Battlefield of the Heart (4 page)

 

 

Stepping out of the Hobart Building was like stepping into a furnace. Cindy drew in a deep breath of the humid air and wished for fall. The August sun burned down with blinding intensity, and every building and paved surface on campus radiated heat. She sighed and started her trek down the sidewalk, thankful her dorm was air conditioned.

“Cindy!”

She turned and found Danny jogging across the street toward her. Boy, did he look good in motion. She resisted the urge to fan herself and focused on breathing normally. When he stopped beside her, she raised her eyebrows. “Isn't it a little hot for jogging?”

He shrugged. “I'll take ninety and humid in Indiana over a hundred and twenty in Iraq any day. There's nothing quite like being on foot patrol over there this time of year.”

She remembered news footage of soldiers patrolling in heavy body armor, helmets, and long sleeves. “Somehow, after what you just said, the weather seems kind of nice today.”

He chuckled and adjusted the strap of his backpack, which he carried over one shoulder. “It's amazing what a change of perspective can do for your opinion.”

“You have a point.” A strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail fell in her eyes, and she brushed it away. “So, are you on your way to or from class?”

“From. I just got out of my philosophy class. Are you headed back to the dorm?”

She nodded and they started down the sidewalk. “I hated philosophy when I took it. Questioning everything, including some of the questions, just about drove me nuts.”

“It's my least favorite class. I mean, why would anyone want to ponder whether God, who can do anything, can create a rock so heavy He can't pick it up?”

Cindy laughed, remembering that conundrum from her own days in the freshman course. “Now you know why I hated the class.”

They continued discussing their classes, and Cindy learned his favorite was Biblical Literature. She loved the way his eyes lit up as he talked about the Bible and some of the themes his class was discussing. It reminded her of the joy she'd seen when they discussed photography the day before.

Josh came down the sidewalk toward them. After a quick greeting, he focused on Danny. “Hey, are you still coming tonight?”

“Of course. You want me to bring anything?”

“A dessert of some kind would be awesome. Everything else is covered.”

“Okay, I can do that.”

“Cool.” Josh turned to Cindy. “I've got some people coming over to my place later for a cookout. You want to come?”

“Sure.” When was the last time she'd been to a cookout with friends? Going to one with Danny sounded even better. “To repeat Danny's question, you want me to bring anything?”

“Nah, just yourself.” Josh checked his watch and sighed. “I have to go. Danny can give you directions to my apartment or maybe just give you a ride. I'll see you guys later.”

Josh continued down the street, and Cindy turned to Danny. “So, what are you taking?”

“I'm thinking baked goods.” He glanced at his own watch. “We've got a few hours until we need to be at Josh's. Want to run to the store with me and pick up the supplies to make something?”

“Sure, why not?” A single man who knew how to bake? Not common in her experience, but thoughts of him working in the kitchen, maybe with a streak of flour on his cheek, left her feeling a little breathless.

They went to the freshman parking lot, about three-quarters of a mile past their dorm, and climbed into his dark green pickup truck. Once they were on State Road 3, headed north, Cindy turned toward Danny. “What are you going to make?”

“Cookies sound good.” He glanced at her as he stopped at the traffic light by the cemetery.

“What kind of cookies?”

“Chocolate chip, of course. Is there any other kind?”

She laughed as the light turned green. “Dozens, but chocolate chip are always good.”

“I knew you'd see it my way.”

The grocery store parking lot was fairly empty when they arrived, and Danny pulled into a space close to the door. Waves of heat drifted up from the blacktop as they headed for the entrance.

Cindy breathed a sigh of relief when she passed through the automatic doors and into the cool interior of the store. “Okay, I take back what I said earlier. Ninety and humid still feels terrible.”

“It's the humid part that makes it so miserable.” Danny pulled a shopping cart from the long line and pushed it toward the aisles. “But the storms later should help cool it off.”

“Wait. It's supposed to storm, and Josh is having a cookout?”

“Yeah, but he's been planning this longer than we knew about the storms. The worst that can happen is we cook in his kitchen instead of on his grill.”

Cindy walked beside him toward the baking aisle, mildly surprised when he bypassed the mixes. Despite her earlier imaginings, she hadn't expected him to know how to make cookies from scratch.

Danny tossed a couple of packages of chocolate chunks in the seat of the cart. “Walnuts or pecans?”

“That's a tough one. Both are good.”

“You're right.” He grabbed one package of each kind of chopped nuts and added them to the cart. “Cookies don't take long to make, so I'll just make a batch with each kind.”

“Won't you end up with about a million cookies?” she asked as they moved down the aisle.

“Probably, but like we already discussed, chocolate chip cookies are awesome. With a million cookies, there should be enough for everyone to take some home.”

She grinned as he picked up a bag of flour. “I like a man who knows how to think ahead.”

“I'll keep that in mind.” He stopped and looked around. “Where's the shortening?”

Cindy cast a quick glance up and down the aisle. She spotted the familiar blue cans several feet behind them. “Back there.”

He laughed and walked back to grab a small can of shortening. “So much for thinking ahead.”

“Ah, but you just proved you're not afraid to ask for help if you need it.”

“Yeah, that's a lesson I learned the hard way.” The joviality left his expression, and he gathered the rest of the dry ingredients in silence.

As she followed him toward the dairy section, she struggled to figure out what had happened. She didn't think she'd said anything to kill his good mood. They'd both been joking around, but what had caused his sudden shift from upbeat to melancholy?

She chewed on a thumbnail as she pondered whether she should say something to Danny or just wait for him to speak again. Dropping her hand to her side, she fought off the familiar, if annoying, insecurity uncertain situations always caused.

Danny set a box of unsalted butter in the cart and then turned toward her. “Don't let me bring you down. I just… Things cross my mind sometimes, and it takes me a little bit to get past them.”

“Is that because of the PTSD?”

“Yeah. I have a lot of triggers, some of which I'm still discovering, but I've been assured they should get easier to ignore eventually.” He sighed and moved over to the egg case. “I sort of believe that, since I'm not as bad now as I was at first. But it's still frustrating.”

Her heart went out to him. “I can see how it would be. I know it's probably pointless to ask, but is there anything I can do to help?”

He set half a dozen eggs with the rest of the ingredients. Then he turned to her, a teasing twinkle in his eyes. “Make cookies with me.”

Apparently, he was over whatever had bothered him. “Okay. Where?”

“My floor has a kitchen that hasn't been used since the semester started. We can use that.” He scanned the contents of the cart. “Did I miss anything?”

It looked like he had all of the necessary ingredients. “A mixing bowl and pans?”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Don't need them. The kitchen is fully equipped with pans, utensils, and other dishes.”

“I'm jealous,” she said as she walked beside him toward the checkout lanes. “My floor doesn't have a kitchen. We just have a small kitchenette with a miniature stove, a sink, and a microwave.”

“Well, if you feel the need to use a real kitchen, let me know and I'll sneak you into ours.”

She bumped her shoulder into his with a grin. “I love having connections.”

 

 

“Hey, Cindy!”

She turned around as Danny jogged up the path through the quad. Late afternoon sun reflected off the windows of the library, and she moved to the side to avoid the blinding glare. Shaking her head and laughing as Danny stopped before her, she said, “You know, this whole jogging thing is getting to be a habit with you.”

He grinned and shrugged. “Can I help it if I always spot you when you're a couple hundred yards away, and I don't want to make you wait too long while I catch up?”

“You're so thoughtful.”

“That's the way my parents raised me,” he said with a chuckle. “So, where are you headed?”

“Nowhere, really. I'm just wandering around and enjoying the cooler weather those storms brought us. I have some homework I ought to do at some point, but I can work on it later.” Especially if he had a better suggestion for the evening.

“I've got some people coming to my room to watch a movie in a little while. You want to join us?”

The thought of spending more time with him sent a tingle of anticipation down her spine. “Sure, why not?”

During the walk back to the dorm, they discussed various scenes from a photography perspective. Shame burned through her when she realized she hadn't considered the veterans' lives past their time in the military. Somehow, she'd skipped over the fact that veterans were people, first and foremost.

Her thoughts shifted to how to write her research paper to highlight veterans as people who happened to have served in the military. She was so focused on it that she jumped, startled, when Danny touched her shoulder.

He gave her a questioning look. “What are you thinking about so hard?”

Heat crept into her cheeks. “My research paper. Talking to you keeps giving me ideas for it.”