Free Danny's War (Rolling Thunder Series Book 3) by Pj Fiala

so their palms were touching, she curled her fingers around his hand.
    “We don’t have to talk about this if it’s painful.” A faint smile formed on her lips.
    “No. It’s…fine.” Wiping his eyes with his other hand caused Tammy to squeeze the one she held.
    When he had composed himself a bit more he said, “I’m supposed to talk about it. My counselor said I should. Doesn’t make it easy. He also said that. It’s just imagining all that war on the wall so soon…” He swallowed. “It’s tough.”
    Tammy nodded slowly; choosing her words carefully, she said softly, “It is. It’s brought me to tears more than once as the guys…and ladies, tell me about their experiences. So many have lost friends and family. So many have lost parts of themselves. Physically and emotionally. I debated for a long time on whether it was the right thing to paint on the wall, but Gerry told me it was so much better to honor what they’ve all done than to pretend it never happened. Many of the others agreed and were excited to share their experiences. Sometimes they’ll sit in the room with me while I paint and tell me their stories. Sometimes, I go into the room and see them sitting there staring at the mural, lost in the memories of the days and years they served. It feels good. They tell me it’s good for them to see it memorialized. I’ve painted the faces of some of their lost friends in the mural. To honor them. So they aren’t forgotten.”
    “That’s incredible. What you’re doing is incredible. What do the veterans there do for counseling?”
    “We have counselors come in. But mostly they talk to each other. That seems to help the most, talking to other veterans. You should come and talk to them. They don’t have anyone from this current war to talk to and it would help. It would help you too, Danny.”
    Danny stared into Tammy’s eyes. Who was this woman? She hadn’t seen the brutality of war, yet she felt it. She had the compassion of a woman who’d lost so much, yet she didn’t have the crusty shell one erects to protect herself from the ravages of life. She was warm and beautiful and absolutely was stealing his heart.
    The thought jolted him. He quickly pulled his hand away. Busying himself with the dirty dishes he jumped up. “Can I get you anything? More wine?”
    Tammy, shocked by the sudden change in atmosphere shook her head quickly, forcing her mind to catch up with the dizzying pace of this evening. “No. I’m fine. Thank you.”
    She stood and carried her plate to the dishwasher, placing it inside as Danny packaged up the leftover lasagna.
    Not sure what to do or what’d just happened, Tammy continued clearing the table. When she finished she looked over at Danny, who’d stopped placing the lasagna in a plastic container and stood staring down at the empty pan before him. His breathing was ragged and his shoulders bunched and stiff.
    Nervously, she said, “Well, I’ll go then. Thank you for supper. It was delicious.”
     

CHAPTER 13
    DANNY LOOKED OVER at her and saw the nervousness in her face. Her posture was rigid and her jaw tight. He stepped towards her and saw her lips quiver. Taking another step, he stood directly in front of her. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. The feeling of her body pressed tightly to his sent a shiver up his spine. He slid his hand into her hair and reveled in the feel of it between his fingers. Soft and silky yet thick and full. The color of the richest light oak. The curls catching the light and showing off the multi-colored highlights in a kaleidoscope of color. Sexy!
    He felt her nipples pucker through her little dress and push against his chest. He claimed her mouth with full force. Her moans rippled through him, creating riotous emotions deep inside. His dick hardened, his breathing shuddered through his body and his knees weakened. He couldn’t think of a time in his life when he’d felt like this about a woman before.