Ember Skies

by Nicky Crawford

  “I’m curious… Why would we go on a double date again when you and Dalton showed zero interest in each other?”

  Austin shot me a warning glare; one I do not plan to take too seriously.

  Lexi leaned forward from the backseat and put her hand on Austin’s shoulder. Giving it a light squeeze, she turned to face me, “What are you talking about, Ember? Dalton is so into me. We even have plans for a second date.”

  My stomach tightened at her admission, but I reeled it in knowing that she is full of shit. “You are so freaking delusional, Lexi. You were too busy swapping spit with my husband to even notice Dalton. He didn’t ask you out on another date because you repulse him, just like you repulse me.”

  “I’m repulsive? Honey, please. Your own husband doesn’t even want you.”

  “Oh, and you think he actually wants you? Locking lips while completely intoxicated does not mean he wants you.”

  “Of course it does, considering he’s at my house numerous times during…”

  “Enough! Both of you need to shut the fuck up.” Austin’s voice was loud and alarming. Lexi leaned back in her seat with her arms folded like a kid who was just scolded. I’m sitting here staring at him with my mouth wide open, an open invitation for any flies that may be flying around the truck.

  “Is that where you go where you’re supposed to be at the gym? Are you with her instead, Austin? Huh? Do you spend more time at her house, or getting lap dances at the strip club?”

  He doesn’t reply. He doesn’t even look at me. His lips are pursed in a tight line, eyes fixed on the road and he’s not showing any sort of emotions. “Answer me, damn it! Are you with her, Austin?”

  “Stop talking. We’re not doing this right now, Ember.” His jaw tightens, anger enveloping his body. He grits his teeth and stares hard into my eyes, “Let. It. Fucking. Go.”

  “When will we do this, Austin? When you’re not driving so you can hit me while you tell me this is my fault? Unbelievable.”

  The truck falls silent. I close my eyes and try to will the last fifteen minutes out of my mind. I knew he was cheating. In the back of my mind I knew it. What doesn’t make sense is why he would be so persistent to set Dalton up with Lexi. Unless he wanted to use their relationship as a cover. I want to know everything, but I’m also terrified to push his buttons any further. He is livid right now and I don’t know if he’s mad because he got caught or because I keep asking questions.

  We pull up to Lexi’s house and both she and Austin exit the truck. Once they make it to the porch, they appear to start fighting. I can’t hear anything, but their elaborate hand motions and angry looks are a dead giveaway. I pull out my phone.

  Me: He’s cheating on me with Lexi.

  Dalton: I know, babe. I was there.

  Me: Not just last night, Dalton. A lot. Like a lot!

  Dalton: What!! He told you that? What’s happening? I’m coming to get you.

  Me: He’s coming back to the truck. Text later.

  I put my phone on silent and stared out the window as Austin opened the door and sat behind the wheel. His hand landed on my knee and I scooted closer to the door. “Em?” I didn’t respond. I have nothing I want to say at this particular moment.

  Austin lets out a loud sigh and starts the truck. His breathing increases and he starts to say something, but he puts the truck into drive and heads down the road instead. At least he is silent now. I thought for sure he would slap the back of his hand across my face at the very least.

  Work was surprisingly slow last night, which left entirely too much time for me to think. I cannot shake the feeling that a giant shit storm is brewing. After leaving Lexi’s on Sunday, Austin and I haven’t spoken two words to each other. I’ve been avoiding Dalton as well. I just can’t do it right now. Any of it. I expected Austin to yell, hit me, and say how all of this is my fault, but he hasn’t. He must be up to something. Dalton has called and texted me numerous times, but I haven’t responded.

  Tonight I have a family readiness group meeting. I’ve been extremely devoted to the FRG since we transferred here. We have a busy night ahead of us and Harper was sweet enough to clear her schedule so she can join us.

  Friday night we are going out for a long overdue girl’s night. This will be my last free weekend before my sweet little girl comes home. I miss Harlee terribly, but my parents keep me up to date on all the fun adventures they are having. I spoke with Harlee last night and she told me all about my dad taking her fishing. She said, “I got a big one, mommy. He was stinky like feet. I told PawPaw I wasn’t gonna touch it. Yucky.” I laughed and told her how her PawPaw made me touch fish when I was her age. She proceeded to yell at him. I’ll be so glad to have her back.

  I spend the morning baking cakes to put into care packages. Since it’s impossible to send a normal cake, I bake them in mason jars and seal the lids. When they reach their destination, they are just as fresh as they would be if I baked them that day.

  When the cakes are all made, I busy myself around the house and wait for Harper to show up. She has been an amazing help to all of us. I cannot tell you how many care packages Harper has put together or how many cakes she has made for our numerous bake sales. The girl is amazing. As I finish getting dressed, my phone vibrates.

  Dalton: Em, please. I know you’re hurting. I do, and I know you’re confused, but please talk to me.

  He is breaking my soul. It literally feels like my soul is trying to escape. I hate doing this to him, but I am so damn confused.

  Me: Dalton, I just can’t do this right now.

  Dalton: I can’t stop thinking about you. I need to be near you. I need to hold you while you cry out all of your frustrations. I refuse to give up until you tell me you don’t feel the same way about me.

  Me: We will talk soon, Dalton. I promise.

  Dalton: Okay, Em. Okay.

  I didn’t send anything else. I so badly want to tell him exactly how I feel. I want him to scoop Harlee and me up and take us far away, but that just isn’t practical.

  I make my way downstairs as Harper walks in the front door. “Hey girlfriend, ready to make some care packages?”

  Harper is glowing, she is clearly smitten with Trent and it shows. “Yes ma’am! As soon as we load all the jar cakes into my SUV, we’ll be ready to go.”

  After carefully putting four boxes of mason jars into my vehicle, we made our way to the meeting.

  I love being a part of the FRG. We spend a lot of time doing fundraisers, making care packages, helping families settle in, taking care of wives while their husbands are deployed, and a long list of other things. Tonight we are making summer themed care packages. We bought orange and yellow items, such as gum, goldfish, lemon heads, and any other snack item we could find that is considered summery. We also put baby wipes, powder, and fresh socks into each box. I spent half the year collecting cards that children at the local schools had made for the troops and we put one card in each box. One of our friend’s is a K9 handler, so I bought dog boots, treats, and other doggy items to add to his care package.

  “I need the details on your love life, Harper. Fill me in.”

  You know how when you read a book, you step into the life of someone else and almost escape from reality? That is what I’m about to do with Harper. I need to live vicariously through her.

  “We have been together every single night since the cookout. We talk, watch movies, cook each other dinner, talk some more, and then have incredible sex.” Harper blushed and let out a giggle. Something she never does when talking about the opposite sex. If her words didn’t clue me in to how she felt about Trent, her actions sure as hell did.

  “Honey, I am so thrilled for you. Trent is an amazing guy and I knew you two would hit it off. He has always been there when I needed him and he… did you say incredible sex?”

  Harper started laughing uncontrollably. Once she was able to calm down and breathe again, she wrinkled her nose and blushed, “Girl, it’s mind blowing. I’ve never
had sex like this in my entire life. He’s wild, but sweet, dirty, yet passionate. Ugg. He is perfect.”

  “I’m jealous, but so happy for you, Harp. I can tell you really like him. You keep blushing like a middle school girl.”

  She gasped, “What? I am not!”

  Pulling into the parking lot, I run inside to recruit a few people in assisting us with the boxes. I was terrified that we would either drop a box or the bottom would fall out, so we assigned two people per box. I would probably cry hysterically if mason jars shattered on the pavement. Sarah was on meeting detail today, so she came by early to set up boxes and arrange the tables with a few of the other wives. The snack table was loaded with delicious baked goods for us and all the notes for the meeting were set on the tables so each wife could have a copy.

  After everyone arrived and took their seats, I began the meeting. “Good evening, ladies. I am excited to spend the evening with all of you. I see a few new faces with us tonight, so for those who do not know me, my name is Ember Mills. If you are new, please come see me before the end of the night. Tonight we will be discussing fundraisers, collecting ideas for family day, planning a girl’s day for the new wives, and of course, making care packages.”

  I probably talked longer than anyone would have liked, but everyone was full of creativity tonight. I could not believe how many amazing and new ideas the ladies came up with for fundraisers and for family events. After I wrapped up the talking portion of our evening, I met with the new wives while everyone else worked hard filing boxes. The five new faces joined me at a table for a short introduction.

  I welcomed them and gained a little insight into their lives. “I am thrilled to have you ladies here. The girls around us will become your family. We help each other though the good times and the bad. If you need anything, from childcare to a shoulder to cry on, you call me.”

  A few hours later we had more care packages put together than I could count. After loading them into the U-Haul, we said our good-byes and left.

  “Harper, thank you sooo so much for helping tonight. We all love having you at meetings.”

  She reached over and squeezed my hand, “Girl, you know I love helping. No need to thank me. Plus, who knows, maybe someday I’ll be an actual wife in the group.”

  I may be going through a tough time right now, but seeing Harper happy makes my insides all warm and fuzzy.

  I have turned into a giant pussy this week. I know I shouldn’t feel this way about a married woman, but Austin is a dick and my feelings for Ember are out of control. I get why she is avoiding me, I really fucking do, but it certainly doesn’t make it any easier. Maybe if she just saw me, then she would actually talk to me. At least she replied to my text tonight. It wasn’t much, but after almost three whole days with no communication, it was nice to at least know she’s alive.

  The past three days have been hell at work. I can’t help but feel like a deployment is coming. We have been taking stock of every weapon and piece of equipment our unit has along with everything else you would normally do before heading overseas, but no one has confirmed, nor denied, anything about deploying. All I know is that I have two days left to work this week and I plan to talk to Ember this weekend. Come hell, high water, or an asshole husband, I am talking to her face to face.

  I need to vent to someone who doesn’t know Austin or Ember. I’ve made friends here and I trust these guys with my life, but I cannot let them know what’s going on. I decide to give my best friend, Blake, a call. Blake and I have been buddies since birth. Our mothers have been best friends since middle school and they gave birth to us a week apart. This dude and I have been through it all together.

  “Holy shit, Dalton Bates. What’s up, man?”

  “Blake, it’s been forever. A lot is up, buddy. Welcome home! You busy?”

  After high school, we joined the Army together. For ten years we managed to stay together, but he was deployed when I got orders to transfer here, so I had to adjust to not having him around. We spent our first three deployments together, but after that, he switched to a different unit. We are both infantry, but he is also a K-9 handler and trains military dogs. He may not be blood, but he is my brother through and through. We haven’t spoken on the phone more than a handful of times because of his deployment, but a few days ago he finally made it back to US soil.

  “Nah bro, you know I’m never too busy for you.”

  “How was your deployment?”

  “It was rough. I’m pretty sure this was the worst to date, plus it sucked not having you with me, man. I’m just glad to be home. I got promoted too, guess where they need me?”

  “Are you trying to tell me that your ass is being transferred here?”

  “Hell yeah, man!”

  “Fuck yes. When?”

  “Two weeks. That house of yours better be big enough for the both of us. So what’s up? Any ladies in your life?”

  “Holy shit! That’s soon. I’ll have your room ready for you! So, there is someone special, but it’s, well, it’s really complicated. I am in over my head big time.”

  I proceeded to tell him everything that has happened in the last couple of weeks. Being the awesome best friend that he is, Blake encouraged me to fight for Ember. Neither of us would ever come between a husband and wife, but this situation is different. Austin isn’t healthy for Ember and she is miserable.

  “Well buddy, she must be something special. The last time I saw you so infatuated with a girl, was with Madison Andrews in ninth grade. You remember how big her breasts were? Damn.”

  “You’re sick. That was forever ago. Ember is special. I know we haven’t known each other long, but man when I think of the future, all I see is her.”

  “Get her, Bates. You have so much damn love to give, brother. Hey, I’ve got to run. Call me soon, yeah?”

  “Can’t wait to see you, buddy!”

  The weekend is finally here. Thank fuck! I was so busy this week that I successfully avoided Austin. Technically we were both too damn busy to interact, but either way, I didn’t have to deal with him. I have an issue controlling my temper around idiots, so steering clear this week was much needed. I left work at 1700, which is five hours earlier than I had been leaving the previous days of the week. I ran by the house to grab my gym bag, and headed out to get a workout in.

  After putting my stuff in the gym locker, I head over to the weights. I plan to run a few miles on the treadmill, but I need to lift first. With my headphones firmly in place, I get to work. I managed to lift once this week and got a couple of morning runs in, but I was so beat by the time I made it home every night, that all I could manage to do was sleep.

  I finished lifting and made my way to the treadmill. I need to run a few miles, plus a couple extra for all the miles I’ve missed this week. Blake and I do mud runs and Spartan races every summer, so running is a big part of my life. I hadn’t been as motivated as I usually am, but knowing he is moving here has me pumped up.

  A couple miles into my run, I notice Austin walking in the door. He looks pissed. I mean mad as all hell. He glances my way and nods before making his way to the weights. I wonder what happened. I need to make sure Ember is okay.

  Me: Em, I know you don’t want to talk to me, but Austin’s at the gym and he looks pissed off. Are you okay?

  To my surprise, her reply came almost instantly after mine sent.

  Ember: It was bad, Dalton. Soooo bad.

  Me: What happened? Do I need to come get you? I’m coming to get you.

  Ember: I’m going out with Harper tonight. We’ve been planning it for weeks. Can we talk tomorrow?

  Me: Yes, of course. Are you sure you’re okay?

  Ember: I’m not sure. I’ll call you tomorrow. Night, Dalton.

  Me: Night, babe.

  Everything Austin has been keeping bottled up for the past five days, came out this afternoon. It was like the hell hounds were set free on earth and everyone in their path was ripped to shreds. My day had started out so g
ood; leave it to Austin to ruin it. One of the new wives in the FRG asked me to bake a cake for her son’s birthday. I have spent the entire morning baking a three layer chocolate marble cake. Since he loves bugs, I decided to get creative. I made each layer a different size and surrounded each layer with green icing to look like grass and used M&M’s for bodies. With brown icing I made legs for the bugs. It looks absolutely adorable. I managed to make bugs of all shapes and sizes. I should really open a cake baking business.

  As I placed the cake into my fridge, I heard the front door open. Austin walked into the kitchen with a scowl plastered across his face and sat down on a barstool. My anxiety level spiked so rapidly that I damn near fainted.

  Before I had time to decide what to say, he opened his mouth, “I’ve given you five days to cool down, I assume your temper tantrum is over by now?”

  I whipped around so fast I nearly fell over. The heat of my glare matched his as we stood a few feet apart in a stare down, “My temper tantrum? I’m sorry, but who cheated on who?”

  Austin crossed his arms over his chest and leaned into the island, “She was lonely and I’m a guy, what do you expect? It’s over now, let’s move on.”

  “You can’t be serious! You’ve been sleeping with Malibu Barbie for who knows how long, then you set her up with poor Dalton, AND then you tongue fuck her at his house with me there. How am I supposed to be okay with all of that?”

  “All you fucking do is nag nag nag. Damn it, Ember. You wonder why I do the things that I do, it’s because you push me to do them.”

  Oh. Hell. No! If I wasn’t pissed before, I sure am now. I shouldn’t be surprised that he’s putting all the blame on me. That’s what he does. He makes some epic mistake and then points fingers at everyone else.

  “You do not get to blame me for this, Austin. I don’t force you to drink, I sure as hell don’t force you to hit me, and I’ll be damned if I forced you to cheat on me. You make me sick you worthless…”