Dateline: October 2001

“Celene, you’re too sweet, too naïve,” my best friend told me as I dropped a five-dollar bill into the lap of a man who was panhandling on the sidewalk. “One of these days, I won’t be around to protect you from yourself.”

“Why? Where are you going? Seems to me you’ve been around half my life, protecting me from myself.” Continue reading →

She assumed it would be a summer fling. But when Daryl gets serious about their future, Deena fears she’ll lose her independence.               

A widow for just a year, Deena’s finally rebuilding her life. She married Justin, a Navy sailor, and had Ian, when she was still a teenager,
accustomed to being the “good girl,” who acquiesced to everyone. She’s grown up and no longer willing to compromise her own desires. Would Daryl accept this new empowered Deena? Continue reading →