Away From You (Back To You Book 2) (3 page)

*

The next
day, I put my hand up to block the sun as I studied the huge aircraft carrier
in front of me. In a few minutes, I would be boarding that ship and not setting
foot on land for another month. I felt Olivia tug on my arm, so I looked down
at her. She was wearing a red sundress, her brown hair blowing in the sea
breeze. She looked breathtaking. Not for the first time, I felt a pang of
sadness that I was leaving her. Not because she couldn’t handle it, or I
couldn’t, but just because it was going to suck.

“All right,
babe,” I kissed her forehead and closed my eyes as I inhaled the scent of her
shampoo. “I’ll see you soon.”

She was
smiling but I could tell it was half-heartedly. “I love you.”

“Love you
too. Always have.”

She kissed
me firmly on the mouth. “Always will.”

The tears
that were threatening to spill down her cheeks made my chest hurt. It was only
a few months. She’d do great. With a sigh, I picked up my sea bag and gave her
hand one last squeeze before turning toward the line of Marines and sailors
waiting to board the ship. I glanced over my shoulder at Olivia and Ellie as
Spencer joined up with me. The summer was going to fly by. It had to.

When we
finally made our way onto the ship and into the birthing, the room where we
slept, I groaned. Nothing but varying shades of grey surrounded me. The metal
racks were stacked three beds high, so I threw my stuff on the middle bed since
it was easiest to get into. I didn’t want to crouch down and sleep on the
lowest one since it was practically on the floor. Spencer tossed his gear on the
middle rack in the trio next to mine. Great minds think alike.

“Ready for
this?” I asked him, hoping he was feeling better about the whole thing.
Personally, I felt a little off but just chalked it up to being my first time
on aircraft carrier with the intention of being out to see for months.

“Yeah,” he
nodded. “Ellie seems pretty cool about it all. It’ll be fun. Plus, I’m stoked
to go to Hawaii.”

“Me too.
Some of the guys were saying that when we get there the first thing we’ll want
is fresh food. By that time we’ll have been eating canned and frozen food since
the fresh shit runs out pretty quick.”

Spencer
rolled his eyes. “Ship life. I didn’t join the Navy because I didn’t want to be
on a boat.”

“That turned
out well.”

*

After about
a month at sea, we stood at the railing of the massive aircraft carrier as it
pulled into port in Hawaii. I could imagine what we looked like to the crowd of
supportive people that waved to us from the dock below. Hundreds of sailors in
pristine white uniforms, and a few Marines wearing cammies, lined the rails in
the Parade Rest stance. The gigantic watercraft got closer to the dock and I
began to get excited about finally walking on solid ground. The ship was too
vast to really feel the waves most of the time, but some part of me could still
tell the difference. We were made mostly of water, after all.

There was a
mad rush off the flight line while the crew below continued the painstaking
process of docking. Hawk and I went back to the birthing to change into our
civilian clothes. With the number of people waiting to leave the ship, it took
hours for us to finally make our way onto the gangplank and into the bright
Hawaiian sun. Just as I knew it would, planting my feet on land felt great.

First order
of business was calling Olivia. I hadn’t heard her voice in just over a month,
and I practically skipped over to a nearby bench to make the call. Except that
I didn’t skip. I walked, because that would be weird.

She answered
on the first ring. “Babe!”

My smile
stretched all the way across my face at how happy she sounded. “Hey,
sweetheart.”

“How are
you?”

“Better
now,” I replied. “What are you up to?”

She sighed.
“Oh, you know, just waiting by the phone for your call.”

“I’m sure
you were.”

I was glad
for her sense of humor. Most people freak out if their spouse goes out of town
for a week. Military spouses go a lot longer without so much as a phone call. I
felt lucky that Olivia was strong enough to handle me leaving her all the time.
Spencer wasn’t wrong in boot camp when he said that most of these young married
couples wouldn’t last. But I knew we would. We could handle anything.

“So, what
are you really doing?” I asked.

She laughed.
“Turn around and see.”

My heart
skipped a beat and I turned in both directions, scanning the crowded dock. Her
familiar smile caught my eye and my breath caught in my throat at the sight of
her. Her long hair fell around her shoulders and seemed to shine in the
Hawaiian sun. She looked tan and seriously hot in the colorful sundress she was
wearing. She had a big pink flower tucked behind her ear and pulled it off in a
way that most tourists who attempted it probably wished they could.

I hung up
the phone and all but sprinted through the crowd towards her, finally able to
breathe again when she was in my arms. It suddenly occurred to me that I could
be having some kind of nightmare from being out at sea too long, so I pulled
back and grabbed her by both sides of her face.

“Are you
really here?” I asked, searching her eyes for any sign of a dream.

“Yes, Matt.”
She kissed me and giggled. “I had some savings for the flight and my mom gave
me spending money as an early birthday present.”

I hugged her
tightly again. “It’s so good to see you.”

“Same here.”

I broke the
hug again and looked around. “Well, my plan was to get a room with some of the
guys and go on a booze cruise this afternoon. But I guess those plans have
changed.”

She
shrugged. “I mean, if you’d rather stay with your boys than in my room that’s
totally up to you.”

I raised a
brow. “Liv. Very funny.”

“I’m
starving though, let’s go eat some Hawaiian barbeque and then hang out at the
beach all day.”

With an
amazed exhalation, I nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

Olivia

The California sun felt warm on my skin,
but had nothing on the fabulous Hawaiian sun. I fanned myself with my magazine
and took a deep breath, letting the smell of the ocean breeze fill me. I’d
gotten home from my week in Hawaii only two days before, and there I was at the
beach again. Unfortunately for me, my trip to surprise Matt in paradise had
sort of spoiled me. The water was much warmer there than in San Diego. I was
going to have to forget about that brief encounter if I was ever going to
remember how much I loved my Southern California beaches.

“I still
can’t believe you just went out there and surprised him like that. I bet his
face was priceless. I wish you’d flown me out just to be a fly on the wall for
that part.”

“It would
have been great to have you there, too! I spent a lot of time by myself
actually. He had duty one of the days he was in port, and at the beginning I
couldn’t be sure when he’d actually pull in so I was there for a day and a half
before I saw him.”

Ellie sighed
dreamily. “I’m sure it was nice. I’d take some alone time in Hawaii any day.”

“I want to
go back so bad.” I said, closing my eyes and wishing I
was
still cuddled up on the beach with Matt.

“I bet. What
all did you guys do?”

I pursed my
lips. “We got to try a lot of different local restaurants, spent a ton of time
on the beach, walked around some of the touristy spots, visited the Pearl
Harbor museum, and went on a booze cruise with the guys.”

“What’s a
booze cruise?” Ellie asked.

“Exactly
what it sounds like. We went out on a boat for a few hours and got drunk. It
was pretty ridiculous. I didn’t get as drunk as they all did… they were
hammered. But it was fun.”

“Oh wow.
Spencer didn’t mention that.” Ellie said with a frown.

I held up a
hand. “He had duty that day, so he wasn’t there. He was really bummed to miss
it.”

She
chuckled. “I’m sure he was.”

“Are you
doing okay? I know it was really hard that you didn’t get to come out there
with me. Are you handling the distance okay?”

Ellie
nibbled at her bottom lip. “Yeah, I guess. It’s just weird not being able to
talk to him other than emails once in a while. When he was in school we talked
all the time, except for when we were deliberately not talking. So this is much
different.”

I nodded in
understanding. “I know. But really we need to think about it as practice for
the deployment.”

“Ugh, don’t
remind me. That’s just going to be like this but way longer.”

“I know.”

Ellie looked
as if she wanted to say something, but hesitated.

“What?” I
asked.

“It’s just
that sometimes I wonder if maybe Spencer was right to be so closed off at the
beginning. I don’t know how I would explain to our kids that Daddy was going to
be gone for a while, and no you can’t call him, but he’ll be back soon. That’s
just going to be heartbreaking.”

I glanced
over at her. “Are you guys thinking about having kids?”

She balked.
“Oh, Lord, no. Spencer would probably keel over and die if I even suggested it.
It’s way too soon for that. But I’ve always wanted kids eventually and since
that was such a big reason why he pushed me away last year it comes to mind
once in a while. Have you and Matt talked about that?”

“Well, sure.
But I was a military brat all my life. So I’m pretty optimistic about it.” I
winked at her.

“It sounds
like you handled it all really well.” Ellie said with a small smile.

“I guess so,
but having a mom as amazing as mine really helped. And I know someday when you
guys are ready for kids you’ll be an amazing mom, too. Your kids will be just
fine. Millions of military couples have kids and there are millions of ways to
handle it, but I know you guys will do just fine.”

Ellie patted
my hand. “Thanks, Liv.”

“Anytime.”

“Either
way,” she started, “I’d like the fool to marry me first. And who knows when
he’ll be ready for that.”

I wrinkled
my nose. “Men.”

“Hey! You
and Matt should have your big dream wedding in Hawaii! It can be a destination
wedding with just a few friends and family. That would be amazing.”

I beamed as
I pictured it. Flowing white dress, flowers in my hair, sunset behind us as we
said our vows on a white sand beach. It would be beautiful. But Matt and I had
said our vows in a courthouse with our parents and Ellie and Spencer as
witnesses last year, and even with the bare white walls and outdated office
furniture, it was still the best day of my life.

I shrugged.
“Honestly, I’m not sure it would be the best choice to spend all of that money
on one day. We already had a wedding. Nursing school is going to be expensive.
Maybe I should just save the wedding money for student loans or something
instead.”

“Wow, I’m
impressed. That’s very logical of you. I don’t know if I would be able to do
that, though. I’ve been dreaming about my wedding since I was like five.”

“My mom
always said she made the most logical decisions whenever dad was gone. It was
like being alone gave her more time to be independent and think things all the
way through.”

Ellie
offered up her water bottle in salute. “One of the many benefits to life with a
military man.”

*

I gazed
around the expensive and perfectly manicured backyard and whistled quietly at
Ellie. “This is some house.”

“I know. I
feel like I’m in that scene from
Army
Wives
when Roxy and Pamela meet at Claudia Joy’s tea party.” Ellie nodded
and smiled at the stylishly dressed women that passed us on their way into the
large Spanish-style home.

I stifled a
laugh. “I’m Pamela; you can be Roxy.”

“What? Why
do I have to be the totally clueless one?”

“Because
you’re blonde.”

Ellie
snorted. “That’s it?”

“And because
Pamela’s husband is way hotter than Roxy’s.”

Before Ellie
could respond, a bouncy blonde woman strolled up to us. “Hi, ladies! Welcome!”

“Hi,” we
echoed back to her.

“I’m Carrie.”
She held out her hand for us to shake and we supplied our names. “Have y’all
had a chance to meet everyone yet?”

We shook our
heads.

“Not yet,” I
replied.

Carrie got
the attention of a few women chatting in a group a couple feet away and
gestured for them to come over. “This here is Brittany, Cassie, and Linda.
Ladies, meet Olivia and Ella.”

“It’s
Ellie,” my friend corrected as politely as possible.

Two of the
women, Cassie and Linda, smiled at us and waved. The third, Brittany, smirked
when Ellie spoke up about her name. I decided instantly that I didn’t like her.
All three women looked older than us. I guessed late twenties or early
thirties. The two nice ones started the normal ‘where are you from’ chatter
with Ellie, but Brittany just continued to look us up and down with a fake
smile.