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remembered wondering if Cherri was ill when they’d been introduced. Rachel had assured her she wasn’t, and the woman ate like she wouldn’t see food for another week.
    Sure enough, Gabby glimpsed a huge plate of nachos and a beer in front of her.
    Cherri slid out of the booth and greeted Rachel with a smile and hug, said hello to Gabby, and then turned to the man in the booth.
    “This is Jerrod. Jerrod, this is my friend, Rachel, and her friend, Gabby, the realtor.”
    Jerrod stood up and gave her a firm shake, and she couldn’t help but compare him to Lucas, just like she did with every man she met. While Lucas stood about five-foot-ten and was muscular and wide, Jerrod was over six foot and slim. Lucas’s hands had always been rough, while Jerrod’s felt baby soft. Brown slacks covered long legs, and his button-down shirt matched his ocean-blue eyes. Inky black hair framed his face, and he gave her a friendly smile.
    “It’s nice to meet you,” he said. “Jerrod Stern. I was told you’re the go-to girl for a guy buying a house in this area.”
    She couldn’t help but smile at his charming grin as he shook her hand.
    “Please, have a seat.” He indicated toward the booth.
    Rachel motioned for her to get into the booth, and then slid in next to her, situating Gabby next to Jerrod.
    She felt his gaze on her as she ordered a glass of wine.
    “So, were you born in Portland?” he asked.
    She looked over at him and shook her head. “No. I’ve lived here just under a year.”
    “How do you like it?”
    She shrugged; she’d like it a whole lot more if she still had her husband around. “The rain is hard to get used to, but it’s beautiful here.”
    He nodded. “I love all the trees.”
    She studied his smooth, clean-shaven skin while he talked, which only reminded her of Lucas’s constant stubble and the way it tickled when they kissed, and how he loved rubbing his face on her stomach while she screamed at him to stop, barely able to breathe from the laughter.
    As Jerrod discussed his love for the outdoors, it brought back memories of Lucas and her hiking in the mountains of North Carolina. They hadn’t done any hiking in Oregon after they’d relocated, as things had just spiraled out of control.
    After his discharge and their relocation from North Carolina, she’d had to go to school to get her real estate license to practice in Oregon. She hadn’t minded, secretly happy to have Lucas out of harm’s way and underfoot. After six tours in the Middle East and a couple of special missions to South America, she’d been excited he was finally getting a rest, and she’d looked forward to their future together. They had always talked of wanting children, yet, in two years’ time, they hadn’t been successful. She always chalked it up to nature telling them the timing was off. With him home, it felt like everything fell into place to try for some kids.
    Yet, her visions of marital bliss had been shot to hell by Lucas’s behavior. He’d rarely talked about what he had seen and done on his tours in the Middle East, and every now and then, he’d wake with nightmares or have a few weeks where he had a hard time adjusting to civilian life. The most prominent example she could remember took her to when they’d gone shopping at Walmart on a Saturday afternoon. Lucas had become very agitated in the crowd, breaking out into a sweat and eventually having to wait in the car to get some space. Yet, eventually he would be able to adjust to civilian life and everything would return to normal.
    Things became different when he came home from Guatemala, and she could tell almost immediately. Her good-natured, fun-loving husband had turned into a brooding, closed-off man, and it hurt. The adjustment into civilian mode never happened for him after Guatemala.
    Rachel took over the conversation, gushing about the hiking, especially at Mount St. Helen’s, the volcano that erupted in 2008. “Now, that’s gorgeous over