Chapter 38
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Tori
Two months, well sixty-four days to be precise, since I saw him, but who’s counting?
We’ve shared a handful of short phone calls and letters where possible, and my heart has ached for this man more than I thought possible.
I flew into North Carolina last night and stayed in a cute bed and breakfast close to the base, and now I’m leaning against the hood of my hire car, wearing my favorite tanned cowgirl boots and a floral summer dress, anxiously waiting for his flight to land alongside other friends and family eagerly awaiting the return of their soldier.
When Noah asked me if I would come and meet him off the plane and stay with him for the week, it was the easiest yes I’ve ever given, and I have counted down the days since.
I have that giddy, butterfly feeling stirring in my belly, and it feels good to feel excited for once, instead of the usual pit of dread.
That feeling you had as a kid on Christmas morning when you were waiting to go downstairs and see what Santa left you under the tree—that’s the feeling I have right now, and I don’t ever want it to float away.
My nerves tried to take hold of me this morning, and I questioned if it was a mistake coming, but as the plane appears, I know it was the right move.
I cover my ears as the engine roars and the wheels hit the tarmac.
My body wants to run to him, but I hold back, watching as each soldier disembarks and reunites with their loved ones.
One by one, they come into view, and I can’t help but let that seed of doubt and fear enter my brain.
What if he didn’t come back?
What if he didn’t make it?
And just when I am about to spiral into a tunnel of despair, there he is.
Wearing camouflage, he has a bag bigger than him on his back.
He descends the stairs, and when he looks up, his eyes lock with mine.
A grin so wide spreads across his handsome, tanned face.
I take that as my cue to run toward him, my hair whipping in the wind and my heart thumping so hard I fear it could burst through my chest.
He picks up speed, letting his bag fall to the floor, and when I reach him, I throw myself at him, leaping into his arms. He catches me, spinning me round as if I were weightless.
I cling to him like he’s my life raft, I lock my legs around his waist and crash my mouth down on his, and then everything around us fades away.
He kisses me back like he’s waited a lifetime.
When we finally come up for air, whistles and cheers circle us, and Noah grins against my lips.
“Hey, darlin’. Miss me?”
“Just a little,” I tease.
“Well, I sure as hell missed you.” He brushes his nose with mine.
“I missed you so much,” I say as I pepper kisses down his jaw, finally allowing myself to just give in to how I really feel.
“I missed you more, and I can’t wait to show you just how much.”
I pull up outside Noah’s house, and the sight of it takes my breath away.
I step out of the car, shielding my eyes from the September sun with my hand as I look up at it.
Set back in the North Carolina mountains, just a few miles from where Trent was laid to rest, is Noah’s two-story cabin with a wooden porch that wraps around the entire house, and a view that overlooks the hills that I know I’m going to find it hard to leave.
He comes up behind me, sliding his hands around my waist as he kisses my cheek.
“Noah, it’s beautiful. When did you move here?” I ask, turning to face him. His brow furrows slightly, as if deep in thought. I stroke his cheek and reassure him. “It’s okay, you can tell me.”
He clears his throat and holds me a little tighter.
“When you left that day all those years ago, I went to a really dark place and lost myself a little. The grief, missing you, the guilt, it ate me up and turned me into someone I didn’t recognize.
Someone helped me see that if I was ever lucky enough to get a second chance with you, that if you came back to me, I wanted to be the man worthy of having you.
So, I got serious, I stopped running, and I planted roots. ”
Tears well in my eyes, and a mixture of pride and regret intertwines in the pit of my stomach.
I’m so proud of everything he’s overcome, and yet I regret how I handled some of the situations we’ve faced, even though I was doing the best I could at the time.
But we’ve grown, we’ve healed, and now there is nowhere else I want to be than here with him.
“What made you settle here?” I ask.
“I wanted to be close to Scotty, my base, and you.”
I look at him with curious eyes.
“I know you hated this town and all its memories, and I get it, but it was the place I felt closest to you when I couldn’t have you. As much as this place reminds me of Scotty, it holds all my memories with you, and I just couldn’t let them go.”
And just like that, if I wasn’t sure if I was falling in love with this man, his confession just confirmed it.
I rise on my tiptoes and press my lips to his, allowing my body to melt into his touch, and for the first time in a very long time, I feel like I am exactly where I’m supposed to be.