Page 44 of A Texas Hero

“Because you had no faith in me. Look, I know it’s none of my business, and it’s private, but I thought you’d hurt your foot. We ran into each other at the hospital and you wouldn’t tell me why you were here. That would have been a good time to tell me, if you wanted to. If you thought I was a big enough person to accept you for who you are.”

“No, that is not…” Archer swiped a hand across his face. “It was not because of you, it was me.”

“I’ve dated a lot of men, all physically ‘whole.’” She made air quotes. “And all lacking in every other way. Did it ever occur to you that I am a lot more than a physically beautiful woman? And that I might want more than looks in a partner?”

He smirked. “I did not think it was my brain you were attracted to.”

“No, it was your heart.” She locked eyes with him then, raw pain etched across her features. “Maybe you don’t know how much love means to me. It’s…everything. And love is a lot more than looks or physical attraction. Love is a choice we make every day.”

Damn, she was right. He was out of words.

“I saw my parents make a choice to love each other every day, through my father’s many injuries and surgeries and rehab and physical therapy.”

“What happened to him?”

“He was a football player, remember? American football.”

“Ah, okay. I understand. But Zoey, that’s different. I am starting out with a defect.”

“Don’t you dare call it a defect!” She gestured toward the last place they’d seen Joey. “Joey has the right idea. Both of you are superheroes.”

“No. He is, but I’m no superhero.”

“You don’t want to be, but you are. You’re continuing to live your life, still helping others like Joey.”

“You’re making me sound like a saint, and I’m not. I’ve just had time to get adjusted since it happened. But I’m still not proud of this the way Joey is. And there’s a difference. What happened to him wasn’t his fault, it was cancer.”

“And what happened to you wasn’t your fault, either!”

Archer cocked his head. She was dead wrong. Maybe not about the accident, but why he’d been there in the first place.

“Isn’t it? I signed up to fight a war in another country. My parents begged me not to go, told me it wasn’t my war to fight. But I was a proud first-generation American and I wanted to show everyone that red, white and blue coursed through my veins. I signed up when I was eighteen. And I showed them all right, while I left behind an entire part of myself. I didn’t know how much I’d miss it, either.”

“Yes, 9/11 got a lot of you young men. I remember guys in my class right after it happened. They were all so…angry.”

“And we had to put that anger somewhere.”

“Do you ever feel…cheated?”

“Cheated? Because of my foot? No, I was lucky. Some of my friends, not so much. But you have to remember, when my family came to this country, I was a kid. By the time the Twin Towers fell, I was in sixth grade. My friends and I thought we’d go over there when we were old enough and win a war. Kick some ass. It meant a lot to me to give back to the country that gave so much to me, so as soon as I could I signed up.”

“I admire your courage. I’ve never done anything truly courageous in my life.”

“Except for take care of your sick mother?” He met her gaze. “Courage comes in all shapes and sizes.”

“Like the medical professionals who see it every day. I don’t have that kind of courage. When they told me about Joey a few months ago, I had to excuse myself. I went home and cried for hours.”

“You’re a soft touch, Zoey.” He reached to take her hand and squeeze it.

She squeezed back. “We were both so young when 9/11 happened. I also had friends who signed up. Your heart was in the right place and you went where your country asked you to go. That’s honorable.”

“That’s all a soldier can do.” Archer shrugged. “There’s a clear chain of command, and no room to argue with your superior.”

Zoey took a step closer to him and grazed his cheek with the back of her hand. “It wasn’t your fault.”

It was nothing less than he’d expected from Zoey. She felt sorry for him because her heart was too big not to care. Either way, he couldn’t regret her knowing the whole truth.

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