“No, I don’t,” he said decidedly.
“Then I think you would be making a mistake by breaking up with her,” I said honestly. “She’s a grown woman, and she’s aware of the life you’ve chosen. You said it yourself; she’s interested in your military career, which means she’ll understand what she’s getting into. Maybe you should let her decide what she wants to do.”
“But—”
“You don’t have to marry her anytime soon,” I pointed out. “Take things easy and see where it goes. If what you have with her is real, it will survive everything, including time and distance.”
Luis smiled at me and took a sip of his beer.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” he said. “It’s just that she’s really done a number on you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Kristen,” Luis said. “You’ve really fallen for her, haven’t you?”
I paused. “She’s helped me move on,” I nodded.
“Which she could have only done if you’re feelings for her were strong enough,” he pointed out.
I sighed. “I don’t know if the feeling’s mutual, though,” I admitted.
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know… Lately, I’ve been getting strange vibes from her,” I said. “As though she’s nervous about something. Sometimes I feel as though she’s sacred about us.”
“Scared?”
“Yeah… I mean, I don’t think I’ve been putting pressure on her.”
Luis laughed. “What was the tipping point?”
“Well… Awhile back I mentioned wanting to meet her parents,” I said. “And she clammed up after that.”
“Why?”
“She has a bad relationship with her parents,” I said. “She’s told me all about her father, and he definitely seems like an asshole so I get that she might not want me to meet him. But both
her parents?”
“Well, if she has a bad relationship with both of them, surely you can understand why she might not want you to meet them,” he said. “I mean, you want to present yourself in the best possible light to the people you care about. She’s probably just embarrassed.”
“I know she is,” I said. “But it’s not just her reluctance about that. Even when she talks about her past and her family and her adolescence, I feel as though she’s holding something back. At first, I thought she was hiding something from me, but then I realized it might not be that at all. Maybe she just doesn’t feel comfortable enough with me to share everything.”
“Well then, you need to find out what it is,” Luis said. “But in my opinion, this woman is staying home to look after your kid…it sounds like she’s just as into you as you are into her.”
“You think?” I asked, clinging to that hope.
“I think,” Luis smiled. “But what the hell do I know? I haven’t even met this girl. I suggest you talk to her about it if it’s bothering you.”
“I don’t want to spook her.”
He looked at me with patience. “She’s spending time with your kid, Jake,” he said. “You don’t want the kid to get too attached if Kristen’s not going to be in your life for the long haul.”
“I know,” I sighed.
“You know you might just be reading too much into this,” he pointed out. “Or maybe I’m not seeing something that’s right in front of my face.”