run over, but thankfully, she had an interview to do.
“Let’s do it.” I smiled.
As I watched her turn and walk away, back to Colonel Hunter, the realization hit me that by this time next week, I wouldn’t be seeing her smile, or hearing her voice. And even though I’d failed at protecting her by sending the raw file, then I wouldn’t have the chance to protect her from anything.
It felt…wrong. And I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do about that.
Chapter 20
Josie
“A soulmate is not found, darling, it is recognized.”
~ Josephine Grace Clarke
“Colonel Hunter—”
“I told you young lady, it’s Grandpa J.”
“Right,” I smiled, wondering if we’d edit that out or not. “You and Marie were childhood sweethearts.”
“That’s right, young lady.”
When he spoke about his late wife, it was like he was lit up from the inside out. Like she was a light that shined in him.
“And you were married for over sixty years.”
“Sixty-seven.” He nodded.
“And what would you say was the secret of a love that lasted a lifetime?”
“Well, now, I don’t know if there was any secret. But if there was, then it was Marie. My girl just, well, she was an angel on earth. She was my angel.” He lifted his hand and grasped dog tags and a cross that hung around his neck. He’d explained to me that some of her ashes were in the cross, so she’d always be where she belonged, right next to his heart. I about swooned right off the bench. “And she still is.”
“Was it love at first sight?”
“Well, now, it was for me. I don’t think she’d say the same,” he chuckled. “I grew on her, but from the first second I saw her I knew that she was the one. Her smile just lit up a room. Everyone that met her was better for it. People just gravitated toward her, but she was clueless about her effect on everyone. She thought I was crazy when I would point out how much people loved her, how much I loved her.
“Well, I think that the best anyone can do is marry your favorite person, the person that you miss if you’re away from them for even five minutes. The person you want to go to the DMV, and the doctor, and the grocery store with. She was the person I wanted to go to sleep with every night and wake up to every morning and do everything in between with. She’s my favorite person. Always will be.”
“That’s…beautiful.” I felt my eyes starting to water as he spoke about his late wife. There was so much love… in every word, every expression, every gesture.
“As far as secrets, the only thing that comes to mind is slow dance Sundays.”
“Slow dance Sundays?” I repeated, wiping the moisture from under my eyes.
“That’s right, young lady. Right after Marie and I met when we were thirteen, before she even realized she liked me, there was a wedding and reception at our church. All the adults were out on the dance floor, but her daddy wouldn’t let her dance because he believed that dancing was inappropriate behavior for a good Christian girl. He was a very strict man.
“I saw how sad she was as she looked out on the dance floor. So I brought her a piece of cake and told her not to worry because when we got married, every Sunday, we’d slow dance. That got a smile outta her.” A wide grin spread on Colonel Hunter’s face as he was obviously being transported in time. “Five years later, we were married on a Saturday. The next day was our first slow dance Sunday. And there hasn’t been a Sunday that’s gone by that I don’t dance with my sweetheart. When we were together, we’d mix it up and choose different songs to dance to. But whenever we were apart, we’d always play our song.
“Over the years, there were times that life got busy with kids and work, having guests staying with us, illness, and all the distractions that life brought. But no matter what we had going on, every Sunday before the clock struck midnight, I slow danced with my girl. It didn’t matter if she was cross with me, or tired, or busy. All that melted away when I got her in my arms.
“When I was in the war, we’d still dance every Sunday. Me, wherever I was in the world, and her in our kitchen. See now, we didn’t have any of that