bed with him, Curtis had made the decision to hold off on sex until he knew she was capable of embracing it and him.
Abstaining was a hell of a lot harder than it sounded. Thankfully, Lorrie never asked why his showers were a little longer than necessary. And he didn’t tell her.
“Are you gonna open it?”
Curtis glanced at the envelope in his hand. He knew what it was going to say. The same thing Gerald had been preaching to him about in every letter he’d received for the past six months. According to his older brother, it was time for him to do what was right, time for him to enlist.
Kissing Lorrie’s temple, Curtis closed his eyes. He didn’t necessarily want to go into the Army, or any branch of the military, for that matter. He didn’t want to leave Lorrie, wasn’t sure how he would survive without seeing her every day. But part of him knew that it would be for the best. He could sign up, go away, give her some time to grow up on her own, to enjoy still being a kid. Their marriage would still be intact, but it wouldn’t be looming over her at ever turn.
Lorrie took the envelope from his hand and opened the flap, pulling out the thin sheet of paper and unfolding it before passing it over.
“I’ll let you read it,” she whispered, kissing his cheek before getting up and wandering into the kitchen.
With a heavy sigh, Curtis took the letter and peered down at the page.
Curtis,
I figure you’re tired of hearing from me by now, but I’m not going to let that deter me. I talked to Momma the other day, and she told me that you and Lorrie are doing okay. I could tell by her voice that she’s worried about the two of you, so I asked her why. Maybe it’s none of my business, but I’m making it my business because you’re my kid brother. I’m allowed to.
Curtis smiled. Leave it to Gerald to call him a kid.
I’ve mentioned it a hundred times, and I’m going to mention it again. You should enlist in the Army. Not only because you owe it to your country, but also because you owe it to yourself and to Lorrie. I understand the reason you married her—and I’m not saying it wasn’t because you love her. Momma says that you do, and I believe her—but you have to keep in mind that she’s still young. She just turned sixteen, right? She’s still a kid, and she deserves to grow up before she’s saddled with the responsibility of being a rancher’s wife.
Curtis didn’t appreciate his brother’s high and mighty attitude, but he couldn’t disagree. Even though he wanted to.
I’m going to give you a little advice. Don’t wait for the draft. Don’t wait to find out if you’re going to be forced to serve for your country. That’s a guaranteed two years, and more than likely you’ll be in infantry. If you enlist, the chances of you seeing combat are significantly less. There are plenty of positions that you can sign up for. Doesn’t mean you’ll stay in the States, but at least you won’t necessarily be in the infantry. Unless, of course, this is what you want.
What I’m trying to tell you, Curtis, is that you can give Lorrie time to grow up. If your love is as strong as you believe it is, it’ll survive these years apart. It’ll be good for you. Good for her. Please think about it.
~G
It was impossible for Curtis not to consider taking his brother’s advice. He and Lorrie had only been married for a little over a year. Fifteen months in a lifetime was nothing, and yet it already seemed as though they’d set themselves up for failure. Curtis knew Lorrie hadn’t been ready for marriage when they’d said I do, but he appreciated her love for him and the fact that she would do whatever it took to make him happy.
Setting the letter on his leg, Curtis leaned his head back and closed his eyes. And for the first time since the day he’d spoken to her on his mother’s front porch, he knew that putting some space between them was the only way that this was going to work.
Which meant he had
Abstaining was a hell of a lot harder than it sounded. Thankfully, Lorrie never asked why his showers were a little longer than necessary. And he didn’t tell her.
“Are you gonna open it?”
Curtis glanced at the envelope in his hand. He knew what it was going to say. The same thing Gerald had been preaching to him about in every letter he’d received for the past six months. According to his older brother, it was time for him to do what was right, time for him to enlist.
Kissing Lorrie’s temple, Curtis closed his eyes. He didn’t necessarily want to go into the Army, or any branch of the military, for that matter. He didn’t want to leave Lorrie, wasn’t sure how he would survive without seeing her every day. But part of him knew that it would be for the best. He could sign up, go away, give her some time to grow up on her own, to enjoy still being a kid. Their marriage would still be intact, but it wouldn’t be looming over her at ever turn.
Lorrie took the envelope from his hand and opened the flap, pulling out the thin sheet of paper and unfolding it before passing it over.
“I’ll let you read it,” she whispered, kissing his cheek before getting up and wandering into the kitchen.
With a heavy sigh, Curtis took the letter and peered down at the page.
Curtis,
I figure you’re tired of hearing from me by now, but I’m not going to let that deter me. I talked to Momma the other day, and she told me that you and Lorrie are doing okay. I could tell by her voice that she’s worried about the two of you, so I asked her why. Maybe it’s none of my business, but I’m making it my business because you’re my kid brother. I’m allowed to.
Curtis smiled. Leave it to Gerald to call him a kid.
I’ve mentioned it a hundred times, and I’m going to mention it again. You should enlist in the Army. Not only because you owe it to your country, but also because you owe it to yourself and to Lorrie. I understand the reason you married her—and I’m not saying it wasn’t because you love her. Momma says that you do, and I believe her—but you have to keep in mind that she’s still young. She just turned sixteen, right? She’s still a kid, and she deserves to grow up before she’s saddled with the responsibility of being a rancher’s wife.
Curtis didn’t appreciate his brother’s high and mighty attitude, but he couldn’t disagree. Even though he wanted to.
I’m going to give you a little advice. Don’t wait for the draft. Don’t wait to find out if you’re going to be forced to serve for your country. That’s a guaranteed two years, and more than likely you’ll be in infantry. If you enlist, the chances of you seeing combat are significantly less. There are plenty of positions that you can sign up for. Doesn’t mean you’ll stay in the States, but at least you won’t necessarily be in the infantry. Unless, of course, this is what you want.
What I’m trying to tell you, Curtis, is that you can give Lorrie time to grow up. If your love is as strong as you believe it is, it’ll survive these years apart. It’ll be good for you. Good for her. Please think about it.
~G
It was impossible for Curtis not to consider taking his brother’s advice. He and Lorrie had only been married for a little over a year. Fifteen months in a lifetime was nothing, and yet it already seemed as though they’d set themselves up for failure. Curtis knew Lorrie hadn’t been ready for marriage when they’d said I do, but he appreciated her love for him and the fact that she would do whatever it took to make him happy.
Setting the letter on his leg, Curtis leaned his head back and closed his eyes. And for the first time since the day he’d spoken to her on his mother’s front porch, he knew that putting some space between them was the only way that this was going to work.
Which meant he had
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