The Major's Family Mission by Elizabeth Rowan

Author:Elizabeth Rowan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-01-21T15:14:54+00:00

* * *

Sarah. Her name. Spoken out loud at last. If he said nothing else, Moira would take that one word as a victory. They had grown closer over the last week since their truce. Ben had taken their new arrangement to heart. He was trying to let her in. They talked of the men, of his work, but still, so little of their conversations were about him, about his past. It was as if by not speaking of it, he could erase its existence, its impact on his life. But it was impacting his life and hers and what they could be together. Sarah was the ghost between them no matter how hard Ben tried to banish her.

“It’s alright to say her name, Ben. It’s alright to talk of her, to remember her.” She knew all too well what that grief was like, of not knowing how to approach it, of wanting to ignore it. But ignoring it meant ignoring the people attached to it. Moira reached for his hand and interlaced her fingers through his.

“At first, my brother and I didn’t talk of our parents. Then, we realized we wanted to, we needed to. That it was right to talk of them. They didn’t need to disappear from our lives just because they were gone. Too many people made that mistake with us. After the funeral, people felt like it was inappropriate to mention them, like they were supposed to forget them. But that only made it worse.” She paused, giving her mind time to sort through those early days and herself a moment to adjust to Ben’s soft gaze on her. She was acutely aware he was listening intently to each word, searching for hope in them. She’d never been the source of hope to anyone before and it filled her with warmth, with gratitude, that he should seek out such assurance from her.

“Brandon and I had each other to talk to, to share memories with. You have the girls. I think they’d welcome stories of their mother. I would welcome them,” Moira said softly. “I am not in competition with her. I have told the girls I don’t mean to replace her. I simply mean to be myself.” It occurred to her that perhaps Ben needed to hear that as well, that she didn’t want to replace Sarah.

“I want you and me to be ‘us,’ to be ourselves, to have our life. I don’t want to be a copy of the life you had with Sarah.” Would he understand what she meant? “But I think Sarah can have a place in that life with us.” Was she making any sense?

Ben’s knuckles skimmed her cheek in a soft gesture. “Yes, but first, I want to tell you, I think you’re the bravest woman I’ve ever known.”

She offered him a slice of orange and a slip of a smile. “Then commend my bravery, and tell me about her.”

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.