Free After Victory: A Searching for Glory Novel (A Second Chance Love Story) by Hunter J. Keane Page A

dressing rooms. “I promise to give you an honest opinion.”
    Ten minutes later, I paid for the blue dress. As Glory bought a pretty gold dress for her niece, I was shocked that I had actually enjoyed our time together. It had reminded me of how close we had once been.
    As we walked our cars, both of us seemed to be reluctant to say goodbye. Glory was the first to address the tension. “Look, I know this is probably really weird for you, considering our past. But is there any chance you want to get a coffee? I’d love to catch up with you.”
    “Are you sure?” I asked. “You’re the one with the baby.”
    “Just let me grab his car stroller. He’ll fall asleep the second I put him down.”
    There was a small café right next to the shop where we bought our dresses. Glory insisted on paying for our drinks and I figured since she was a multi-million, it was okay to let her. As we settled at a table near the window, Jack dozed in his stroller.
    “He’s a good baby,” I said, smiling as I looked at him. I could remember when Denton had been that small. I missed those days. “He looks just like John.”
    “He really does,” Glory agreed, looking at her son. “He has Johnny’s mellow personality, too. Thank goodness.”
    I decided to bluntly address the thing that both of us had been avoiding. “I don’t blame you for John breaking up with me.”
    Her eyes widened. “Oh?”
    “I’m sorry. That was out of nowhere, but I felt like I needed to say something. I know how people in this town talk and a lot of them think you stole him away from me. I know that’s not true. John was never mine. He was always yours.” I looked down at my latte. “You two were meant to be together.”
    “That’s really nice of you, Kate.” She studied me carefully, blowing gently on her cappuccino. “I’m not sure I deserve your kindness, but I do appreciate it.”
    I took a small sip, choosing my next words carefully. “I missed you when you left town. You were my only real friend and I never imagined that you would just take off like that. When you never reached out to me, it hurt.”
    “I know.” She sighed. “I can’t even make an excuse for what I did. It was wrong. I was hurting because of everything with Johnny and I wasn’t strong enough to deal with it. So I left. I figured no one would even miss me. I was stupid and I was a bad friend.”
    “You weren’t a bad friend. You were hurting and you were sad.” It had taken me a decade to realize that.
    “Can I tell you something I’ve never told anyone?” Her lower lip trembled slightly. I nodded, not sure what to expect. “I think I would have left anyway, even if all that hadn’t happen with Johnny.”
    “What?” My mouth dropped open. “Why?”
    She stared out the window a few seconds before answering. “Because up until then, my whole life had been about Johnny. I loved him so much, it consumed me. And it scared me. I didn’t want him to be the only thing in my life because I was sure he would leave me. I think part of me knew that I had to spend some time fixing myself before I could commit to him forever. Is that horrible?”
    When she looked at me, there were tears in her eyes. I knew that what she just had admitted to me was something that she had only just admitted to herself.
    “No, it’s not. You were eighteen. You were still figuring out life. If I had lived through what you did as a kid, I probably would’ve end up in jail or rehab. The fact that you came out of it and went on to be so successful is amazing. Maybe you screwed up the thing with John along the way, but you figured that out, too.” I never would have guessed that I would spend my day giving Gloria Star a pep talk.
    “I’m just glad I didn’t figure it out too late.” She reached over and rubbed Jack’s head. “I still worry that I don’t deserve any of this. I think part of me keeps waiting for someone to take it all away.”
    “I feel that way too sometimes, when I