MORE THAN A SOLDIER
by
Irene Onorato
Genre: Inspirational Romance
Pub
Date: 6/6/17
There’s more than one way to be a
hero . . .
Former Special Forces soldier Hank
Fleming is living a safe, quiet life in upstate New York, but there
are days he isn’t sure he’s going to make it. The sole survivor
of a devastating grenade attack in Afghanistan, he is still scarred,
physically and emotionally. He hangs on to his faith and tries to
keep moving forward, waiting for the day that something—or
someone—can make him feel whole again.
Cindy Giordano is searching too—for
her biological family and a fresh start. When her journey to find her
brother, Edward, leads to Hank’s front door, she is instantly drawn
to Hank . . . and instantly wary. With her ex-fiancé’s betrayal
still fresh in her mind, friendship is about all she can muster.
When shadows from Cindy’s past
threaten, Hank’s protective instincts shift into high gear, and he
realizes everyone has their own battles to fight. But the road to
healing would be much sweeter with the right person by his side . . .
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Cindy
Giordano hurried across the parking lot, threw open the door to
Wallis
and Jameson Architectural Designs, and stepped inside. A glance at
the
wall clock brought a sigh of relief. Even with traffic nearly gridlocked,
she’d
managed to arrive at work a few minutes early.
The
receptionist didn’t return her smile.
“Good
morning, Chloe. I thought I’d be late for sure. A tractor trailer
was
overturned on Parkview and—”
The
usually cheerful and perky Chloe sat chewing her bottom lip, and
worry
lines creased the area between her brows. She strangled a No. 2
pencil
with a nervous twisting motion as she rose to her feet.
“Is
something wrong?”
“Ricky
said to send you to his office as soon as you got here.”
Next
to Chloe’s desk, a corridor passed through cubicle city to the far
wall
where the passageway split into a T. The table that held the coffee
urn,
stacks of Styrofoam cups, and fixings stood strangely silent. A man
peeked
over a white partition in her direction but turtled his head back
into
concealment when their gazes met.
“What’s
going on? Why is it so quiet back there?”
Chloe’s
pencil snapped in half with a pop. She flinched. “You’d
better
go see Ricky.”
“Okay,
I’ll do that now.”
Rick
Jameson’s door stood slightly ajar. Cindy gave a light rap with her
knuckle
and pushed it open more. “You wanted to see me?”
“Yes,
please come in, close the door, and have a seat.” He motioned to
a
leather armchair.
Cindy
sat with hands folded atop her purse. “What’s up, Ricky? Why
the
hangdog look, and why’s everyone so quiet this morning? It’s like a
tomb
out there in the cubes.”
The
boss ran a hand over his salt and pepper hair. “There’s no decent
way
to segue into this, so I’ll just come out with it. You’re a good kid, and
I
like you. But, I’ve got to cut back on staff, and I’m going to have to let
you
go. Sorry, kiddo.”
“Have
I done something wrong?”
“This
has nothing to do with your performance. I couldn’t be more
pleased.
We’re in a bit of a slump and not making enough money right now.
We
decided to lay off the person with the least seniority. Unfortunately,
that
happens to be you. Let me know if you need a reference for your next
job.”
He slid an envelope across the table.
Cindy
picked it up. “What’s this?”
“It’s
your final paycheck and a little something extra to let you know
how
sorry I am.”
She
tucked the envelope into her purse, stood and extended an arm
across
the desk.
Sadness
filled her boss’s eyes as he cupped her hand between his.
“Thanks
for giving me a job, Ricky. It’s been nice working for you.
You’re
a good man.”
His
lips lifted into a frail smile. “Right now, I don’t feel like
such
a good guy.”
“Well,
you are.” Cindy went to the door, opened it and looked back before
stepping through. “Take care.”
Irene Onorato was born and raised in
Bronx, New York. Her father, a first-generation American whose
parents were born in Italy, was an Army veteran who had served with
the 178th combat engineers during WWII. He told numerous stories of
battles, hardships, tragedies and triumphs. The glimpses he gave into
the hearts of many American warriors would later become the
inspiration for much of Irene’s writings.
In 1972, a few months after graduating
high school, Irene met James Onorato, a soldier who had just returned
from Vietnam. After dating two weeks, they married, raised three
children, and are still happily married today.
Irene and James, both radiation
protection technicians, retired from the nuclear power industry in
2014 and now reside in Louisiana. Readers can visit Irene’s website
at ireneonorato.com, and find her on Facebook.
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