I nodded.
“The hummer that was hit lay about fifty feet away, and I ran to it while the others covered me. It was on fire and charred, but I had to be sure no one was left alive. The smell of their burning bodies… it’s something I’ll never forget.”
I shivered, trying to picture a bunch of men in the center of a war zone, strapped with weapons and uniforms, traveling across the sand while bombs and gunfire aimed to take their lives.
“While I was checking the hummer, the one we had been riding in took a hit. The hit hadn’t been head on like the previous one, and the passenger side of the vehicle blew out, causing it to roll. It rolled right over Govern, the man who’d been driving.”
I set my fork down, unable to eat. “Then what happened?”
“Connors was standing out in the open, completely vulnerable to attack. So I left the cover of the burning hummer and raced toward him, meaning to cover him while he ran to safety. There were snipers up in a cluster of rocks not too far from where we were and they were picking us off with ease. Anyway, my movement distracted the shooter and the next shot went wild, bouncing off the sand in front of us. When I reached Connors, the sun glinted off the scope of the sniper’s gun and I lined up a shot. I’ll never forget that moment… My eyes connected with the man trying to kill us, and we stood there frozen for long moments, staring each other down through the scopes on our weapons.”
“Tucker,” I whispered, tears filling my eyes.
“We pulled the trigger at the same time.” He blinked and looked up at me. “My bullet killed him. His bullet would have killed me, but Connors knocked me out of the way, taking it instead.”
I gasped, thinking how incredibly close he had been to death. “And Connors?” I asked, praying to God he was okay.
“It was a gut shot,” he said, grim. “He wasn’t able to walk, so I carried him. I walked for ten miles before someone found us.”
He carried a bleeding, injured man for ten miles through the desert, and every step he likely wondered if it would be his last. What kind of mental consequence did a situation like that have on a person?
“Did he die?” I whispered.
“It was a close call, but no, he didn’t. He’s still alive. He got out of the Corps after that and he lives out in North Dakota with his wife and son.”
“You saved his life.”
“He saved mine first.”
Tucker glanced down at our joined hands and then glanced back up. “That experience changed me. Watching men I cared about, men who I considered family, die… It left an imprint on my soul, something that will always be there. I kind of broke away from people after that. I didn’t get as close. I let relationships, like the one I had with Max, slip away. It was too hard to be close to people, too hard to love them.”
“What about Nathan?” I asked, thinking of the friend he mentioned before.
He smiled, a genuine smile that lit up his eyes. “I’ve only known Nathan a couple of years. He kind of just became a fixture in my life. He understands war. He has scars of his own. For quite a while, it was just me and him.”
“Didn’t you say he’s married?”
“To a writer. He saved her from being kidnapped. She wrote a book about it. They’ve been together ever since.”
I felt my eyes go wide. “Are you talking about the book they made into a movie? Text?”
He grinned. “You’ve heard of it?”
“Everybody has heard of it.”
He chuckled.
“I can’t believe you’re friends with Honor Calhoun,” I said in awe. I loved her books. Well, when I got the time to read.
“It’s Honor Reed now,” he corrected.
The waitress came by and seemed concerned neither of us had touched our food. I assured her it was wonderful; we’d just been talking. She didn’t seem convinced when she walked away.
“I shouldn’t have let my relationship with Max suffer. I spent all that time avoiding being close to him, afraid that I might be killed on my next deployment, that it would only hurt him worse…”
“And then he died,” I whispered.
“Yeah, and now I have a gut full of regret as well as a hole in my heart.”
“If it makes a difference. Max never seemed angry at you. He never seemed like he felt betrayed.”
“Thought he never talked about me.”
“He didn’t. Not really. But I would have known if your distant relationship hurt him.”
“Thanks,” he said lightly, expelling a breath.
I don’t know if my words brought him any comfort, but I sincerely hoped they did. He’d been through a lot and it seemed that he didn’t need anything else to think about in the dark of the night.
A man wearing a pristine white coat approached the table, and Tucker stiffened. I looked up and smiled. “Cavalli!” I said so Tucker would know who it was we were talking with.
Cavalli’s face broke out into a wide smile. “Max! Charlotte!” he said, stopping beside the table. Tucker offered his hand and the two men shook before Cavalli leaned over and kissed my cheek.
“I have to say I am surprised to see you here. It’s so early in the day. I thought you two workaholics didn’t leave the office until at least seven.”
“Well, both our calendars were clear this afternoon so we decided to be spontaneous,” I replied.
Cavalli smiled. “Well, when the server told me we had guests not eating, I was alarmed! I thought there was something wrong with the food!”
“The food is perfect. We were just talking.”
Cavalli glanced over at Tucker and I held my breath, wondering if he was going to realize it wasn’t really Max. “Long time no see, Max! How’s the corporate world treating you?”
Tucker smiled. “Busy as ever, Cavalli. The restaurant looks great. Looks more successful than the last time I was here.”
I watched Cavalli for signs he thought something was off. He didn’t appear to notice anything. I breathed a sigh of relief.
Cavalli smiled. “I got out of the corporate world so I wouldn’t have to work so much, but here I am working just as much as ever. Who knew running a restaurant was hard?”
Tucker grinned. “When you’re doing what you love, it isn’t work.”
“Ah, you speak the truth, my friend.” Cavalli agreed.
Something inside me twisted at Tucker’s words. I shied away from the feeling because it made me uncomfortable.