Free Harbor Lights by Sherryl Woods

mother. For weeks before she’d died, he’d worried and wondered if Georgia was being faithful to him. He knew what it was like over there, knew how hard it was to face the danger alone. He’d had not one shred of evidence to support his suspicions, but each time she’d mentioned another soldier’s name in passing, his jealousy had deepened. If his worst fears had been confirmed, he wasn’t sure how he would have handled it. It wouldn’t have been like this, that’s for sure. His mother’s behavior years ago had hardened his heart toward cheating, no matter the excuses behind it.
    “I can’t believe you’d just turn the other cheek, Dad,” he said.
    “Your mother never cheated,” Mick repeated emphatically. “She might have thought about it, might even have wanted me to think she would, but she never did. I believe that with every fiber of my being.” He looked Kevin in theeye. “And even if she had, it’s in the past now. We’re moving on, finding our way back to each other. It’s what we both want, and if you can’t embrace that, then just stay out of our way.”
    “So you don’t care what I—what any of us, for that matter—think about this reconciliation?”
    “We care,” Mick said. “But it’s not going to be the deciding factor. You’re adults now, not children. Your opinions count, certainly, but you’re old enough to understand that love is what matters in this life, and we shouldn’t let anything stand in the way of that.”
    “You let work get in the way,” Kevin reminded him.
    “And I was a damn fool,” Mick replied without hesitation. “That’s a lesson I’m passing on to you here and now. If you’re lucky enough to love someone, make that your top priority.”
    His father’s belated transformation was hard to buy, but there was at least some evidence to support it. “Is that why you’ve cut back on work, taken to volunteering?”
    “Yes.”
    Kevin tried to grapple with this turnaround. “And you don’t feel like you’re sacrificing your identity?”
    “I have plenty of testaments to my identity as an architect all over this country,” Mick said. “The identity that matters is how well I’ve done as a husband and father. That one’s still evolving.”
    Kevin looked into his father’s eyes and saw a serenity there that he couldn’t recall ever seeing before. He was at peace with the choices he was making lately. Kevin would give anything to find some measure of peace these days. He didn’t think he was going to find it in work, despite what everyone else seemed to be pushing him toward. As for love, what had that ever gotten him but a broken heart?
     
    By midafternoon Shanna couldn’t stand it another minute. Beyond asking where she wanted things, Kevin hadn’t said two words to her all morning and only a half a dozen since lunchtime. The silence was making her a little crazy.
    She poured two cups of coffee, frothed milk and added it to hers, then walked over to where Kevin was sorting the books for the nonfiction section according to category.
    “Time for a break,” she announced, holding out the coffee.
    He accepted it with obvious reluctance and eyed her warily. “What’s up?”
    “That’s what I want to know,” she said. “You’ve hardly said a thing all day. Is something wrong? Is everything okay with your son?”
    “Davy’s over at my sister’s playing with his cousins. Abby has a nanny who watches them during the summer.”
    “Okay,” she said. “Then, if you’re not worried about him, what’s on your mind?”
    He sat back, leaning against an overstuffed armchair she’d placed in the middle of the room. There were similar chairs scattered throughout. Most had been thrift shop finds, but all had been fitted with bright new slipcovers. Kevin’s gaze finally met hers.
    “Why does something have to be wrong?” he inquired testily. “Don’t you ever have a day when you simply don’t have much to say?”
    “Sure,” she said