Shattered Dreams Read Online Free PDF Page B

potatoes, corn on the
cob, clams, crab legs, and boiled shrimp are all laid out on a
beautiful white platter. Cheryl even made homemade cornbread,
another of Max’s favorites.  
    “ Emma, this is delicious,”
Max says, wiping the melted butter from his
hands.  
    “ She is a wonderful cook,
son,” Danny says, breaking a crab leg with his
hands.  
    “ Please, all I did was boil
water and throw everything into the pot,” I laugh, because it’s the
truth. “Your mom made the cornbread from scratch. She’s the real
cook.” 
    “ Mom, as you already know,
this is my favorite. Em, I’m gonna need you to start making these
once they leave.” 
    “ Um, Max, not gonna happen,”
I say. And we all laugh. “If you’re lucky, she’ll make some and
freeze it for you before they leave, tomorrow.” 
    “ Mom?” Max asks, looking at
her with a sad face. 
    “ I already did, Max, there
is enough to get you by for the next few weeks.” 
    Max looks over at me and smiles. He is such a
momma’s boy. That explains why he is such a great husband. Any man
who loves his mother will treat his wife with a great amount of
respect. Before marrying someone, you should watch how he treats
his mother. 
    “ Thank you,
Mom.” 
    “ Let me know when that’s
gone and I’ll overnight you some more.” 
    “ Thank you, and Em, you’re
off the hook this time.” He smiles. 
    We eat and nothing is mentioned about the
meeting. I don’t mention it, but I make eye contact with Cheryl
throughout dinner and I know she is also covering up her concern.
Once we have finished dinner, Cheryl and I clear the table and
start a pot of coffee. Maybe he’ll say something when we have
dessert.  
    Max and Danny sit at the table with James and
talk quietly. Danny holds James and rocks him side to side. Cheryl
and I dish out the strawberry cheesecake onto dessert plates and
pour the coffee into cups for everyone. Once we are all seated at
the table, the atmosphere changes. There is an odd feeling that
wasn’t there earlier.  
    “ What’s going on?” I ask.
Usually I wait for Max to start a conversation about the Army, but
today feels different. I look at Max, then at Danny and then at
Cheryl. I can tell Cheryl feels it, too. 
    “ Max?” Cheryl says, reaching
for her husband’s arm. He reaches out and takes her hand in
his.  
    I can’t look any longer. I close my eyes. My
nose begins to tingle, and I can’t be certain why. No one has said
anything, so why do I feel like crying? It’s too quiet, and it’s an
eerie feeling. I open my eyes and stare into my lap. I can’t look
at him, I fidget with the paper napkin I am holding. “You’re being
deployed sooner, aren’t you?” 
    I finally look around the table. His mother
looks fear stricken, but his dad is expressionless. I reluctantly
look over at Max and I already know. His face tells everything he
is feeling. My big strong soldier wears his heart on his sleeves
and his emotions on his face. Max never fears for himself but fears
for me instead. “You are, aren’t you?”  
    “ Yes.”  
    It’s the only thing I can hear. I know he is
talking, but all I hear are mumbled voices in the far distance. I
can’t tell who is talking and I just stare into space. My nose
tingles and I rub it to try to make it stop.  
    “ When?” I ask and I don’t
know if I interrupted them talking or not. No one says anything and
I already know it’s soon. 
    “ When, Max?” I finally look
over at him and he looks so sad. The tears fall onto my cheeks and
I can’t see. I stand and he takes my hand and guides me to him. I
sit on his lap and hug him. He wraps his large arms around me and I
cry. When I finally pull away from him, I cup my hands to his
face.  
    “ When do you
leave?” 
    “ Friday, we leave on
Friday.”  
    “ I thought you still had a
few more months?” 
    “ It’s an emergency
deployment. They need more troops over there sooner than they
expected.” 
    I