The punch in the face to Blicksen had landed him with a verbal reprimand, but nothing further. The new CO had written a small cock ‘n bull paragraph about stress and reassigning duties, and off Devin had headed to home base for a new assignment.

Ah, San Diego and its beautiful weather made up for a lot of long nights being stuck in snow and slush. If he became forlorn for the white stuff, he could drive to the mountains of Julian for fresh homemade apple pie, the local tourist specialty, or head up to Big Bear for snowboarding.

He exited his car and made his way to the back entrance of the grocery store. Lunch and H2O were pretty much the only items on his list, but it never hurt to walk the aisles. When he stepped inside, cool air bathed him and the scent of baked goods teased his nose.

Life was good!

Turning into an aisle, a woman smashed into him, covering his happy thoughts with… strawberry shortcake. Sticky, gooey, and messy stuff clung to his uniform.

"Oh, I'm soooo sorry!” Light green eyes held his.

He stared for a minute. It was she, the other woman from the picture. The incredible things this woman had done-raising money, donating to others-there was so much to admire. Her eyes had drawn him to the picture when he'd first seen it, and they mesmerized him now. “It's you!"

Her eyebrows crinkled. “I don't know what you mean. Do I know you?"

"Yes. No. I mean… I'm sorry about your sister.” Those words seemed to be verbal bullets that struck her body hard. She wobbled. Horror covered her face. Backing away from him, she dropped the rest of the cake to the ground.

There was only one way to go, the way she came. She disappeared into the store.

He didn't hesitate. Following the trail of shortcake and strawberry squish, it ended at the ladies bathroom. He knocked. No answer. Pushing the door open, he looked in. There was another door, and she'd used it.

Brenda Pente's sister had left the building.

What had she been thinking? Leaving the house for cake hadn't been a good reason. Not good at all! Anyone could have recognized her or said something and she would have freaked. She hadn't been ready. Why did I go?

Not more than an hour ago, the police had been here. Talking at her as if she were a toddler with a hearing issue.

Going to the freezer for the fiftieth time, she looked for something sweet to eat. Nothing there. Only frozen butter, ice cubes, and a box of baking soda. Nothing good was ever located there when she needed it most.

Closing the door, she leaned against the refrigerator. The pile of wrapping paper and presents mocked her. It was her sister's turn to come here for the holidays. They would go get a tree on Christmas Eve and decorate it.

Tears welled, spilling over. Her eyes slammed shut and she put her face on the metal. The cool surface eased the puffiness she could feel around her eyes. Pain eased back slowly.

An image popped in front of her eyes. That man.

Who was that guy? Did he know her sister? He wouldn't have just said something because he recognized the resemblance between Brenda and her, would he? He couldn't be that crude, could he?

Pushing back from the fridge, she didn't think so. The guy was in uniform. Unlikely he was a reporter. She was pretty sure she'd deck one of them if they'd startled her like that.

The guy… there was something. She shook her head. Maybe it was just the clothes. She always felt better, more comfortable, around members of the military. It was one of the reasons she lived in San Diego. Dad had been stationed here on Coronado for a while. He was a West Coast man through and through, and Mom was an East Coast preppy. They were no Ozzie and Harriet. Rather, observers would see their passion and designate them a Jolie & Pitt from Mr. & Mrs. Smith or the Robinson parents from Lost in Space.

Her whole life she'd wanted that kind of love and connection. Brenda wouldn't have that now. A knot formed in Kathryn Marie's throat. Tears that couldn't be restrained fell.

For a second time, she asked herself, should I have stayed instead of slipping out the back? That guy looked like he needed to speak with her. Did he know something?

Leaving the grocery before she had confronted the military man didn't give her any answers. That was one of the problems with splitting before you knew what the issue was. On the other hand, she was such a wreck she wasn't sure what she could and couldn't handle. Her brain felt hypersensitive. Like it could only deal with a few thoughts, and then it shut down completely and there was absolutely no reviving it and putting it back on track.

Sunburn gave her skin a similar reaction. Made it impossible to wear clothes. It was the only thing she could liken it to.

Did other people have these problems? Or, was she thinking randomly?

Was there a right way to grieve?

The tears stopped for now.

She shrugged. Second-guessing herself wasn't helpful. If she stayed on these thoughts, they'd continue to loop in her mind. Best thing she could do was let it all go. If she were meant to have answers, they would come. With the military guy, if they were meant to meet again, it would happen. She had to believe that.

Slipping out of her jeans and blouse, she pulled on her dad's old boxer shorts and her mom's sorority T-shirt. Navy SEAL on the bottom and a Tri-Delta on top, it was an interesting combination, no doubt. Of course, that's what Dad had been, Team ONE, and Mom was the looker and the sorority girl staying at the Hotel del Coronado on spring break. A chance meeting at McP's, and they'd fallen madly in love and had married by the end of the week.

Swallowing another rising knot in her throat, she avoided looking at the mass of pictures on the far side of the desk. Her parents had passed when their forty-foot boat had been caught in a storm. What a heart crushing blow that had been to her and her sister. Now, Brenda was gone. She was alone.

Knees buckled as she crumpled to the floor. Emotion grew like a tidal wave crashing over her, and tears flooded down. Sounds, guttural and harsh, poured from her mouth.

Pain. It was too much!

Death wasn't fair.

Oblivion dragged her into a blessed darkness.

Some time later, arms lifted her, picking her off the floor. She was disoriented, but warm. A feeling of safety swept through her system and she snuggled deeper against someone.

Daddy?

Whatever was happening, she refused to wake. Nothing was going to disrupt her first feelings of calm in a long, long time.

Eyes squeezed tighter, she relaxed more, drifting further into the dark. Sleep was a gift-oblivion was even better.

Devin sat on the lounge chair next to the bed watching her. A poinsettia was at his feet. He'd remembered his mom had liked them, so he'd bought one at the grocery store.

In person, she was prettier than the picture on her sister's credenza. But even then he'd felt a tangible pull toward her. He hadn't understood it then, any more than he did now. What were the odds that he'd meet her in person? If his mom were standing here, she'd say destiny had a hand in it. There were no accidents, only “mean to” moments. He missed his mom and dad.

Joining EOD had happened that way-mechanical skills combined with chance. He scratched his chin, thinking about those treasured early days with his dad. The times they had spent tinkering on all sorts of things. When his dad retired from the SEAL teams, Devin had been really young. Running every day, working out together, learning a multitude of skills from his dad had been a natural fit for them both. Until, his dad and mom died in a car crash.