One in a Million (Wish 5)

7 - Purgatory

"Hey Murph." Tom straddled the bar stool.

"How goes it? Flying solo?"

He smiled because Murph's face looked serious. "Don't worry. He'll treat her right."

He had been the recipient of Ed Calhoun's stares enough to recognize a worried father. Tom had deserved them because he hurt Ed's daughter. Paco was a better man than him. He wouldn't hurt Katie as long as he stood up to Mama C. Every time they said goodbye, Mama would lecture Paco. "Francisco, find a nice chica cubana to give you bebés."

Mama C would not want red headed grandchildren no matter how cute they were bound to be. Paco and Katie were a beautiful couple and would make beautiful babies. Maybe Tom was jumping the gun since they had only been dating a month, but Paco was head over heels. Watching them created an ache for something more in Tom's chest. His problem was he didn't know what he wanted.

Occasionally, he played the what if game. What if he saw her again? What if he asked her to give up her life to be with him? What if they had done the right thing when they ended it? What if she was in love and engaged? His mother would tell him if she were getting married.

He stared into his beer and jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Alyssa, Katie's best friend. She wore jeans and a tight t-shirt, but no apron around her narrow waist.

"Not working tonight?"

"Nah, Murph gave me the night off. Where was he taking her?"

Tom shrugged. He knew Paco wanted to take Katie to his bed. That was the only reason Tom cleared out of their apartment for a few hours. He'd rather be home watching reruns of The Simpsons than sitting alone at The Barracks.

"Maybe we should, you know, double date with those two." She smiled and moved in closer. Her body brushed along his arm as she lifted herself onto the bar stool.

"Not a good idea."

"Why's that?" She didn't bother to mask her disappointment.

"You deserve someone better. I have a reputation."

According to Paco, he feared commitment. His issues were complex. He might not have stepped foot in Weston in six years, but someday he might. He wasn't a complete snob, but a girl who had been doing nothing but serving drinks since high school would be lost in Bea's ballroom.

Maybe it was an excuse, because he made a gigantic leap from a date to dancing in a gown. Although she was pretty, her blond hair and blue eyes were the last thing he needed. The one and only time he was with a blonde after Tori, he ended up with a black eye from her elbow. She raged when he nuzzled into her neck and accidentally called her Tori. Luckily, he and Paco were visiting Mama C for spring break. It had faded by the time he went back to campus. The academy would have disciplined him for fighting. He sure as hell couldn't say a girl gave him the shiner.

"Reputations don't scare me." She put her hand on his arm.

He gave her a thin smile. "I'd rather just be friends."

She shrugged. "I think we'd make a good couple, but I'm not going to throw myself at you. This place is filled with soldiers every night."

He wouldn't argue with her. He sipped his beer and looked up at the big screen TV. Atlanta was playing Pittsburgh. He preferred football over baseball. He thought of Sloane and wondered if she was still into baseball.

From time to time, he found himself homesick. He took out his phone and read Jon's last email. He wrote about how the children had very little. The relief organization he worked for often engineered the means so water could flow into the villages. With water, the girls didn't have to travel all day to and from the water source. That freedom allowed them to attend school. Tom never traveled away from the base when he was in the Middle East, but he knew enough to feel very lucky.