodded. It must be nice being only four hours from your family, she said, attempting to
start up small talk, which was never her strong suit. She never usually cared enough to want to know
anything about anyone, why she is starting now she didn t have a damn clue.
Kale pulled out of her neighborhood heading toward the interstate. I don t have any family, it s
just me.
Dead. Silence. Ronnie knew a thing or two about not having anyone.
Tell me about your Grandmother, she said, trying to fill in the suffocating space of air that
inhabited the cab of the truck.
Well, she raised me. She was the only family I ever had growing up. My mom got pregnant with
me when she was only seventeen; her family disowned her so she moved in with my dad and my
grandmother.
Wow seventeen. Ronnie knew plenty of girls who got pregnant at seventeen. Hell, her high
school might as well have been a daycare.
Yeah, my Grams said she was an amazing mom. My dad was amazing too. They died when I
was two.
More silence. Ronnie was never good at condolences. She wasn t a compassionate person she
had enough of her own life to feel sorry for, she didn t need nor did she want to take on the shit storm
of others. But something in Kale s firm, strong, voice tugged in her chest and she didn t know how to
decipher it. She was suddenly more curious about this man.
How did they die?
Car crash. My Grams was watching me while my parents went to a movie. Some idiot ran a red
light, slammed into my parent s car. Mom died instantly, and my dad died that night in the hospital.
I m sorry. And she truly was. He was dealt a pretty shitty hand himself.
Don t be. I don t remember the loss. And I had my Grams. She was tough old lady. She raised
my dad by herself then got stuck raising my ass.
She must have been pretty fucking tough then, Ronnie teased.
Kale looked over at her and his vulnerable expression made her melt. He was so put together all
the time, so sure of himself. This little crack in his persona was refreshing.
He smiled at her. She was amazing.
So why the Army? Ronnie was the queen of topic changes when it came to uncomfortable
conversations, and getting all family friendly was pushing her boundaries.
I joined for college, well with the intention of going to college. My Grams couldn t afford to
send me. I played sports in high school but I wasn t counting on getting any scholarships so I enlisted
right after graduation. Grams was pissed too his lips quirked up in a laugh like the memory was
passing through his mind at that very moment now I can t imagine doing anything else. I love my
job and I love my Platoon.
Yeah but what about all the deployments?
I m not going to pretend like they re the icing on the cake or anything, but if it s where I m
needed I m there. I ve got nothing here to miss, and my soldiers need me. I m not doing them any good
back here in the States. I have an obligation to them over there.
Ronnie couldn t believe he wanted to get back to Iraq, but it gave her a disquieting sense of
pride. She couldn t wrap her head around it, but she knew that he was one of the good ones, and she
knew they needed more men like him in the service.
She smiled at him, and she was sure that it looked every bit as cheesy as is felt. Fucking
fantastic.
What? he asked, returning his own form of cheese, only his was flirting with seductive.
She peeled her eyes from him not wanting to give away her moment of admiration. Nothing.
Ronnie slipped out of her boots and propped her feet up on the dash as they pulled onto US-11. So
what s it like over there?
Like nothing you will see over here. It s miserable. The weather sucks ass, the food sucks ass,
and no matter where you sleep or who you sleep next to, you never truly rest.
What do you do?
Now who s writing a book? Kale teased, although she got the impression that he was using
banter to cover up the fact that he didn t really want to talk about it.
Sorry, I m just curious. You don t have to tell me, she said, and she was surprised by the
sincerity in her words. She didn t want him to talk about his deployments if he wasn t up for it.
Kale sighed and his blue eyes went distant as he fixed his stare on the road ahead. Ronnie was
pretty sure she was spot on with her intuition and she regretted asking.
Na, it s okay. I m a combat engineer. Each deployment has been a little different though. We go
on missions every day, some may be a few hours and some may be a few days. Going outside the
wire could be as simple of a mission as making a presence patrol, shaking hands with local civilians
and passing out candy to kids...
Ronnie watched as Kale took in a deep breath, seemingly lost in thought. His eyes turned to hers
for the briefest of moments but it was long enough for her to see the myriad of emotions swirling
beneath them anger and pride, pain and loss, honor and determination it was like watching a
funnel cloud form in clear blue skies.
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