Free Her Wedding Wish by Jillian Hart Page B

she were sitting with a stranger?
    “Jonas!” Mark Whitman, a fellow state trooper and second cousin through Gran’s side of the family, came up to the table. “Sorry to interrupt, Dani.”
    “Not at all. It’s good for Jonas to see you.”
    “Yeah? It’s good to see Jonas out and about. We’ve been missing you in the shop.”
    “We work together?” Jonas rubbed his temple with his free hand. Was it possible that he was remembering?
    “That’s right. You were my sergeant. You mostly had a desk job, but now and then, to fill in on vacation, you went out on patrol.” Mark hesitated, as if afraid to say too much.
    That was why Jonas had pulled over a speeder that fateful night over a year ago. The man had an outstanding warrant, had panicked and shot Jonas without warning. The shooter had left him there, terribly wounded. He’d driven away and had never been caught.
    Jonas stopped rubbing his temple and gave Mark a smile. He pulled his hand away from hers to shake his fellow trooper’s hand. “Sorry I don’t remember you.”
    “No worries. I just thought I’d come over and let you know we’re praying for you and can’t wait for you to get back to your desk.”
    “Thanks, Mark.” Jonas looked so pale. “I can’t wait, too.”
    “Dani.” Mark gave a nod and went on back to his table far down the aisle.
    Heart thumping, she watched Jonas’s face carefully. He was rubbing his temple again. Did that mean there was a glimmer of a memory? Something familiar just out of reach? Hope nearly lifted her right off the seat.
    “Did he used to be a friend?”
    “Yes.” There it was: hope. A sign from heaven that her Jonas was coming back to her. She simply had to keep believing. Keep trusting that God would bring them together again. Gratitude filled her and she found it easy to smile. “You and Mark often went to the gym to work out together.”
    Marni returned to deliver their drinks and platter of mozzarella sticks, hot and crispy.
    “I used to like to go to the gym?” His lopsided grin was a little straighter, a little more like his old one. “Physical therapy is not fun. I don’t like to go now. Maybe that’ll change.”
    “It already is.” She felt it all the way to the bottom of her soul.
     
    Danielle navigated the minivan along the country road that swung along the wide banks of the Gallatin River. Dust kicked up behind them like a pleasant haze and leaves from the overarching trees rustled like music. She spotted the park’s entrance in a maple grove and pulled into the nearly empty gravel lot. Only a few utility vehicles were parked, awaiting their owners, who were probably serious hikers, judging by the late evening hour.
    “This is someplace important.” Jonas studied the trail leading into the national forest. “I brought you here on our first date?”
    “You did.” Danielle turned off the engine and grabbed the keys. The faint scent of dust and pollen hovered in the air as she closed the windows. “Do you remember why?”
    When he shook his head, she didn’t take that as a bad sign. There was a lot for him to remember, so much water beneath the bridge of their lives. “Are you feeling up to a short walk?”
    “Pretty lady, I would walk anywhere with you.”
    The sunshine on her face felt sweeter as she circled around the minivan to retrieve her husband’s walker. Her husband. Nothing felt better than being able to be here, with him, at his side. Joy lifted her up as if she were floating two inches above the ground.
    He waited, standing with one hand on the side of the van for support, while she unfolded his walker. “I’m not charming you now.”
    As he’d done on their first date. “What do you mean? I’m perfectly charmed by you.” She set the walker on the ground. “There was a lot I didn’t tell you about that night.”
    “Why didn’t you?” His handsome face tightened as he took the walker’s grips. How he must hate that thing. She couldn’t help laying her hand