To Honor by D.F. Krieger Read Free Book Online Page A

to remain silent. I feel like a child on the first day of school!
    “What shoe size do you wear,” the nurse asked her.
    “Huh? Oh, uh, eight. Why?”
    “Here, these are eight and a half, but try these.” Sandra began pulling her shoes off. They were the slip-on kind. Rubber soled, pink fabric to go with her pink scrubs, and best of all, no laces to take out.
    Heat infused Evelyn’s cheeks at the offer. “What about you?”
    With a laugh, Sandra handed her the shoes. “Are you kidding me? I love the scuffy socks.”
    Upon hearing the nickname for them, Evelyn chuckled too. “Only if you are sure. I don’t want to be a bother.”
    The nurse waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. “Put them on, and go have fun on your date.”
    With many expressions of gratitude, Evelyn took the shoes and slipped them on. They were slightly loose, but nowhere near like her tennis shoes were without the laces. She took a few steps, testing them out, and breathed a sigh of relief that no shuffling was required.
    After she returned her own pair of shoes to her room, she followed Sandra to the elevator so she could be escorted downstairs. Once again, her stomach performed gymnastic maneuvers deep inside.
    As the elevator doors open, Evelyn squared her shoulders. Now or never.
     
    * * * *
     
    Derek toyed with the bag of food as he continued to eye the doorway. His heart pounded a rapid beat in his chest that only increased his anxiety. The aroma of the fast food turned his stomach, making it lurch dangerously each time he inhaled a little too deep.
    She backed out. Evelyn’s not coming.
    A smile tugged at his lips as the thoughts echoed in his head. He realized, with a roll of his eyes, that he sounded like a teenager in the throes of angst over his first date. Evelyn wasn’t a girl he’d just met, she was his wife. And yet, he had to admit, he knew her about as well as a new acquaintance.
    Oh, he’d known her during the first years of their marriage. Back when things were new and fresh. Before long deployments frayed their intimacy and the endless fertility clinics had broken their hearts. They’d been like mirrors of each other, once upon a time. Able to finish sentences the other had started, to predict choices and desires, to know when comfort was needed even oceans apart.
    Then the accident happened, ripping their daughter from their arms in a cruel act of fate. For a few weeks, Derek had suffered in agony as his wife lay in a coma. He was certain he’d lost both of them. He never wanted to hurt like that again.
    In the end, I did lose her because of my wall. I was so selfish, so damn stupid, so—
    “Derek?”
    The voice broke him from his inner turmoil and he made certain to place a welcoming smile on his face before lifting his gaze. “I was worried you’d decided against our lunch date.”
    Evelyn sat down across from him. Her face remained neutral, but her eyes looked far more alive than they had for weeks. He was relieved to see the emotion returning to them. The cold distance that he’d witnessed in them only a week ago still haunted his nightmares.
    “I wasn’t about to turn the food down. The stuff they serve isn’t horrible, but I miss my kitchen.”
    He heard the way her voice caught and leaned forward, chucking her under the chin. The unshed tears that misted her eyes made his heart cry out in pain. “Don’t worry, Eva. We’ll get you home soon. Flint’s wife is keeping an eye on the place for us, and you know everything will be just as you left it.”
    With a nod, she sniffled and pulled away from his touch. He tried not to let the disappointment show on his face at her retreat. “The food smells good,” she said.
    Derek took the cue and opened the bag. “It’s only fast food, but…” He let it drop, concentrating instead on pulling the contents out and setting it on the table.
    As she munched quietly on her cheeseburger, he let his gaze rove over her. The clothing she wore hung loose, but she