Air Force Hero

by Weston Parker

  Sam nodded and began chewing his bottom lip. “Okay.”

  “Don’t worry, kiddo. We’ll make it in time.”

  I wasn’t lying. We pulled up to the school with about eight minutes to spare, which was pretty good timing on my part. I parked the truck in the parking lot, and Sam looked up at me.

  “Can I come in with you, kiddo? I want to get a look at your classroom.”

  “Sure,” Sam said.

  “You won’t be embarrassed by your mom coming into school with you?”

  Sam shook his head. “Some of the other kids’ moms brought them to class yesterday.”

  “Okay.” I smiled. I unbuckled and walked around the hood of the truck. I lifted Sam out and took his hand as we crossed the parking lot.

  A cluster of other parents, all mothers I noticed, were gathered below the stairs. They all had their heads bowed together, and they were not trying to disguise the fact that they were looking scornfully from my truck in the parking lot to me.

  I was wearing my favorite black skinny jeans and white sneakers. My hair was in a messy bun because I was heading to inventory again after this, and my T-shirt was a distressed gray wash. The V-neck was rather wide, so the straps of my lace bralette were showing.

  We walked by them, and I felt their eyes on me as we kept walking. Gossiping mothers were the absolute worst.

  We went through the door, and Sam led me down the hall to his classroom, which I was delighted to find was quite fantastic.

  Their desks were in neat rows of five, and each of them had a cubby underneath to store their pencils, crayons, and books. Sam walked me to his desk where his name was printed out by his hand on a piece of blue construction paper and taped to the front. He had decorated it with pictures of motorcycles, which looked uncannily like Zach’s bike, and Spiderman webs.

  The rest of the room was filled with all kinds of things. One wall was dedicated to the kids’ personal items, like their jackets, outside shoes, and lunch boxes. Their names were neatly printed on labels and stuck to the wall above their designated hooks. The front wall was half chalkboard and half whiteboard. The teacher’s desk was off to the right side near the windows, which let in cheery sunlight and were framed with rainbow curtains.

  “This is really nice, Sam,” I said.

  “I like it,” he said as he shrugged out of his jacket and went to hang it on his hook.

  Other kids were taking their seats, so I ruffled his hair when he came back to his desk. “I’m going to head out before your teacher comes in. You have a great day, okay, kiddo? I can’t wait to hear all about it tonight. Oh.” I paused, glancing around. “Is Johanna here yet?” I couldn’t help myself. A mother’s curiosity.

  He peered around and then pointed to a redheaded girl who had just walked in. She was hanging up a bright pink coat and kicking off her yellow rain boots which were entirely unnecessary because it was a dry, sunny day. She wore purple leggings covered in hearts and a blue shirt with a sparkly flower in the middle. She was eccentric and adorable.

  I found myself smiling as I patted his head once more and said goodbye. I paused in the doorway to look back at him, but he was looking at Johanna.

  Adorable.

  The second bell went to start class as I was heading out the front door. I descended the front steps and looked up to see that same cluster of mothers muttering under their breath. Their eyes, like before, kept darting over to me, and then they would giggle outrageously.

  Most of them were dressed in cardigans, pretty sandals that showed off their fresh pedicures, and wrinkle-free straight-leg colored jeans. I rolled my eyes, deciding they weren’t worth my breath.

  But then as I passed them, one of them muttered, “That poor boy doesn’t stand a chance. What a walking disaster.”

  I stopped dead in my tracks and snapped my head to the side to shoot daggers at them with my stare. The one who had spoken, a pretty middle-aged blonde, made eye contact with me. She blinked in surprise and turned back to the group like a herd animal seeking shelter in its companions.

  Not today, lady. Not today.

  My temper was short from everything happening with Zach. I was stressed with all my new responsibilities at work. I hadn’t been sleeping because of it all. And now these women thought they were better than me.

  Fuck that shit.

  I marched over, chin held high, back straight, and stopped when I was only two feet away. I folded my arms under my breasts, slapped on my “I mean fucking business” Coast Guard face, and cleared my throat. “Is there something you wanted to say to my face, Stepford Wife?”

  There were six of them, and they all looked up at me with perfectly lined eyes and pretty pink lips. Some looked absolutely horrified that they were being called out, while the one who had spoken looked like she was living her best life. She faced me and crossed her arms, too. Her long red fingernails rested against her upper arms, and a giant diamond ring glittered on her left hand. “We were just sympathizing with you, dear.”

  “Sympathizing?” I scoffed. “Oh, please. You wouldn’t know what sympathy was if it walked up and bit you on your ass.”

  The blonde blinked, horrified by my language, and pressed a hand to her chest. “I beg your—”

  “No,” I barked. “Hell no. You were the one acting like a stuck-up bitch. You don’t get to pretend to be offended now that someone is calling you on your ‘stuck in high school’ drama. I get that you want attention. It’s written all over you. But you’re what, forty? Haven’t you learned by now that there are better ways to get the attention you want than being a bitch?”

  One of them laughed. She looked horrified that the sound had come out of her and slapped a hand over her mouth. She locked eyes with me, and I pointed at her.

  “You shouldn’t socialize with women like this,” I told her. “They’re bringing you down. And their kids are probably bringing your kids down.” I looked back at the blonde, who was turning a bright shade of red. “Listen, we don’t have to like each other just because our children go to the same school. But this behavior will not happen again. We are supposed to be setting an example. Are we on the same page?”

  After a moment of hesitation, the woman nodded.

  “Good,” I said. “Have a good rest of your day.”

  I turned on my heel and marched out to my truck. My chest was full, my body was thrumming with adrenaline, and I was aware of the fact that I hadn’t felt this good in weeks.

  I got in my truck, slammed the door, and cranked my rock music as I pulled out of the parking lot. They could think whatever they wanted. There was no harm in that. But they would treat me with respect from now on.

  Part of me looked forward to seeing their reactions when they saw Zach. His all-around sexiness would probably wipe the catty grins off their faces.

  This train of thought only reminded me of how much I missed him and how often he was spending time away from me and Sam lately.

  The rock music lost its appeal, and I turned it down as I drove the rest of the way to work.

  When I got there, Rosie hadn’t arrived yet, which was a bit strange because Ryan was supposed to be dropping her off on his way to work around twenty to nine. She usually beat me by five or ten minutes. But not today.

  I got out of the truck and went up the steps to the front door.

  It was unlocked.

  I swallowed. Had someone broken into the place in the middle of the night? How much of my shit would be missing? Had we left any money in the registers? If so, how much? Did the closing crew lock the safe properly?

  Was the thief still inside?

  I pushed the door inward, and it creaked on its hinge.

  And then the fear that had bloomed in my gut was snuffed out as my eyes fell upon the sight before me.

  Rose petals. Thousands of rose petals. And candles burning on every surface. There were so many that for a second, I thought some of the lights were turned on. But they weren’t. At the end of an aisle of rose petals, in
the middle of the dance floor at the back of the room, under the swirling lights of the disco ball, stood Zach.

  He was dressed in a black suit.

  “What the hell is going on?” I whispered.

  But deep down, I already knew, and I already felt guilty for thinking he had lost interest in me and Sam. It would seem that my assumptions were all wrong.

  Quite wrong.

  The door swung closed behind me, and I began to walk down the aisle of petals.

  38

  Zach

  Jo looked about as surprised as I had hoped she would. Her hands were clasped in front of her as she made her way toward me, and her gaze kept swinging over the candles, the petals, and the rest of the romantic decor.

  I’d spent the last few weeks getting everything in order for this. She’d had no idea. At least, I hoped she didn’t. I sensed over the last week or so that she was distancing herself from me. She thought something was up, but she hadn’t come to this conclusion. At least, I doubted she had, based on her shocked expression.

  She was climbing the steps up to the dance floor now. My cheeks ached from smiling. She came to stand in front of me and laughed a little nervously. It was cute. Too cute.

  “Zach,” she whispered. “What is all this?”

  “Shh,” I said. “It’s my time to do the talking.”

  I went down on one knee. Her eyes sparkled.

  “Josephine Hart,” I said as I took her hands in mine. “I’ve been thinking about this moment for a long time. If I’m being honest, I was thinking about this before we even started dating. And that scared me a little because marriage wasn’t something I thought I ever wanted. But I guess I just hadn’t met the right woman.”

  Jo sniffled and looked up at the ceiling to stop herself from crying. “Oh God,” she whispered, blinking furiously. A tear escaped, and she laughed again.

  “I can’t picture my life without you,” I continued. “And I don’t want to. I want you by my side forever. I want to spend the rest of my life doing everything in my power to make you happy and to make you laugh. Because your laugh is my favorite sound, and I don’t know what I would do if I weren’t lucky enough to hear it every day.” I reached into my pocket and withdrew a small wooden ring box. I had it custom made, and Jo’s initials were carved on the top. I popped it open to show her the diamond ring nestled amongst the red velvet lining inside the box. She gasped. Good. “You gave me the best thing in this world, Jo. Our son. Now I want to give you the best that I can offer. A promise. A promise to love you until I die, through thick and thin, no matter what. To be by your side, holding your hand through the hard stuff. To laugh with you through the good stuff. And to, of course, make you laugh every chance I get. Jo, my pretty girl, will you marry me?”

  Jo was crying and vigorously nodding before I’d even gotten the question out. “Yes,” she cried, and then she fell to her knees in front of me and threw her arms around my shoulders. I hugged her back, smelling the sweetness of her shampoo, and laughed when she pulled away to hold my face and kiss me several times over.

  “I can’t believe this is happening,” she said, her words coming out in a tumbled rush. “I thought—I thought—” She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. I was being stupid. Holy shit. We’re engaged!”

  “Yes.” I chuckled. “We are. Give me your hand. Let me see if I picked the right size.”

  Jo held her hand out between us, and we both laughed at how much she was shaking. I plucked the ring from the box and slid it onto her left hand.

  “It’s gorgeous,” Jo whispered, turning her hand from side to side. The diamond caught the light of the candles and glittered magnificently. “It’s too much.”

  “No,” I said. “It’s not.”

  “I love it,” she said, and then she was kissing me again.

  I got to my feet with her still clinging to my front. When we broke apart, I kissed the tip of her nose. “I have one more surprise for you.”

  “I don’t think my heart could handle another surprise right now.” She giggled.

  “You’ll like this one,” I said before calling, “Come on in, guys!”

  The door to the kitchens blew open. Rosie burst out first, running across the floor and joining us up on the dance floor. She flung herself at Jo, and the two of them laughed and cried together. Next came Ryan and then Jo’s father and then my mother. Everyone celebrated with laughter and a few tears, and then when things calmed down a bit, I poured everyone a cold beer, and we took it outside to sit on the porch and soak up some sunshine.

  “Any idea of when the big day will be?” Ryan asked as he leaned against one of the posts on the deck. He sipped his beer and pulled his sunglasses down over his eyes.

  I looked at Jo. “She’s the decision maker here.”

  “Well,” Jo said, contemplating. “I’ve kind of always wanted an outdoor wedding with lots of flowers and a laid-back vibe. But I don’t want it to be too hot like in the middle of summer.”

  “Spring then?” Rosie suggested.

  “Yeah.” Jo nodded. She glanced up at me as I sipped my beer. “What do you think? Think we can get our butts in gear to have a wedding this coming spring?”

  “I don’t see why not. That’s what, six or seven months away?”

  Jo nodded.

  “You just pick a date, and we’ll start making it happen,” I said.

  “What about a venue?” my mother asked. She had been thrilled to be part of the proposal day. The waiting had been driving her up the wall.

  “I haven’t really thought about that part,” Jo said.

  “We should do some research,” Rosie said. “Compile a list of places where you can have an outdoor wedding.”

  “Okay.” Jo grinned. “That’s your job as my maid of honor.”

  “Really?” Rosie beamed.

  “Of course.” Jo nodded. “Who else would I want to have by my side that day?”

  The two girls hugged and sat shoulder to shoulder at the top of the steps while I nodded at Ryan. “What do you say, best man?”

  Ryan raised his beer to mine. “You got it, buddy.”

  “Sam is going to be thrilled,” Grandpa Hart said.

  “It was so hard keeping the secret from him for a whole month,” I said. “There were so many times I wanted to sit him down and let him in on it, but I couldn’t risk the surprise being blown. I was worried enough one of you lot would blow it.”

  “If any of us would blow it, it would be Rosie.” Ryan laughed.

  “That’s who I was referring to when I said ‘you lot’.” I grinned.

  Everyone laughed, except for Rosie, who went on to say that she had known for the whole month and never let on once. I was impressed. I thought for sure she’d have given something away in all that time. But I was grateful she hadn’t because the look of sheer shock on Jo’s face when she’d come into the pub was more than worth it.

  “Well,” I said, checking my watch when it was close to two. “Jo and I should head out of here to go pick up Sam.”

  “Is it already that time?” Jo asked, a little startled. “I didn’t get any of my count done and—”

  “Don’t worry about it, sis,” Ryan said as Rosie got to her feet to stand beside him. “Rosie and I will handle it today.”

  “You guys are the best,” Jo said.

  “Damn straight we are,” Rosie said before planting a kiss on Ryan’s cheek. Her pink lipstick made a perfect imprint on his cheek. We all said our goodbyes, and everyone congratulated us once more before we hopped in the old truck Jo had shown up in, Ryan had driven me over and headed to the school.

  On the way there, Jo informed me about the bitchy moms who had found themselves suffering her wrath that morning. She explained how she had been feeling like I was pulling away from her lately, which she quickly amended with a, “But I was being stupid, and I’m sorry for thinking that. It all makes sense now.”

  She went on to say how she took her anger out on the moms and put
them all in their place. She seemed very satisfied with herself, and when we got to the school and I pulled into the coned lane, she pressed her finger against the window to point to a cluster of mothers, all dressed like they were going to brunch at a country club. “Those are the ones,” she grated.

  “Relax, Rhonda Rousey.” I chuckled. “You already scared the hell out of them by the sound of it. No need to point at them like you’re going to snipe them off later.”

  “I like their fear,” Jo said wickedly. Then she spun back to me with a grin.

  I squeezed her knee and looked up to see Sam hurrying down the stairs. Jo opened the door and pulled him up, then put him in between us on the bench seat.

  “How was your second day?” I asked, playfully shoving him into his mother.

  Sam giggled as Jo buckled him in. “Fun! We played tag at recess, and I was pretty fast. Johanna tagged me, though. And then we played grounders. And then hide and seek. And then we did crafts and made pencil holders to put on our desks. And then we had reading time. And then we practiced printing. And then we did math. And then I came here.”

  “Wow.” Jo chuckled. “Sounds like you had a very busy day.”

  Sam nodded eagerly.

  “Well.” Jo smiled. “We have some good news to share with you.”

  Sam looked back and forth between us. I looked at Jo. This was her news to share with our son. I nodded for her to go ahead.

  Jo twisted in the seat so she was facing him. Then she held out her hand to show him the ring and said, “Your father and I are getting married.”

  Sam didn’t seem to process what this meant at first. Then his eyes widened, and he looked up at his mom. “You’re going to have a wedding?”

  “Yes.” Jo nodded, her smile bright enough to light up the whole cab as if it were the dead of night.

  Sam clapped his hands together. “Does this mean there will be a baby soon?”

  “What?” Jo and I asked in unison.