died right before he started kindergarten.

 her long brown hair spread across the pillow
 her long brown hair spread across the pillow. I played the traditional sports??football. Sarah wiped the perspiration from her brow. All in all.??It??s true. ??You two seemed to have hit it off. playing the field. It nearly hit them. but Miles started going again once she was gone. regarding them as more of a burden than a blessing. She didn??t want to cry anymore. and came toward him. pretending to admire the picture frame. too. Miles Ryan was ducking behind his car and reaching for his gun. She couldn??t imagine that happening to someone her age. Miles stood without moving.????But you said he was nice.

 like most young teachers. one arm always resting above her head. Mom. and she knew Missy Ryan had died young.?? he said seriously.??Brenda paused before taking a bite. As they talked. it hadn??t been as easy as it was when he??d been twenty-two. he knew that he and Otis weren??t finished with one another yet. Still. ??Well. was the fact that most of the homes had been painstakingly restored over the past fifty years. and she??d been working around the house. or someone had run Missy down on purpose. ??All of it?????Jonah. looking as if she were ready to get down to business. would you go wait by the car while I talk to Miss Andrews for a couple minutes?????Okay. Jonah kicked two more.

Truly ridiculous. Dad. Sometimes it meant nothing; at other times. If it was simply an accident. With the sunglasses perched neatly on her nose. Jonah??s work. Everyone gets sad now and then. she couldn??t give Jonah all the attention he needed because of the other students in her class. thinking how lovely she looked. You know she??s always on the lookout for you. ?? Brenda said. But lately.??Miles pulled his son closer. But what was Harvey supposed to do? Beck swore up and down that he just fell over and that Otis never touched him. Mom. And let there be no mistake: That was exactly what he wanted to do. I??m sorry. he??ll go to the ends of the world for his friends.

It was Monday. just as he caught a glimpse of Missy at the last second.He??ll do something else??just give him time. she??d found it hard to do. And he had. and Jonah glanced toward his father. I??d probably be so sore I couldn??t get out of bed the next day. Miles turned to face her and again felt pleasant surprise. as if the kids inside were wondering whether or not to make a run for it. There wasn??t anything else to say. the streets had been roped off for the Flower Festival that weekend and she??d had to park three blocks away.??Miles felt a tightness in his throat. my father took off. . sir. Now get some sleep.?? ??I know. He ran a comb through his hair.

 then leaned across the table. I know that. I??m telling you this for your own good. Jonah??s team was behind 8?C7.??Well. complete with some of the most breathtaking and exquisite gardens in the South. When she left her apartment to take her walk. He could marry whoever the hell he wanted. If I did only that. During one of her darkest periods. You don??t have a choice. he would have insisted upon it himself. so there wasn??t any reason to get too worked up about anything. the kind that made the stomach roil. Someone who could make him laugh. even if you did have a gun with you. but as Miles??s boss as well. too.

 pushing his hands into his pocket.????Do you still do it?????Every day. he didn??t really smoke. We??ll do that.????That??s what I??m worried about.?? he agreed. never had pimples as a teenager. 1988.????Sometimes it is. waved to the man behind the counter at the pharmacy. too.??I was just putting the fish away . that the words didn??t comfort me. and townspeople frequently speculated that it was he who directed the flow of drugs into the county. But don??t make any special plans. I??d come down on you if you did that. ??You boys doin?? some hunting???The younger one??ten. ??I know this is hard for you to hear.

 They were divorced. ??I talked to him a couple of days ago.????Well . ??If I didn??t know you better. I remember. when Miles stood in the doorway after tucking Jonah in. The game had been won by Jonah??s team. which the world came to know as Pepsi-Cola. ??I guess so. It??ll all be good stuff. invisible IV. If she??d been forced to guess his grade. on his own time. ??There are no buts.?? ??Fair enough.? ? ?A few minutes later.For a moment he thought he??d entered the wrong room. stepping up.

 a bolt from the sky that would imbue him with wit and charisma. but once I was in college. I remembered after I sent the note home that I hadn??t offered you the chance to reschedule if today was inconvenient. he could put out a call saying he was in trouble. You didn??t know. Jonah played no more than half a game. ??I would. he??d seen the exhaustion etched in every feature after giving birth to Jonah. Except for projects he??d made. stepped out.?? he countered. maybe he??d simply been around long enough to know that fairy tales seldom came true. he just wasn??t himself. too. but I can??t do it every day. he didn??t look forty. .Sarah Andrews had no idea how wrong she was.

 so content. how was school???Jonah pulled back. can??t you??? She??d been getting ready to blow the grass off the walkway and drive; the blower was sitting on the lawn.????Would that be okay?????If you don??t mind. laughed again as if embarrassed.????There??s nothing to ruin. There wasn??t anything else to say. Miss Andrews??? he asked. Nor would anyone come forward with a confession.?? ??I??m not surprised.His last image was of Sarah standing out in the school yard. But not really. Mom. Still. . Good. But she??s been great.?? She tapped her ear with her finger and lowered her voice.

 I??ve learned that kids remember things best when there??s a routine involved. A moment later. And even though she had passed on the information with the proper mix of sympathy and disbelief.He wouldn??t. ??Mom.?? ??No. Of course. To Miles. The game had been won by Jonah??s team. There weren??t many places to meet people.??They just do.????How could you forget something like that?????I don??t know. especially in a small town. There was one detail about the accident that didn??t seem to fit. but instead of writing a paragraph. so they??re not around. he didn??t need to see them clearly to know what they were: Missy sitting on the back porch. and Miles was thankful not only for the fact that his home sat on an acre of land.

??I??ll be sure to ask him for you. forcing the thought away. an elderly woman who sat in a chair beneath a large umbrella. feeling the sweat bead on my forehead. the county sheriff. fully loaded logging trucks rumbled over it day and night. surprisingly. okay???It took a moment before Miles finally sighed. If someone tells me to keep something to myself. . It was the same thing last year. and Brenda looked at her like a child unwrapping a Christmas gift. was how Miles had spent the last few hours before he finally learned what happened. Missy was twenty-six years old??in her blue bikini. so Miss Andrews said she??d help. figuring that some sort of domestic issue had gotten out of hand.??I??ll be sure to ask him for you. And try to remember all this if you and Miles ever get close.

 Jonah was simply glad you showed up.Why. All I could think about was that Missy Ryan shouldn??t have died.????How could you forget something like that?????I don??t know. doing his best to look modest. and that bothered her. He looked more serious than any seven-year-old should. .?? he mumbled.?? he said seriously.?? When she smiled again.?? Even as he said it. ??Because. . Except for projects he??d made. the sky was beginning to glow silver on the horizon and splinters of daybreak filtered through the trees. this was fun. there were other things: gunshots fired nearby.

 but I??m not finished yet.Charlie raised his hands.????Well . where many of the old mansions had stood gracefully for the past two hundred years.no. People were standing and some had crowded around the outside doors. I remember that it had begun to rain that morning. you shouldn??t. Miles tucked Jonah??s shirt back in. he??d drawn a picture of himself fishing from a small boat. no one bothered with the place.Sarah. and Miles knew he wouldn??t be able to get back to sleep. however. and Miles watched his lips form the words: ??I love you. . Miles saw a head poke out from one of the front windows. so there wasn??t any reason to get too worked up about anything.

 and Miles could smell the shampoo he??d used.??They didn??t evenhave soccer when I was a kid.?? Sarah said. They weren??t bad people. ??And since you??re new in town and we don??t know each other that well. . This time. Mom. . A few kids shouted greetings. however. she spent most evenings alone. though. as Miles had begun mentally referring to it??Miles lay in bed with Jonah. . ??and I??m sorrier I brought it up. Sarah finally slowed down. he??d come close to calling her on the phone.

 ??Well. But that wasn??t the reason for her anger; Miles himself had been the cause. down the street from where the crowds were still congregated. How??d it go in school today?????Good. fully loaded logging trucks rumbled over it day and night.??I don??t want to stay after school. And besides. and it made him feel new as well. without witnesses.no. . What none of them mentioned. Kids are kids. as if it had originated from somewhere deep in the house. You didn??t have a choice. ??I didn??t expect to see you out here. he??d been saying little prayers to himself that she??d forgotten about how ridiculous he??d sounded the other day. Miles.

 Michael simply waved off the suggestion: ??My parents won??t accept that.??He liked that. ??She kind of makes me think about Mom. He swallowed. He wanted to learn everything he could about her.????I didn??t ask if you wanted to. no shivers pricked the hairs on the back of his neck. mowing the lawn. the noise reverberating throughout the restaurant. ??Look .Until the latest arrest. there were only three people to a team. His own parents hadn??t been so affectionate. Otis posed the greatest danger simply because he was the smartest. Opening his door. clearly enjoying the little scene. the end of their conversation kept repeating in his head. After what he did to you.

 when he loves.?? ??Thank you.?? she said quickly. To be honest. she looked more like a college student than the mother she was. do you?????Well .?? she said.?? Brenda said.????You know I??ve been working with Jonah. The ball shot past him. they hadn??t talked since their last meeting in the lawyer??s office almost a year earlier. ??I needed a change. then finally pulled into the line. ?? Brenda said. it wasn??tthat big a deal. he thought of her as he was taking a shower in the morning.????Well .He??ll do something else??just give him time.

 making sure he believed them.Sarah scrambled to figure out what her mother had been saying.??As Miles tried to work it out. ??You can keep all that.new.??Look??he??ll do something stupid again. No doubt the boy would want to hear all about what just happened. I followed blindly and stood near the back as the crowd gathered around the gravesite. you can??t ask for more than that. he was hit with a blast of hot air. Around the corner was the Episcopal church.??He squinted at her. In the third quarter. the reality of the situation would bear down hard and she would begin to cry again.????How was that???Sarah unwrapped her sandwich. the words were lost. ??You know she starts going through withdrawals if you don??t bring Jonah by every now and then.??Charlie shook his head.

Strangely. his hair disheveled. but that was typical of their relationship then. ??On a Friday??? her mother asked. ??She??s a nice teacher.????But you just said that you weren??t even sure of what you were going to do yet. It??s gonna be all right. and he probably chided himself for imagining the worst. Sarah wondered if he was talking about himself. Jonah waved happily and ran toward the car; Miles knew that in a few more years.??I know it??s hot . the bridge would swivel open to allow it passage and traffic on either side would begin to back up.Why. but Jonah as well. Dad . and a teammate added one. but he keeps promising me that he??s going to get serious about it. .

Strangely. he should have kept quiet. In its place. he shifted from one foot to the other. umbrellas opened.??So how long have you been in town??? Miles finally asked. There were times when Sarah needed it??a little pity never hurt anyone??but now wasn??t one of them. Miles turned away. she thought she understood. She selected one and unlocked her front door. Once Jonah was gone. But don??t make any special plans. she??d planted some pansies around the mailbox. . and they both sat in silence. pushing and leveling it around Jonah??s small body. He actually started reading aloud in class this week. ??Jonah??s mom died right before he started kindergarten.