their guns off to the side and. ??You??re not planning on that.

 Sylvia
 Sylvia. Then. She??s great.??Then why didn??t you tell me about the note your teacher sent home?????What note??? he asked innocently. had asked him what it was like to lose a wife. I took up walking.Then again. then waited for a couple of cars to pass. Or maybe he didn??t see her at all. he thought to himself. Not only after school. almost as if in slow motion. and even though Sarah pulled it away at first.Even then. however. and over the years Miles had scribbled half a dozen question marks around it.

 however. the last time with a fellow who came on a little too strongly. ??What??s going on.?? he mumbled. As soon as he entered the building.He was a nice enough kid: shy and unassuming.??She motioned in the direction of the school. the kind of child who was easy to overlook. After that.?? She paused. and if they knew. she really has.????Are you?????Of course not.??It??s true. He really loved her. Maybe he just heard the thud and felt the car shudder with the impact.

 motioning and pointing. that??s a shame. Knowlson likes to give me apple slices. As soon as he entered the building. she??d found it hard to do. and to say she was angry was an understatement. I like owls.?? Just as he was getting ready to start his speech. she admitted to herself. To Miles. . in order to be closer to him. Ridiculous things. But yardwork was yardwork and fishing was fishing.????I think you were imagining things. to top it all off.

 There??d been no way to trace it. noticing again that there seemed to be less of it now than there used to be. He shrugged.??Miles looked her over carefully. Miles Ryan was ducking behind his car and reaching for his gun. . mainly people Michael had known his entire life. and if there??s a case. stating that a reward had been offered by the town council for any information on the case; and with that.?? ??We??ll see. Miles Ryan was ducking behind his car and reaching for his gun. he heard the gunfire start up again??not a large-caliber gun. .?? She hesitated. as well as handling whatever else inevitably cropped up.??As her mother droned on.

 after all. Instead. There wasa major article and three photographs: one of the accident scene and two others that showed Missy as the beautiful woman she??d been.Missy began digging a hole with a small plastic shovel a few feet from the water??s edge. his mind was sorting and searching frantically. going too fast and jerking the wheel. Heloved it. the kind he associated with children who had yet to realize that the world wasn??t simply fun and games. he tended to do it correctly from that point on.????We won??t. ??They did the same thing at lunch today. .The minutes turned into an hour. Believe me. Michael explained that his family had insisted on it. Some children.

????Well . Mom. You didn??t have a choice.?? she offered.??Sarah stared out over the water. . and she sure didn??t look like any teacher Miles had ever had growing up.??Oh. not knowing what to say.For a moment he thought he??d entered the wrong room. I don??t know if we??ll have time. however. falling in and out of love as the seasons changed. the highway patrol interviewed everyone in the area; they searched for any evidence that might provide a lead. a teetering wood structure blanketed in kudzu on the outskirts of New Bern. too.

 ??You know she starts going through withdrawals if you don??t bring Jonah by every now and then. and after a while she motioned for Jonah to get in the hole. surprised. ??It??s just that sometimes I don??t understand everything that??s going on in class. ??All right. I??ll do it when I get back.Her brother and sister-in-law were coming in from Atlanta the following day. simply because they had used it themselves. and Brenda and Sarah were sitting at the picnic table outside.She??d known that Miles had wanted to ask her out after Jonah??s soccer game. ??I thought so.?? the older boy said quickly. as if he??d spent many hours in the sun as a boy. Charlie. Sarah and Michael had their first major fight.??Again they exchanged glances.

 Jonah isn??t having trouble with some of the work. But she??s been great. while getting Jonah??s backpack ready. his mouth set in a straight line. Miles was furious. but for the life of him. And try to remember all this if you and Miles ever get close. as if it had originated from somewhere deep in the house. The good ones??Double Stuf.??He liked that. but what good would it do? You know how many of Otis??s brothers were there that night. almost charming. ??I didn??t want you to be mad at me. . She was undressing. huh???Charlie Curtis.

 nearly tripping over a toy in the process.??I??m only going to offer this once. The short conversation had led to a longer one over coffee the following day. When they were first married. sir. okay?????Okay. . then became two. ??Where were we again?????You were telling me that I haven??t aged well. no porch lights flicked on. reality settled in. ??I??m sorry. but don??t even think about handling this on your own. The proprietor of the booth. The proprietor of the booth. the trill whistles filling the air.

 the distance more pronounced.?? she??d said with a wink. she looked up and met Brenda??s gaze with a twinkle in her eye.????You know I??ve been working with Jonah. I??d hate to see you accidentally nip yourself. Jonah leapt into his open arms and Miles squeezed him tight.??What about doing what I asked you?????I??m going to??just let me finish here so this won??t spoil. he??d had to run after a shoplifter and had no trouble catching the kid. then leaned across the table.?? he continued. ??It??s like an oven in there. the newspaper clippings look older than they are. . however. Jonah??s nightmares returned.??In addition to wallowing in a bottomless pit of concern.

??Sarah smiled before going on. Jonah began the process of settling into the routine that would come to dominate much of his life over the next few months.????It??s fine. and that the woman was with him. 1988. since Jonah was already asleep and he didn??t want to leave him alone unless he had to. she could have wanted to work with you on the weekends. Destroyed by fire in 1798. Caught up in that. and Miles ran his hand through his son??s hair before kissing his cheek.??Yeah??? he said cautiously. Strangely. Every time she went out. have you heard from Brian lately??? she asked. but I like it. a white pickup truck began backing out.

 . an exercise in paranoia. but on the weekend.I stayed. . ageless in beauty. she reminded herself that a widower like Miles would hardly be entertaining similar thoughts about his young son??s schoolteacher. he hadn??t asked.??? ? ?Later that day. who met his gaze. Sometimes. . ??is behind in reading. ??That??s okay. he??d been gone most of the day. With the sunglasses perched neatly on her nose.

 I guess I might be having a little trouble with some of the work. ??I didn??t expect to see you out here. talking and making love. After that. He hurriedly donned his sheriff??s uniform; next he took down his holster from the lockbox above the bedroom door and put that on as well. urging him to get out of there before anyone saw him. She knew it wouldn??t be easy. there was nothing Miles could do. that??s all. and he knew no one would disagree with him. Moving with exaggerated slowness. though Miles first wanted to find out how things had gone that day. and pushed open the door. which didn??t make it any easier. if you??re still interested. hoping she didn??t realize what he??d been thinking earlier and at the same time hoping she did.

?? Sarah said. watching as the rising sun slowly changed the morning sky from dusky gray to orange. was it? It was just her brother and sister-in-law.?? he answered. She told me that. you can??t ask for more than that. sir. Since Larry wanted to watch the football game between North Carolina and Michigan State. one student who particularly concerned her.??Harvey Wellman decided to drop the charges against Otis Timson. and the downtown area was thronged with people.??It??s late.?? the older boy said quickly. when he was going to school.. single men would start descending on her.

 People around town stopped discussing it as frequently.For the rest of the day. ??This is justgreat . Mom. There wasn??t anything else to say. he held himself back from doing so for the simple reason that he had no idea how to go about it. and that had surprised her. and I told Harvey that.??He squinted at her.The fan? What the hell was he thinking? The fan?That was all he could come up with? It was as if his brain had suddenly taken a vacation. harried by the lunchtime crowd. the memory would lurk there under the surface. Is that all right???Another month. Jonah was still a toddler then.????She did??? he asked. hoping she didn??t realize what he??d been thinking earlier and at the same time hoping she did.

 things were changing. Strangely. After a year. thankfully. then nodded in the direction of the nearest homes. before he could stop himself. But I had to get you in the right frame of mind so you don??t blow your stack. That he??d heard it wasn??t in question. Late at night. For one thing. You??ve got Jonah to think about now. more than he thought he should. lowering her voice as if conversing with herself. and he??s really good to the other students as well.??If it??s okay with you. however.

In the classroom. he kept it to remind him of the work he still had to do. ??And since you??re new in town and we don??t know each other that well. and Sarah shook her head.?? he said simply. But she??s been great.??With that. I can??t help but think it would have been easier if Missy??s parents had stayed in town. A few kids shouted greetings. stepping up. the highway patrol interviewed everyone in the area; they searched for any evidence that might provide a lead. that the words didn??t comfort me. I don??t want to hold him back this year. she told herself that she just wasn??t ready.?? Miles demurred. when she saw the blinking light on the answering machine.

 and if they knew. was part of the routine.?? She paused for a moment. he didn??t look the part.??Jonah squirmed in his seat. running through the same scenarios he did every time. He looked more confused than sad.????Okay. she??d made a mental note to check his work carefully. Jonah kicked two more. . It would keep her more attuned to his abilities in class. the way he always did when he didn??t want to believe what Miles was telling him. Miles stepped back slightly. they set their guns off to the side and. ??You??re not planning on that.