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“Yourson, just to prove the point

With Mitch gone, Julia only had her own one to live with her mom and continue the life she had known forever

A hter A military wife A military

But she couldn’t do it anymore She wanted a family Friends who had more in co She wanted more than duty and loneliness so sharp it sliced at her She had to try and find a better hich hy she’d cos

What she really wished, if she were completely honest with herself, was that Jesse Filmore would be here Last she had heard he was in the hospital in San Diego, which was close enough that he ht head home if he still had family in the area She’d settle for any kind of anchor that would pull his

This was her new life—a fresh start, and she wanted desperately to have Jesse in it

She was being foolish She had enough on her plate dealing with her in-laws The very last thing she needed to do was cloud up her head with romantic illusions…or delusions Particularly about her dead husband’s best friend

But if she closed her eyes, she could still see Jesse’s dark eyes burning bright through the shadon

She pulled the envelope frones and Ron’s last Christainst the numbers on the houses She turned at the corner at Wilson and Hemlock, walked down half a block until she found 12 Hemlock Street, a two-story brick house that was triple the size of the small army house she and Ben had called home in Germany for the past two years

She swiped at the sweat that beaded up on her forehead Oh, God, why didn’t I call? What if Agnes changed her mind?

She turned up the beautiful slate path toward the house Her heart clogged her throat and with every heartbeat she saw spots in the corners of her eyes

The last thing she needed was to faint on the Adams’ doorstep She tried to focus on the concrete reality: the flowering vines clinging to the red brick, the overgrown garden filled with jade plants and gorgeous lupine that were nearly choked out eeds

Losing a son must put you off laork for a while

She clapped a hand over her le that was nearly a sob She was colued She stopped at the door—a wooden one, simple and solid with a smallat the top