Ain't She Sweet (Seven Brides for Seven Mothers #2) - Whitney Dineen Page 0,61

They have families and feelings. They love and they dream. War separates them from everything good in their lives. It has to or there’s no way they could do the horrible things expected of them.”

“You don’t have to tell me any of this, Billy. Not unless you want to.”

“It’s not so much that I want to as I need to,” he says. “I might have returned to normal life quicker had my battalion not been charged with something so hideous in the last days of Vietnam.” Tears slide down his cheeks. “It was the only time during the conflict that we were ordered to kill civilians. Any person trying to escape the camp was to be killed, no matter their age or sex. Those two days broke me. I wanted to point my gun at my own head more times than I could count.”

“Billy …” Gwen has no words, but she feels like she has to say something.

“It’s taken me almost thirty years to make my peace. I didn’t feel that I deserved any of the creature comforts that were taken from others when they lost their lives. Lately though, I’ve finally started to believe that God will forgive me for taking part in that hell.”

Gwen stands up as though in a trance and leans across the table. She bestows the gentlest kiss on her guest before telling him, “You are a wonderful human being, Billy Grimps. I’m so sorry for what you’ve had to endure.”

Tara

My Worst Dates

Every date that started with the guy reciting his net worth and/or his stock portfolio. There were many.

That dude in Budapest who claimed he was a reincarnation of Napoleon. He spent the entire evening reenacting the Battle of Waterloo. In retrospect, I think he might have taken something because he seemed normal when we first met.

My Best Dates

My first date ever was with a male model in Paris. He took me to the Moulin Rouge where I learned how to do the Can-Can. I didn’t even mind that the guy was gay.

My first date with Romaine. We went to In-N-Out Burger and I ate an entire double-double all by myself. I’ve often wondered if it was Romaine or the burger that made me think we had a future together.

My Dream Date

Having a man surprise me with something totally fun and unexpected.

“I’m not sure I’ve ever had as much fun as I had tonight,” I tell James honestly. The smile on my face is so big it feels like it might be a permanent fixture. I think I just experienced my dream date.

“I think it’s safe to say you really could have won that competition I invented for Rachel.”

We’re standing by the passenger’s side of James’s truck. The streetlight above is illuminating a circle around us like a spotlight. “I want to come back here again,” I tell him.

“With me or your new buddy Kurt?” I know he’s teasing. But it’s clear he didn’t like the attention I got from other men and that knowledge makes me giddy.

“I’m pretty sure I’d come back here with any man that asked me,” I joke back.

James’s expression changes from light to dark like a switch being flipped. He presses me against the side of the truck with his body and I can practically feel the jealousy raging through him. Staring deeply into my eyes, he growls, “That’s not going to work for me, Tara.”

My mouth dries up to the point I’m incapable of speech. Which really doesn’t matter because any thought that comes to mind, quickly slips out again. My brain is wiped clean as I become hyperaware of the chemistry between us.

James and I stare at each other with laser focus for what feels like an eternity. I’m waiting for him to kiss me again, but he doesn’t.

I crave combining our energies in a giant burst of searing hot fire, and I don’t want to wait anymore. I catapult myself at him, pressing my mouth against his with a hunger so fierce it scares me. I don’t know how long we kiss, but I know it’s not long enough. The rest of my life wouldn’t be long enough.

The lip-lock we shared in my hotel room the other night was wonderful, but it didn’t begin to touch the intensity of emotion of tonight’s encounter. My knees feel like rubber and my stomach is so heavy with longing it’s like a hundred-pound weight is pressing down on it.

James ends the kiss, but he doesn’t pull away. Instead, he