Love is in the Air

"But what about Ch...that man. What was his name again?" she asked pretending not to remember.

"Let's ask him when we meet up."

Charlie was more than happy to stop and eat with them, but only if they'd allow him to pay for it. Before she could speak, Ezra agreed for his mom and they ended up at a Red Robin about 20 minutes later.

They spent close to an hour there, and while Ezra answered every question they asked of him, it was painfully obvious his mom 'had eyes' for this man he'd learned was a widower and a former Army Ranger. Ezra did his best to steer the conversation away from himself and back to them at every possible turn, and although his mother complained a time or two, she didn't hesitate getting to know Charlie, whose last name was Law, a whole lot better.

In fact, when they finally made it to Claire's home, and got Ezra inside and all set up, Charlie did in fact let her know he'd very much enjoyed her company and asked if he might 'call on her again' sometime.

"Well, I suppose that would be all right," Claire said, trying not to seem too interested.

"Wonderful. Could I maybe stop back by in a couple of days and see if either of you needs anything?" he asked.

Ezra overheard them and called out, "My mom would like that very much!"

Charlie turned his head in that direction and smiled while Claire said, "Shouldn't you be resting?" a little too loudly.

Ezra laughed for the first time since being shot down, and Claire finally laughed, too.

"I'll walk you out then," Claire said, sporting a very nice smile.

Charlie was the consummate gentleman and thanked her again for the privilege of helping a true American hero, and Claire, in turn, thanked him for all his help.

"I'll look forward to seeing you again, Charlie," she said as they stood there just looking at each other.

"Same here, Claire," he told her quietly. "You have an amazing son, and I can see where his character comes from."

Claire beamed, thanked him again, then wished him a good night just as a car pulled in next door.

Dawn got out and said, "Good evening, Claire! Is that Marine son of yours home?"

"Oh, yes! He's inside resting."

"I'm so happy for you!" Dawn told her.

Charlie nodded and said, "Evening, ma'am."

"Oh, hi. I'm...I'm Dawn. I live next door," she said before realizing that was obvious.

The girls hopped out and came around and Charlie said hello to them, too. Too shy to say anything, Dawn went out on a limb and asked very tentatively, "Are you by any chance Ezra's father?"

It was an innocent question, and Claire took no offense. Dawn had never met her ex who'd moved away to the Phoenix area with the woman he'd been sleeping with while still married to Claire some ten months ago.

"Oh, no. This is...Charlie."

Claire explained the VFW's welcome and how he ended up at her place.

"I am SO sorry," Dawn said. She felt terrible even though Claire had assure her it was fine.

"Listen. You're more than welcome to stop in and say 'hi' if you'd like," Claire told her after 'poo-pooing' her faux pas.

It was almost nine o'clock, but Dawn felt almost obligated to so and said, "Well, if you're sure. I suppose we could pop in and just introduce ourselves."

"Yes! Definitely. Come on inside. Please!"

"I'll let you get back to your life," Charlie told Claire. "But I will be back two days from now. I promise."

"I...I hope you will," Claire said with a warm smile.

"I'll show myself out," Charlie joked referring to getting into his truck and leaving.

He called over to Dawn, "Nice meeting you, ma'am. And you, too, little ladies!"

"He seems very nice," Dawn said as Charlie backed out while she brought the girls, hand in hand.

"Yes. Yes, he does, doesn't he?" Claire said before bending down and saying 'hi' to the girls.

"Tell me your names again?" she asked while she was 'their size.'

The little blonde girl on her left said, "I'm Zoe and that's Chloe."

"Oh, okay. I'm Claire," she told them.

She stood up and said, "I feel terrible for not being a better neighbor."

"No, don't!" Dawn told her. "You have so much on your plate. And we haven't exactly been over friendly ourselves."

Claire opened the back door then said, "Well, let's make an effort to change that, shall we?"

"Definitely!" Dawn said as she stepped inside for the first time.

"Let me just tell Ezra we have company, okay?" Claire said as she left them in the living room.

"Of course, and if he's too tired, we'll come back tomorrow."

Ezra had his iPad out and was sitting up in bed reading something.

"Did I hear more voices?" he asked.

"You did. Our new neighbors pulled in just as Charlie was leaving. I asked them to come in and say hello. Is that okay?"

Too polite to say 'no', Ezra smiled and told his mom, "Of course."

He tried to sit up straight then heard little voices.

"Did he get kilted by a bad man?" Ezra heard one voice ask.

"No, honey, he got injured, okay?"

"I thought you said his hell-copter crashed because bad men kilted him," the voice asked as they came around the corner.

Ezra was smiling, but when he saw the woman who walked into his room, his smile faded. She was clearly older than him, but she was as beautiful as any woman he could ever remember seeing.

She had long, blonde, silky hair that fell to her shoulders. It was very nicely styled, and she also had a very pretty face attached to a very toned-looking body. The moment she saw him, their eyes met and locked momentarily before she looked down almost immediately.

He sat up a little higher and tried to see the little girl and found not one, but two of them.

"Oh, okay. Now I understand," he said with a smile and a wave. "Hi, there. I'm Ezra."

Suddenly shy again, Claire stepped up and said, "Honey, this is Dawn, our new neighbor, and these two adorable little girls are Zoe and Chloe."

"And which one of you is Miss Zoe?" he asked as he looked at on and then the other, smiling the whole time.

Dawn looked back up at him, smiled too, then said, "This one is Zoe, and this other munchkin over here is Chloe."

"I'm not a munchkin!" Chloe informed her mother. "I'm four-years old!"

Ezra raised an eyebrow then said to Dawn, "She's right, you know. Munchkin's can't be more than three so she's definitely not a munchkin."

He looked down at Chloe then said, "Right?"

The little girl smiled then moved closer to her mother but didn't speak, although she did giggle.

Dawn put her hand behind her daughter's head then said, "We don't want to bother you. We just couldn't not accept your mom's invitation to stop by and welcome you home and thank you for your service."

"I'm very glad you did," Ezra told her as he not only smiled at her, but found himself unable not to stare. "My mom told me we had new neighbors. She just didn't tell me all three of them were so beautiful."

Claire was smiling the whole time, and when she looked at Dawn, she was surprised to see patches of red appear on the apples of her cheeks. She looked back at her son and then at Dawn, and that's when it...dawned...on her, that Ezra was politely flirting with her.

Trying to recover, Dawn asked, "So how are you feeling? Is there anything we could possibly do for you?"

He smiled at her then said, "Um...you wouldn't happen to have a spare leg laying around, would you?"

Dawn was aware he'd been badly burned, but she was horrified thinking he may have actually lost his leg. The covers were pulled up over them so she couldn't see, and she was at a loss for words.

"Oh, my heavens. I...I had no idea. I honestly didn't know that you..."

Ezra realized what was going on and said, "No, no. I didn't lose my leg. It's still there. In fact, it reminds of that many times each day."

Dawn knew he had to be in pain, and yet he was being so friendly and cheerful.

"Oh, thank goodness," she said with genuine relief.

"Other than that, I think we're good," he told her. "Well, unless you have a spare back."

Dawn finally laughed politely when Ezra laughed then told him, "No, sorry. I'm fresh out. But I do have two little munch...sorry...girls who can drive you crazy."

Ezra looked at Chloe then Zoe and said, "I don't believe they'd do that. Would you?"

"Yes!" Zoe said immediately.

"Me, too!" Chloe told him. "We drive our mommy crazy all the time!"

Dawn shrugged her shoulders then said, "What can I say? They're honest to a fault."

There was a brief lull so Claire said, "Well, we'll let you rest, honey. I just wanted to introduce you all."

"I'm glad you did, Mom."

Ezra looked at Dawn then said, "It was a pleasure meeting you, Dawn."

"Yes. You too, Ezra."

He looked at the girls then said very seriously, "And no driving your mom crazy, okay?"

Both of them giggled loudly then said in unison, "O-kaaay! We promise!"

"Okay, girls. Let's get home. We still have to get ready for bed," Dawn told them.

"Ahhh! Do we have to?" Chloe asked.

"Ah-ah!" Ezra said with a playful wag of his finger. "You promised, remember?"

"Yes, we remember," Zoe said as though he'd just taken away their favorite toy.

"Well, good night, Ezra," Dawn said again.

"Good night. Sleep well."

"You, too," she told him as she led the girls out.

"Oh, and you non-munchkins better come back and see me a whole bunch of times, okay?"

"We will!" they both told him at the same time.

"Don't worry. I won't let them come over and bother you," Dawn said almost apologetically.

Ezra smiled at her then said, "I'd actually enjoy the company. And if you're ever free, I'd very much enjoy yours, too."

Dawn felt sure she was blushing again, but knew it wasn't too bad. Even so, she had a hard time looking at him when she replied.

"Well, if you're a glutton for punishment, I suppose we could drop by once in a while."

"I'd like that. A lot. And trust me, it wouldn't be something I'd consider punishment," Ezra said quietly with yet another smile.

As Claire walked them out, Dawn didn't hear much of what she said. She'd been so busy with work and the girls since her husband left them, that she'd made no time for anyone else in her life. So while she knew she was lonely, it still surprised her that just meeting this very handsome, younger man had caused such a stir.

The only thing she did hear was Claire saying, "Thank you so much for stopping by. And I can tell Ezra meant it when he said he'd enjoy your company."

She quickly added, "All three of you. Maybe we could all have dinner together or something sometime soon?"

"Well, I think that sounds very nice, Claire. Perhaps we could work on it together. It would give us a chance to get better acquainted."

"I like the sound of that, Dawn. Are you free Saturday afternoon or evening?"

"I am, actually. I have the weekends off, so if you want to get together then, just let me know what I can bring, okay?"

"You can bring these two beautiful little girls," Claire told her as she bent down again. "May I get a hug, please?"

Both girls put their little arms around her neck, and Claire hugged them back.

"I'm so glad your son is home, safe and sound," Dawn said just as they were walking out.'

"Thank you, Dawn. Me, too. And I'll talk to you tomorrow about the details, okay?"

"Sounds good, Claire. Have a nice night!"

Claire went straight back to her son's room and smiled.

"What?" Ezra asked when he saw her 'looking' at him.

"What? What do you mean—what? You were flirting with her and don't try and deny it."

Ezra smiled then told her, "Okay. I'll fess up if you'll admit you liked the Silver Fox that followed us home."

His mom stuttered and sputtered as she told him, "I was just being...polite. Yes, he's a nice-looking man, but I wasn't...flirting."

"Oh, okay," Ezra said with a playful smirk.

He picked his iPad back up then smiled again and said to his mom, "Whatever you say, Mom."

Claire shook her head then said, "The first thing we're going to do is get them to adjust your pain medications. They're clearly interfering with your judgment."

"Good night, Mom," he said, still smiling.

Her face softened before she said, "Good night, honey. I am so glad you're home."

"Yeah, me too," he told her, even as he thought about his friend who'd died and his family who would never have another homecoming except to say goodbye.

Between the time change and having slept on the plane, Ezra had a hard time getting to sleep. As he lay there staring up at the ceiling around 4am, he found himself thinking about his brief meeting with Dawn and her girls.

He'd never really been serious with anyone before, and as long as he was on active duty, getting serious seemed almost cruel. He didn't actually believe 'lighting would strike twice' with the second strike killing him, but just being gone so much would be difficult on any family. Then again, a whole of families did just that, and most of them seemed very happy and well-adjusted.

So why then couldn't he shake the image of this beautiful, older woman no matter how hard he tried? He'd dated and/or hooked up with numerous attractive girls before, so it wasn't just that he found her very attractive—which he did. Maybe it was just the medication, but Ezra couldn't shake the thought it might be something more. He'd never believed in fate or destiny, and yet his brain kept telling him there was more to this meeting than sheer coincidence.

Around 6am, he finally fell asleep, and didn't wake up again until a little after two o'clock.

When he did, he checked his phone and saw he had three messages. One from his squadron CO and the other from the guy who was piloting the other aircraft the day he was shot down. The third was from an Air Force doctor informing him they would be sending someone to his home each week day for therapy for the duration of his convalescent leave starting that afternoon.

All three left voicemails. The CO was just checking in and let Ezra know he could call anytime no matter what it was he needed. His friend, Captain Tim Bywaters, let him know about the memorial service for their fallen comrade, and that he'd be laid to rest in Arlington as soon as his wife got a date for the internment. It normally took around three months, but it could vary a week or two either way.

Ezra knew there was no need to call any of them back, but he made a mental note that he'd go to the memorial/burial in Arlington no matter what. And he vowed he'd be walking without help by then. In fact, he promised himself he'd be running again by then come hell or high water.

For now, he was hungry enough to eat the proverbial horse, but first he had to pee like the proverbial racehorse. And then he needed to get ready for the therapist.

"Mom?" he called out even as he swung his legs over the bed.

She came running in and asked what was wrong.

"Nothing. I just need to get to the bathroom."

She'd put the walker she'd rented for him so far away he couldn't reach it. She helped him limp over to it then watched him inch his way into the bathroom.

"Do you need any help?" she asked while she winced with every slow, tiny step he took.

Ezra laughed then said, "That's where I draw the line, Mom. Thanks but no thanks, okay? But I could stand to eat something if you don't mind."

Claire not only didn't mind, she was thrilled to be able to help. Her boss had given her one day off, but only one day, to be with her son. On Monday, she wouldn't be able to be there with him, and it worried her half to death. But for now, she was home and able to care for her boy and she couldn't be happier to be needed again.

Performing the most basic tasks was an exercise in humility for the wounded Marine. Just wiping his...behind...was unbearably painful as he had to twist his back in order to get his arm around to where it needed to go. Bathing was another issue. He could stand in the shower and clean most of himself off, but without a long-handled brush, getting to his back—or back...side—was also a 'no can do'.

The good news was his range of motion was slowly improving each day, and what had been excruciating just days ago was now 'only' extremely painful. Ezra took care of business, showered, shaved, then slid back into the bedroom and got dressed—another very challenging and painful task that took much longer than normal.

By the time he made it out to the kitchen, his mom had pancakes, bacon, and eggs plus toast, orange juice, and coffee ready to go. Ezra ate enough for two people while his mom chattered away.

"So are you gonna see this Charlie guy?" he asked out of the blue with a smile.

"No. Of course not," she said defensively, but not before Ezra saw her smile as she turned away.

"Why not? He's a veteran who cares about people in uniform, and he seems like a really nice guy," he said as he continued stuffing his face. He'd lost over five pounds since the crash in spite of not being able to PT (short for physical training), as Marines called it.

"Because. I...I don't need to see him. I have work and I have you," she informed him as though that would settle it.

"And when I'm gone, what then? Are you just gonna stay here alone for the rest of your life? You're still a young woman, Mom. And don't tell me you don't get lonely."

"It's...bearable," she told him even though, at times, it wasn't.

Claire hated being alone, and nights were the worst. But she didn't want to burden her son with it, so she told him she was fine.

"I wish you'd at least think about it," he told her before letting the issue go.

"What about you? Are you ever going to settle down and have a family?" she asked trying to turn the tables.

"Oh, the 'I need grandchildren' talk, again, huh?" he teased. "I haven't heard that one since the last time I was home on leave before going to Afghanistan."

"Okay, I've never actually said that. And, well, you're almost 30 and I just thought..."

"Whoa! Hold on there. I'm three years away from turning 30, okay? Besides, I haven't exactly been able to meet women the last six months so give me a little time, okay?" he said with a smile.

"Does that mean you're at least open to looking?" Claire asked hopefully.

"Yeah. Sure. I'd love to have a family someday."

This time his mom laughed then said, "Well, you won't have any trouble. You have your father's dashing good looks, so whenever you are ready to get serious with a nice girl..."

"How is Dad?" he asked.

His father had almost fallen off the face of the earth after the affair and moving away. Ezra knew he was in love with this new woman, but he was also deeply ashamed for what he'd done. He was the one who'd instilled values in his son like working hard and staying faithful—no matter what. Ezra didn't hate his father, he only hated what he'd done to his mom.

"Not much," she said quietly. "In fact, not a word since you left the last time."

His dad stayed in a local motel for three days when Ezra came home before deploying, and the visit was very strained. It was as though there was nothing left to talk about so they went to a Mariners game one afternoon and sat there in near total silence for all nine innings.

He'd only talked to his dad once after the crash, and although he promised to stay in touch, Ezra doubted he would.

"Mom?" he said.

He waited until she turned around then told her, "Go out with Charlie, okay?"

She huffed and puffed then said, "He hasn't even asked me, Ezra."

"Then ask him," he said matter of factly.

She gave him a 'you've to be kidding' look then shook her head and asked if he wanted anything else.

"No. I just want to see you happy. That's all," he told her as he finished his coffee. "That was really good, by the way. Thank you."

Claire offered to help him get up, but Ezra insisted on going it alone.

"Oh, a therapist from McChord will be here anytime. Sorry I forgot to mention that."