from a stranger had lost all power.
When the stuffed jalapeño appetizers came, Gracie took a big bite, then rolled her eyes in delight as she chewed and swallowed.
"Houston...we have lift-off," she said.
John was in delight, moving slowly toward love, and he knew it. But he also knew this intriguing woman had secrets, and she’d been hurt in ways he could not fathom. He didn't yet know the way to her heart, but he was willing to take all the paths he needed to get there.
And so the evening went. After the appetizers, came salads, then steaks grilled to perfection, and baked potatoes dripping with butter. And laughter. So much laughter.
Gracie Dunham had her mother's drawl and dry wit, and John was the best thing that had happened to her in so long she didn't even know how to say thank you to the Universe without crying. So, laughter buoyed her when she faltered, and the look in John's eyes steadied whatever fears she had of being too happy, too fast.
It was nearing 9:00 when they left the steakhouse arm in arm. John seated her in his SUV, and then got in and reached for her hand, lifted it to his lips, and kissed it.
"Cinderella, I do not want this night to end."
She sighed. "It's been the best time I've had in so many years. You are such fun to be with."
"For my age?" he asked.
She sighed. "I was just teasing you. I'm the one who's been on the shelf."
"Any time you want to talk about that, I will be a compassionate witness," he said, then started the car and headed back to her apartment.
Her silence worried him. If he had offended her, it was going to bother him all night.
When they reached her apartment, he got out and walked her up the stairs. She had the door open and was turning around when he reached for her hand.
"If I overstepped a boundary, I'm sorry. It's just that I really like you, Gracie, and what hurts you, hurts me."
She sighed. "Come inside with me for a few minutes," she said, and then took him by the hand and led him to the sofa.
"I didn't answer you because my life is full of secrets I don't want to talk about, but the last nine years of my life have been hard. And pity is the last thing I want or need."
"You do not evoke pity. All I see when I look at you is a quiet warrior. Am I wrong?"
Words caught in the back of Gracie's throat. His intuition had caught her unaware. She took a breath, then shook her head.
"No, you're not wrong."
"When we first met, I asked you if you were okay, and you said, 'not yet, but I will be.' Are you there yet?"
"I'm getting there," Gracie said.
He reached for her hand. "Holding onto pain just makes it worse."
Gracie shuddered. "I know."
"So, let it go. I won't betray your confidence if that's what you’re worried about."
"I wasn't trying to keep secrets about my life. I just didn't want to turn you off before you—"
"Well, that's unlikely, since I carried that angel you lost for days in the hopes that I'd see you again," John said. "And by admitting that, I've just bared myself to instant rejection."
"Then know that isn't going to happen. You cared enough to hang onto it and to look for me to give it back. That means everything to me. My mother gave it to me when I went away to college. I would have been devastated to lose it."
"Understood," John said. "So, you're still grieving her loss. It's understandable to—"
"No. I'm not. Not like you mean," Gracie said. "I lost my mother years before she died. Her death released the both of us."
"Then what?" John asked.
Gracie sighed. "It's an ugly story."
"I'm a big boy," John said.
She sighed, glanced at him, and then leaned back on the sofa and started talking.
"I'm the baby of four children. They are quite a bit older than me. Our world came undone when I was twenty, just out of college and only days away from leaving for Denver to a brand new job as an event planner for a big hotel. We were all home for Easter. My brother and sisters and I were visiting when Mama interrupted us. Said she had an announcement to make, and that she'd been diagnosed with dementia. She was scared, and my brother and two sisters sort of freaked and started talking about how