Free A Soldier's Return by Judy Christenberry Page A

can. It’s for a good cause. You two go shop and I’ll wait for the deliveries.”
    “Okay. Can you go now, Carrie?” Jim asked.
    “Yes.” She reached down for her purse and then stood. “I’m ready.” What else could she do?
    “Okay. Let’s go. But we’ll take my car so my knees aren’t against the dashboard,” he quickly said.
    She turned to look over her shoulder. “If you prefer.”
    Three hours of intense shopping managed to provide Jim with a leather sofa and love seat, coffee table and end tables, two lamps, a kitchen set and a king-size bedroom suite, without mattress and box springs.
    Carrie had told him he needed to buy those new.
    All of them had been purchased at low prices because they’d been gently used before.
    “Wow!” Jim said as they got back in his car. “That’s incredible. And it didn’t cost nearly as much as I thought it would.”
    “Do you think you’re through?”
    He looked at her in surprise. “There’s more?”
    “You have no dishes, silverware, pots and pans, sheets or towels. I’m afraid they’re all necessary. We can go to Target and get all those things…if you want.” She was offering him a way out, because she didn’t think he’d want her assistance.
    “Yeah, I’m ready. With you for a guide, we’ll be through in no time.”
    “Am I pushing you into making decisions? If it’s too fast, we can quit for tonight.”
    “No, I definitely want to go on, but I do need to eatsome dinner. How about you join me? That’s the least I can do for all your time. Then afterward, we can go on with our shopping.”
    “Oh, no, that’s not necessary. I—”
    “Don’t tell me you’ve already made plans. I haven’t given you any time to make plans,” he said, leaning down to see her face since she’d ducked her head.
    “I was just going to say that—that there’s no need to buy me dinner because…”
    “You’ve given up food for Lent? No, it’s not spring, so that can’t be it. You’re like a camel and can go without food for days at a time?”
    “Don’t be ridiculous, Jim!” she snapped.
    He waited until they were in his car. “I’m going to get Vanessa to go over to my apartment and wait for the deliveries. It’s great that they can deliver this evening, isn’t it?”
    “Yes, as long as you pay extra.”
    He grinned. “I’ve saved so much money, that’s not a problem. In the meantime, I owe you dinner. And I always pay my debts.”
    Carrie was too tired to argue with his firm statement. After he got Vanessa on the phone, he drove both of them to a small Italian restaurant. “I hope you like Italian,” he murmured.
    “Yes, I do. And this is a lovely restaurant.”
    “Good.”
    Once they were seated and had ordered, she said, “Vanessa was okay with waiting for your deliveries?”
    “Yeah. Makes me feel humble, though. She was happy to do something for me.” He shook his head.“I’ve come back into her life after twenty-some-odd years and she thinks it’s an honor to help me out.”
    “It is. Vanessa loves the feel of family around her.”
    “She’s always had family,” Jim pointed out.
    “You never met Vivian’s husband.”
    “You don’t mean Will, do you?”
    “No, Herbert. He was extremely old-fashioned and domineering. I don’t know how Vivian managed to live with him as long as she did.” Carrie shivered. Her father hadn’t had a clue as far as finances went, but he wasn’t cold and domineering like Herbert Shaw.
    “Not like Vivian, I gather,” Jim said wryly, watching her.
    “No. They were opposites.”
    The waiter brought their food. After he left the table, Jim said, “It’s funny how opposites attract. I had several guys under me marry women who were as different from them as night from day.”
    Carrie said, “But you only heard one side of the marriage, right? So you don’t know if that was accurate or not.”
    “True. And I didn’t have any desire to investigate,” he said with a grin. “In spite of