Chapter 6
CHAPTER 6
BYRON
Olivia Olsen might possibly be the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen in my life. When her letter arrived and the photos fell out into my lap, it had taken me several minutes to get my brain back online.
I’d been unable to tear my gaze away from the stunning girl smiling up at me. It was hard to believe this was the woman I’d been writing to all this time.
It was nice to see that I’d been right. She did have a bright smile and wide, expressive eyes. She’d mentioned in one letter that she had curves, and she hadn’t been lying. My body ached at the thought of running my hands over her skin, feeling her hips and ample bosom under my palms.
Finally, forcing myself to open the letter and read what she’d had to say, I curled up in my bed, clutching the box of cookies and raking my gaze down her words.
No boyfriend. That was good. I’d already felt pangs of jealousy at the thought of some other man being in her life. But now that I’d seen her, I knew that I never wanted anyone’s hands near her but mine.
I wasn’t sure how it could be possible, but in just a few letters, Livvy had become very special to me. Like…forever kind of special. We’d not yet delved into anything too real, but there was definitely something between us. At least, I thought so. I could only hope she felt the same.
“Do I smell cookies?” Tony asked, walking over and dropping onto the bed next to me. “Whoa!” He picked up one of the photos and smiled. “You lucky bastard.”
“Fuck off.” I snatched my picture back. “No cookies for you.”
“Why the hell not?”
“Don’t ogle my girl.” I snapped.
“She’s your girl now?” he teased.
“Yes.” I glared at him. “She is.”
Tony studied me for a minute, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips before he nodded.
“Good.” He slapped my thigh and stood, walking off to terrorize someone else.
I leaned over and pulled the rest of Livvy’s letters out of the trunk with my gear. I’d kept all of them, even the two that she’d sent separate for her grade when her real letters had come with cookies. Those notes were just throw away missives reminding me to look out for her care packages.
The last few weeks had been quiet on base and lonely as I waited to hear from her. I looked forward to nothing else in life more than I looked forward to these communications from her.
Reading through each one again, I wondered how it was that I felt so close to her. We’d shared small things, a few admissions, but nothing that two people near the beginning of a relationship usually shared. At least, I assumed that after hearing the guys talk about their own letters home.
Maybe, it was time to change that. I wanted her to know me. As much as I wanted to know her. Real things, beyond music and hobbies. I wanted to know her hopes and dreams. How many kids she wanted to have someday. Where she wanted to live.
I knew the only way I was going to find those things out was to ask.
And to share deeper things about myself.
Dear Livvy,
Thank you so much for the cookies. I amend my previous statement, these oatmeal raisin cookies are my favorite of all the cookies in all the lands. I know you want to be a teacher, but you could make a fortune selling these baked goods.
I do very much look forward to receiving your letters, but please don’t feel bad about delays. I trust now that I will hear from you when I hear from you, and the anticipation is all that keeps me going over here sometimes.
I hope this isn’t too forward, or revealing too much about myself, but I’ve developed quite a crush on you. Even before your beautiful photos arrived, I knew that you had become very special to me.
It’s funny to think that something as small as a school project being assigned on the other side of the world could have such a massive impact on my life. But it did, and you have.
Things have been quiet here and we’ve all been on edge, sort of waiting for a shoe to drop on us from somewhere. Obviously, I can’t go into too much detail, but quiet here isn’t usually a good thing. If there is noise outside, we know where the enemy is. When it’s silent…well, let’s just say it’s worrisome.
Not that I want you to worry about me. We’re as safe as we can be.
The other men in the barracks have become my family in the months we’ve been here together. It’s actually similar to the group homes I grew up in. It’s loud, it smells, and we pull pranks to keep our minds off of our troubles.
Unfortunately, we don’t have Star Wars or An Officer and a Gentleman to keep us occupied. The wi-fi over here is a joke, and it’s easier to get a carrier pigeon than emails. We live a very low tech life on this base, so we have to make our own fun.
Which again, makes me so grateful for these letters. They are like a lifeline to reality. When I’m laying in bed, looking at a picture of you and eating my favorite cookies, it’s almost easy to forget there is a war going on outside.
Oh, God I’m rambling now.
Sometimes when I write to you, I consider ripping up the letter and starting over. But I realized that I want you to know me. And I’m a rambler, so at least know that you are getting the real me.
I don’t have many photos of myself, but I included one of all of us and labeled the back. Hopefully you can make sense of who’s who. I haven’t told you about all of them, but maybe, when I get back to the states I can share more stories about each of my guys.
Thank you again for the cookies and the photos. I’m so glad I can put a face with the words that bring me so much comfort. I hope that you feel the same.
All my love,
Byron
Oh, boy…that was a lot. I huffed out a breath, labeled the promised photo and shoved it all into an envelope. If I never heard from her again, I wouldn’t actually be shocked. But hopefully, she was feeling the same things I did, and I’d hear from her soon enough.
If I didn’t…well, I’d always have a stack of letters and a few photos to remind me of the first time I ever fell in love.