“What reactions do they get?” A sinking feeling hit Richard’s stomach when Peter frowned. “Is it that bad?”
“Not necessarily. No matter how hard you want a relationship to work, nothing is ever guaranteed. It gets even more complicated when you have an injury that impacts your life. Are you sure you want to talk about this with me? Ethan’s spoken to more amputees about relationship issues than I have.”
“He’s also my friend. If I tell him I’m worried about a woman seeing my stump, he’ll think I have someone in mind.”
“And you don’t want to tell him who that person is?”
Richard looked through the window of Peter’s office. “Sapphire Bay is a small town. I don’t want her to be uncomfortable or feel sorry for me.”
“Do you trust her?”
There was a gentleness and a fragility to Paris that he’d never taken the time to see. She treated everyone with kindness and respect, and wanted to make the world a better place. How could he not trust someone like that?
“I trust her.”
“Do you want to show her your stump?”
“Definitely not, but I’d prefer to show her before our friendship goes any further. If she can’t handle my stump and everything that goes with it, she isn’t the person for me.”
Peter nodded. “That makes sense.”
“But?”
“You’re more than what happened in Afghanistan. If she doesn’t see anything other than friendship in your future, it doesn’t matter.”
That was easy for Peter to say. Richard’s career in the Army had shaped him into the person he was today. And some of it wasn’t good.
“Talk to Ethan,” Peter suggested. “He’ll tell you something that will be more inspiring than what I’ve said.”
Richard forced a smile. “He’ll tell me there are more fish in the sea.”
“He could be right, but it doesn’t make up for the one you wanted to share your life with.”
On that sobering thought, Richard picked up his jacket. “I need to collect Jack from his after-school program. Are we meeting here at the same time next month?”
“Unless I find a building for our research center, we will. If you need someone to talk to, you have my number.”
“Thanks. Say hi to Katie from me.” And before he spent more time thinking about the only fish in the sea he wanted to date, he left the room.
Peter might have developed state-of-the-art prosthetics, but it could never replace his actual leg. No matter how much he wished it could.
“Ready. Set. Go!”
Paris tore across the grass toward the finish line. When she told Jack she’d come to the mothers’ and friends’ day, she didn’t imagine she’d run anywhere. But Jack was more competitive than she thought. Adding another point to their tally was better than watching everyone else race. So, here she was, feet flying, arms pumping, and praying she didn’t fall over.
She’d never been so glad to cross a finish line. By the time Jack joined her, she had her hands on her knees, gasping for breath.
“You did really good, Paris. You came fourth.”
“Does that give us two points?”
Jack shook his head. “No. You had to come second or third for that.”
“What’s next?”
Jack consulted the crinkled piece of paper in his pocket. “The long jump. If our feet cross the painted line in front of the sandpit, we’ll be disqualified.”
Paris thought that was a little harsh considering this was a fun sports day, but some of the adults were sticklers for the rules. “I’ll keep my foot away from the line.”
