The Webs We Weave

by Victory Jo

She hadn’t known what to expect when she’d first arrived in Germany,

but Cathie was determined to make the best of it. She and Jordan dated for three years before deciding to take the plunge, so it only made sense that she would join him at his current duty station. His service to the armed forces involved spending a lot of time apart, but that little piece of paper from the courthouse meant that she could move with him on his overseas tours, at least for most of them. Deployments would still take him away for months at a time, but it thrilled her to have him the rest of the time.

Following
the wedding, Cathie joined her husband in Germany, where he was already a year
into his three-year contract. Within the first month, Jordan left for a mission
that lasted almost 10 months. She would get used to not knowing where he was,
but it never made it any easier. During that first deployment, she kept herself
busy setting up house on post, getting to know the local area, and recruiting
new clientele as an independent hairstylist. She enjoyed the freedom that
working out of her home gave her.

Cathie
looked forward to their email correspondence and little dates via video chat
when his schedule allowed. Occasionally, he would even surprise her with a
letter via snail mail to let her know he was thinking about her. Those little
things kept them close when the miles would not. 

When
he returned home, she ran to him, leaping into his waiting arms, almost
toppling them both over. Jordan felt the warm tears that covered her cheeks as
she clung to his neck. He crushed her to him, desperate to hold on to her, like
the pillar he needed. 

The
next several months were picturesque as they fell into a comfortable routine.
Cathie would schedule her clients during his work hours so that their evenings
were free to spend together. Each morning he would make breakfast, and they would
discuss the day’s plans. She would prepare his lunch and kiss him out the door
before cleaning up breakfast dishes. She would have dinner ready for him in the
evening where they would share interesting happenings from the day. He would
clean up after dinner, leaving them the rest of the evening to watch movies, go
for a walk, play games (often rotating between board and video), and anything
else their hearts (or bodies) desired.

Both
being homebodies by nature, this lifestyle suited them, but like everything
else, this honeymoon phase was doomed to end. Things change. People change. It
occurred so slowly that no one could point to the exact moment it
happened. 

There
was little notice before Jordan’s next deployment. When he told her, a boulder
formed in her gut as tears tried to push their way out. Cathie swallowed the
lump in her throat, forced a smile, and just hugged him. She had signed up for
this, and she needed to remain strong. The last thing her husband should worry
about while heading into dangers unknown was his wife breaking down. 

This
deployment was harder than the last as Cathie didn’t have the same distractions
to keep her busy as the previous one. She stopped and talked with neighbors or
others she’d met if she saw them out, but she’d made no friends to hang out
with. She also found herself with less to say during her conversations with
Jordan, not wanting to burden him with the storms in her mind.

Jordan
noticed his wife’s distance but didn’t press, figuring she was sorting things
out – being a military spouse was a difficult thing. They each attributed the
dimming of passion to stresses the other was facing. Jordan started spending
more time browsing social media during free moments if Cathie was unavailable.
One day, he received a message from an old high school friend, Cindy.
Circumstances had caused them to lose touch. She came across his profile and
figured she’d see what he’d been up to these days. 

It
surprised Cindy to learn Jordan joined the military and took a wife. She, too,
had married and was living in their hometown. Catching up with her brought an
ache to his heart that he didn’t know was there. He missed home, but it would
be several years before he could return, if he chose to set down roots
there. 

As
time passed, conversations increased until they were talking almost daily (as
his movements allowed). It was innocent enough. Both were married and happy
with their chosen partners. They talked about their dreams, their goals, what
was going on in their life, and reminisced about the old days. 

One
night, as he was lying in bed, chatting on messenger with Cindy while her
husband was at work, she asked him if he remembered that night they’d gotten
lost on some old back roads while heading home from a concert. He did. That had
turned out very interesting. She inquired what he would do if they were
together. He didn’t know.

Cathie
and Jordan continued to talk throughout his deployment, but each was holding
back, not wanting to add stress to the other. Cathie began confiding in a
friend back home. She was lonely and needed someone to talk to, someone who
understood her. Kevin provided that. He was a sympathetic shoulder she could
lean on. It came to be, he was the first person she wanted to talk to when she
received exciting news or had a hard day. He was the person she would share her
mind with, and eventually, her heart.

Escalated
messages had now become the normal for Jordan, and to be frank, he looked
forward to them. They broke up the monotony and provided a source for stress
relief. But now he’d be going home in a week. He would never touch another
woman. Cathie was his meant to be, but she’d be pissed if she ever saw the
messages. He should cut things off with Cindy, but could he come clean to his
wife?

Cathie
found solace in Kevin’s texts. They offered a peace where she found none. Was
she cut out to be a military wife? Could she pick up and move every few years
to unknown places where she didn’t know anyone? Would she remain strong enough
to support her husband despite not always knowing where he was? Had she made a
terrible mistake in believing she could do this?

Jordan
loved Cathie. Cathie loved Jordan. At the end of his deployment, she was the
one he came home to, and she tearfully welcomed him. Their entanglement was
electric. A brief adjustment period later, they picked up their routine, each
seeking a sense of normalcy. Each gave barely a thought to a message received
during dinner here or a text during the game there. If asked, it was a friend
checking in.

Salacious
and flirty messages do a tangled web weave when the partners aren’t the
partners bound by a precious metal ring.

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As a navy wife and mom of 3, Victory Jo’s life can get pretty hectic, but when her muse calls, she is always ready to answer. Preferring a spiral notebook and pen to a laptop, she has always believed that if her writing could touch just one person’s life, then it is all worth it.
You can find her at https://victoryjo.com, or follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

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Be sure to come back tomorrow for another guest author!

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