“I…I teach at Hogs Elementary out of the Harris Road exit,” I said.
His eyes lit up. “That’s where I’ve seen you before. My daughter is going into fourth grade there. She had Mr. Isaacs last year.”
I grinned, but this time, it wasn’t hard. “Mr. Isaacs is fantastic.”
“He is. What grade do you teach?”
After a little more chit chat, we bid the man farewell, and I leaned over. “Who was that?”
“The base commander, Colonel Coleman.”
“Oh.” Butterflies erupted in my stomach again. “Did I do all right?”
His arm squeezed mine a little tighter. “You knocked it out of the park.”
I wished I could bottle up the way he was looking at me right now, blue eyes full of wonder and awe, though I had no clue what for. They softened as they moved to my lips.
“Thanks again for coming,” he murmured.
“Thanks for bringing me.” I looked down. “And for all this, of course.”
“Jessie, if you’d wanted to wear the moon, all you had to do was ask.”
I was saved from having to reply to such a heartstopping answer when it was announced that the ball would be starting soon in another room. We made our way with the crowd to the back of the building through two open doors to a much larger room with a wooden dance floor and a stage behind it, the kind of room that would host a wedding. Another row of who I guessed to be very important people awaited us. Derrick led me through that line as well, introducing me to everyone in turn and shaking hands. When we finished the line, I was relieved to recognize a few faces like Kim, Maria, and Liz in the crowd. We didn’t have time to chat, but I was glad to see them nonetheless. By the time we found our seats, I felt as though I were walking through clouds. Clouds I couldn’t remember the name or rank of, but important clouds nonetheless.
Soon the ceremony began with an address from Colonel Coleman and a prayer from the chaplain. The Missing Man Table ceremony made me glad my mascara was waterproof.
And as different speakers came and said the kind of things you might expect to hear in a movie before a battle, I began to feel wistful. This was only for tonight, I’d promised myself. I wasn’t ready to make the kind of commitment I feared Derrick wanted, and this had been a business deal after all. After my talk with Kim and the others, I had been sure military life wasn’t for me. At least, not yet. I wasn’t ready to make that kind of choice.
But this…being a part of something bigger than myself, being a support to the ones who had sworn to serve others with their life…I wanted that. I wanted to be a part of it, too. And yet, as strongly as I felt the pull toward duty when I saw the table, there was another part of me that wanted to run as far as I could as fast as I could. Because every man that should have been at that table had been someone’s son. Father. Brother. Best friend.
Someone’s heart and soul had never come home.
Without speaking, Derrick silently handed me a handkerchief as the tears rolled down my face. I took it with a weak smile. Best to let him think I was just crying for the missing man. It was probably best he didn’t know I was crying for the one standing beside me as well.
Eventually, dinner was served, and I got control of myself again. In fact, I even had fun. While it was rather typical catered food, marinated chicken and mushrooms drizzled with gravy with herbed potatoes and asparagus on the side, the conversation with a few of Derrick’s friends was lively.
Derrick put his napkin on the table and stood. And before I could register what he was up to, he was holding his hand out.
“May I have this dance?”
My mind scrambled for something, anything to say. Here I was in the middle of one of my fairy tales, and all I could do was nod and let him lead me out to the floor. All the witty comebacks and snarky comments I usually reserved just for him flew out the door as he pulled me close and put his hand on the small of my back. The smell of his cologne enveloped me, and the way he wrapped his left hand around mine made me feel as though a wave of peace had washed over me. And I never wanted to come back up for air.
If only I could stay here in this moment, swaying back and forth with my head against his chest, lost in the rhythm, safe from the world and all it had to offer.
“Thank you.”
I looked up to find him staring down at me, and I was captured by his gaze.
“For coming,” he said softly, brushing the back of his hand across my cheek.
“Why?” I whispered.
“Why what?”
“Why are you so determined to keep me around?” I nodded at the rest of the dancers. “You could have invited about any girl, and she would have said yes. Why me?”
The corner of his mouth turned up as he cupped my jaw in his hand. “Because you,” he whispered back, “are smart. And kind. And you strive to fill the needs around you. You face challenges head-on, and you’re the strongest woman I’ve ever met.” He bent until our foreheads were touching. “You are worth waiting for.”
