Loving An Airborne Ranger (2 page)

Her sister said, “Lisa, I think Mom’s right.  I think it would be a better environment for Kyle than to be raised in an Army town.”

“This is his father’s Army town and we’ll be fine here, surrounded by friends we know and love.  We are not moving to Dime Box and that’s it.”

Her mother sniffed, on the verge of tears.  She was sure it was the grief talking.  Lisa would come to her senses and move back.

“Dad wants to
leave day after tomorrow.  I can stay for as long as you need me.”

“Mom, we’ll be fine.  Matt’s mother offered to do the same.  We’ll be okay here.  This is home now.  It’s where Matt is and it’s where I want to be also.”

“Well, okay, if you’re sure.”

Six months later…

A car pulled up in front of the house.  Lisa was weeding the flower bed and pinching tops off some of the faded blooms.  Glancing up, she saw a man, vaguely familiar, get out and come up the sidewalk.  He was of average height, well dressed with slicked back hair that looked like a crown or helmet. 

“Mrs. Turner?  Hi, I’m Glenn Chasin.  You may remember me from church.  I’ve seen you quite a few times with that lovely son of yours.

“No, I can’t say as I do, Mr. Chasin was it?”  I’m afraid I don’t remember.”

“Last night, I told my wife, I bet that young widow could use some help now that she has no husband.  My wife said that was just like me to think of other people, and why didn’t I give you a call and offer my services.  So here I am.”

“Well, yes, here you are.  I really do appreciate your offer Mr. Chasin.  I’ll call your wife and tell her how nice it was of you to come by.”

“Yes, well that won’t be nec…”

“
Lisa, is there some problem?” asked Chuck Carson, after getting out of his car, just home from work.”

“Hi Chuck.  No, no problem, this nice Mr. Chasin just came by to offer his services.  Wasn’t that kind of him?  I just told him I didn’t need any help but I just have to call his wife to tell her how much I appreciate them thinking of Kyle and me.”

“Come on, Mr. Chasin, I’ll walk you to your car.”

“I understand now,” Chasin said smiling like the cartoon character, Snidely Whiplash.

“What do you understand, Chasin?”  He reached out
his arms, muscles bulging, his face unsmiling and picked Chasin up by his neck and the seat of his pants and walked him to his car.  He let go of him, opened the car door and pushed Chasin inside.  He leaned over and in a voice low enough that no one else could hear said, Chasin, if I ever see you around here or around any of the other wives in our squadron, I will come visit with you.  Do you understand?”

Chasin said nothing and Chuck reached in and put his hand on Chasin’s shoulder with a viselike grip and said
in the voice of a man accustomed to being obeyed, “I asked if you understand?”

“I understand,” stammered an ashen Glenn Chasin. 
Intimidated by this imposing figure oof a man, he managed to get his car started and sped off down the street.

Laughing, Chuck walked back to Lisa, who was convulsed with laughter. 
“I don’t think you will see Mr. Chasin again,” he said.  “Does this sort of thing happen often?”

“More than you would expect, and it’s usually one of the upstanding members of the community. 
A deacon from church offered his services once.  I wonder if that approach ever works.”

“
Take care, Lisa and let me know if our Mr. Chasin comes around again.”

“I will.”
  As he walked away, Lisa stood, watching until she heard his door close.

Three months later…

Lisa was sitting in a patio chair as she watch Kyle splash around in his plastic pool.  Gunner was having as big a time as Kyle was in the water.  Chuck Carson came to the fence and said, “Lisa, I’m getting ready to put a steak on the grill.  I’ve got an extra.  Why don’t you and Kyle come over?  Keep you from having to fix supper.”

“I don’t know.  I don’t like to be a bother.”
             

“Oh don’t be silly.  Come on over whenever you’re ready.”

Lisa took a quick shower and changed into fresh shorts and a sleeveless top.  She put her long blonde hair up in a ponytail.  She never wore much makeup and simply applied fresh lip gloss, and a spritz of a light summer fragrance. Grabbing Kyle, she gave him a quick cleanup and checked his diaper and changed his clothes.  She retrieved a container of juice from the refrigerator for him.

Being around someone, even Chuck, after having minimal contact with any male since Matt had died, she surprised herself when she realized she was nervous.  Taking Kyle’s hand, she went
out the front door and over to Chuck’s.  She pushed the doorbell button.  She could hear the chimes and then a shout, “It’s open come on through, I’m on the patio.”  She had been in the house many times prior to Chuck’s divorce and she could see he hadn’t changed anything.  He did see everything was spotless.

She walked on through the kitchen and onto the shaded patio.  Chuck had a five bladed ceiling fan that was moving the air around. 

“Grab a chair.  There’s beer in the kitchen, water, Cokes.  I’m afraid that’s all the bar has to offer today.”

“Coke will be fine.  I brought juice for Kyle.
” 

“So what have you been doing for yourself these days?  I haven’t seen much of you since I got back.”

“Mostly playing with Kyle, trying to get all of the benefits and paperwork cleared up.  I still need to get Matt’s will probated.  Mom is after me to move back home but I am resisting that pretty much.  We go to church every Sunday.

“What’ve you been doing?  Your last deployment was what... three months?”  He chose not to offer any information on his classified mission.

“Hold on, let me get the steaks on the grill.  I’ve had potatoes in foil for a good while.”  He went into the kitchen and returned with two steaks, each 1½ inches thick.  “The commissary had a real bargain on these.  I got ten while the deal was on.”

“They’re beautiful.  Can I do something?”

“You just sit back and relax.  By the way, have you heard from your friend Chasin?”

She giggled.  “Not since I called his wife to thank her for her thoughtfulness.  Funny, she didn’t remember their conversation about him helping out.”

“You didn’t really call did you?”

“I sure did.  I figured it was time old Chasin got his itchy britches burned.”

“You’re terrible.”  He chuckled and said, “I don’t ever want to be on the wrong side of you.”  He could smell the fragrance she was wearing.  It was like honeysuckle.  “
She looks great in those shorts
,” he thought to himself.

Have you been seeing anyone yet?  If I’m prying, tell me so and I will extract my foot from my mouth and change the subject.”

“No not really.  A couple of the wives tried to be matchmakers and I went to dinner once or twice but not with the same person.  They asked me out again but I said no.  I don’t want to get tied up with another pilot.  Being married to Matt was wonderful but I never want to have to go through an ordeal like that again.  I don’t know, I’m probably still grieving but it just doesn’t appeal to me.  It might someday but not now.

What about you?  You have a girl in every port, or hooch or whatever it’s called these days?”

“Since I got burned by Linda, I haven’t been interested either.

Steaks are ready.  Could you get the plates and utensils?  They’re still in the same place.”

Chuck lit two citronella candles to ward off the mosquitos.  He took the steaks from the grill and put them on the plates.  He went to the kitchen, returned with butter, cheese, and sour cream for the potatoes.  Standing close while they loaded the potatoes, they brushed arms, and she could feel the hair on his arms on her bare skin.  She felt an unfamiliar tingle.  Glancing at Chuck’s face, the thought she saw something indicating he had felt it too. 
“It was probably my imagination, it’s just Chuck.”
  They ate, put the dishes in the sink and just sat back in the patio chairs and chatted about nothing in particular and everything in general.

Kyle had fallen asleep in Lisa’s arms.  She glanced at her watch.  It said 9:00. 
“I can’t believe that,” she thought.  “Where did all the time go?” 

“I’d better get Kyle to bed. 
Poor guy.  He’s all tuckered out and it’s way past his bedtime.  I can’t believe it’s so late.” 

She stood, and Chuck said, “Let me have him.  I’ll walk you home.”

“That’s not necessary Chuck.  I’m used to hauling him around.”

Chuck had slid his hands under Kyle’s shoulder and took him.  In so doing, they brushed each other again.  She felt the tingle again.
  They were close enough she got a whiff of the outdoorsy smell of his after shave.  He must have noticed because he pulled back and said, “I’m sorry.  I’ll still walk you home.”  They went through the outside gate and over to Lisa’s house. 

At the door, Lisa said, “I’ll take him now.  Thank you for a lovely evening.  It was nice having an adult to talk with for a change.  We’ll have to do it again, my treat next time.”

“You’ve got a deal.  Good night Lisa.”

“Good night Chuck.”

Inside, she carried Kyle to his bedroom, got him changed and into his pajamas.  He didn’t stir at all. 
“He must have been worn out,”
thought Lisa.

“That was a really nice evening.  I enjoyed it very much.  What was that tingling all about?  I haven’t felt that since Matt.”
 
A feeling of guilt flooded over her.  Am I being disloyal to Matt?  I shouldn’t do this again.  That was silly.  It was just a pleasant evening between friends.

She dressed for bed in a blue nightie and returned to the kitchen for some water.  She looked out of the window facing Chuck’s house.  She could see him putting things away.  Her kitchen was darkened, so he could not see her, though he looked out the window several times.  She rinsed the glass and decided to find something to read.  She found a book she had started some time back but couldn’t concentrate on the words.  Her mind kept replaying the evening. 

The next day, she gathered Kyle and they went shopping.  The Post Exchange was the best place to do shopping.  Neither Clarksville nor Hopkinsville had much in the way of great shops, while the Exchange had some excellent selections.  She bought herself a new filmy dress, a couple of tops and shorts.  She also found some things for Kyle.  Next stop was the commissary where she shopped for groceries.  She had brought a list.  It contained several things she had in mind for the patio meal she had planned with Chuck.

Under a partly overcast sky, Lisa pulled into her driveway.  Chuck must have just gotten home; he stood on the driveway, still in uniform and looked toward the west.  He turned around as her car door closed.  “Well, is it going to rain or not?”

He turned and looked at the sky, then turned back and said, “If it doesn’t, it’s going to be a long dry spell.”

“I was going to ask if you wanted to come over for dinner, but after that, I’ve changed my mind.”

“Aw come on, don’t you appreciate a little humor?  Without it, this would be one boring place.”

“And it’s not?  I’m having one of my kindhearted days.  Why don’t you come over about seven?”

“I would love it.  See you then.”

With sweet potatoes baking, Lisa put a fresh green salad in the refrigerator to chill.  The pork chops were seasoned and ready to go in the skillet.  She also had green beans ready for the stove and apple pie ala mode for dessert. 

Kyle was down for his nap so she had a shower and tried to decide what to wear.  She decided her new dress would be a bit too obvious, and settled for Capri pants and a loose knit top.  A light coating of lipstick and a bit of blush on her cheeks and she was good to go.  She paused to look in the full length mirror Matt had fastened to the back of her closet door. 
“Not too shabby, Lisa,” she thought, and then immediately, “Matt, I hope you don’t think I’m being disloyal to your memory.  I don’t know why I am feeling guilty.  Matt’s been gone for a year.

Kyle had awakened from his nap so she quickly changed and dressed him.  Now back to the kitchen.  The cooking was coming along very well with only the green beans and pork chops to start and she was going to hold off on these until Chuck came over.

The chimes from the front door sounded so she hurried to answer, checking herself in the dining room mirror to make sure everything was okay.  It was Chuck.  Since she was holding Kyle, she offered her cheek.  Chuck airbrushed his lips against her cheek, enjoying the freshly washed smell of her hair.  Even so, there was a reaction.  Sure she was blushing, she stepped back to let him in.  He presented her with a bottle of white wine.  “Since I didn’t know what you were fixing, I didn’t know what color to get.  I wouldn’t have known anyway.  I didn’t expect you to reciprocate on dinner, but I’m glad you did.”