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“I remember,” she said quietly

“We have a thousand memories like that ”

“Yes ”

“I’ve tried to fall out of love with you, Mere I couldn’t do it, but I thought sure as hell you had ”

“I didn’t fall out of love with you, either I justfell Can we start over?”

“Hell, no I don’t want to start over I like the middle ”

Meredith laughed at that She didn’t want to go back and be young again, either, not with all the uncertainties and angst She just wanted to feel young again And she wanted to change “I’ll be naked more I promise ”

“And I’ll h ht now? I’ll warm up the bed ”

“Almost ” She leaned back into the sun-baked wooden bench

For the next half hour, they talked like they used to, about anything and everything Jeff told her he’d almost finished his novel and Meredith told him part of hermemories that suddenly made sense, times when Mom’s behavior had seemed inexplicable All that food, he said, and the stuff she said

They talked about the girls and how they were doing in school and what the suain

“Have you figured out what you want?” Jeff finally said “Besides me, that is?”

“I’ift shop Maybe let Daisy run Belye Nochi Or even sell it ” She was surprised by her oords She didn’t re that before, but suddenly it rad ”

“You , but—”

“It will always be Leningrad to me I want to see the Sue We never really went on a honeymoon”