“You don’t remember me do you?” Her words were soft, and he barely heard them in the racket
of forks being dropped and plates slamming onto tables.
Her words stopped him in place. Should he know her? He turned and searched her face. She
was pretty, with large coffee-colored eyes, long lashes, a tiny upturned nose, and cupid bow
pink lips that she gnawed absently. Her long dark blond hair was captured in some sort of hair
thingy high on her head leaving long wisps to caress her face and neck. He saw a small beauty
mark on her shoulder next to the expanse of her neck. He had a flash of pressing a kiss to that
mark, but it was gone before he could grasp it and figure out what it meant. Drawing in a deep
breath, he let it out and winced. “I’m sorry, I feel like I should, but I can’t place you.”
“It’s all right. We were both pretty wasted that night.” She threw her hand out. “Sarah Nolan.”
“Nice to meet you, Sarah,” he shook her hand lightly. “Asher, but you know that.”
“Yeah. I do.” She dropped his hand. Glancing at the name patch sewn into his uniform she
muttered, “Finchly. I never knew your last name.” She chewed her lip as she stood next to him
saying nothing.
“So, where do I know you?” he prompted.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I sort of zoned out there for a minute. We met a couple of years ago at
Shimmy. You and a bunch of your friends came in to celebrate passing some sort of test?”
In a flash, it all came back. Finch and the others had finished their BUD/s training and in
celebration, had taken over a local bar. Images of Sarah wearing a short blue dress with
spaghetti straps and strappy, high heels played through his mind. They had danced, drank and
enjoyed each other’s company until his memories became foggy. He did have a faint
recollection of waking up in an empty bed in a downtown motel room.
“Sarah, oh yeah, I remember now.” He pulled her into a careful half hug. “It’s good to see you.”
“You too. So, I was wondering if we could go somewhere and maybe talk? I’ve been kind of
looking for you for a while, but I didn’t know your last name, and you’ve not been back to
Shimmy’s when I was there.”
Finch shook his head. “I’m sorry. I’ve been out of town for a while, and it’s just not a good night.
Maybe some other time? Give me your number, and I’ll call you sometime.”
She jotted down her number and handed it to him. He took it and stuffed it into his pocket before
dismissing her. The truth was, Finch wasn’t looking to hook up with anyone. He rarely dated, if
ever at all. He knew he was a good looking guy and could probably have his choice of women,
but his personal life was on a back burner for now. Instead, he concentrated on the military
career he had been dreaming of since he was ten years old.
He was brought out of his musing by his number being called. Stepping forward to grab his
food, Finch turned and saw Sarah standing there, wringing her hands and biting her lip
anxiously. He gave her a gentle smile and stepped to the side. “It was nice to see you again,
Sarah. Stay in touch, yeah?”
“Asher, wait, I need to tell you something.”
“I’m sorry, Sarah, but I’m tired right now. Can we catch up another time?” He started to walk off
when her next sentence stopped him in his tracks. It only took four words to change his world in
an instant.
“You have a daughter.”
Very nice (oh yeah cover).
I look forward to reading this.
think my wife will love this cover
I think the cover could use something extra