I had resolved one thing: I loved my estranged husband, and we would always be bound in our hearts. But we could no longer be bound in our beds. While handsome, and I had resolved one thing: I loved my estranged husband, and we would always be bound in our hearts. But we could no longer be bound in our beds. While handsome, and loving, and funny, and smart, Pete shared something with Sir Francis and his Hel Fire mates: His hat would always be off to Venus.

Pete was a wal I could beat myself against forever. We made much better friends than spouses, and henceforth, I would keep us that way.

I turned onto Main at the bottom of the hil.

I'd also considered Andrew Ryan.

Ryan the coleague. Ryan the cop. Ryan the uncle.

Daniele was not a paramour. She was a niece. That was good.

I considered Ryan the man.

The man who wanted to suck my toes.

That was very good.

Because of the wound Pete had inflicted, I'd been hovering on the edge of a relationship with Ryan, wanting to get close but keeping my distance, like a moth drawn to a flame. Attracted but afraid.

Did I need a man in my life?

No.

Did I want one?

Yes.

What were the words of the song? I'd rather be sorry for something I did, than for something that I didn't do.

I'd decided to give Ryan a try and see how it went.

I had one more stop in Bryson City. A stop I couldn't wait to make.

I parked outside a redbrick building at the corner of Slope and the Bryson Walk. When I entered the glass door, a woman in surgical scrubs looked up and smiled.

'Is he ready?'

'Very. Have a seat.'

She disappeared, and I settled into a plastic chair in the waiting area.

Five minutes later she led Boyd out. His chest was taped, and one foreleg had been shaved. Seeing me, he gave a little hop, then limped over and placed his head on my lap.

'Is he in pain?' I asked the vet.

'Only when he laughs.'

Boyd roled his eyes upward at me, and the purple tongue dropped out.

'How are you doing, big guy?' I nuzzled his ears and touched my forehead to his.

Boyd sighed.

I straightened and looked at him.

'Are you ready to go home?'

He yipped and his eyebrows danced.

'Let's do it.'

I could hear a laugh in his bark.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

As always, I owe many thanks to many people:

To Ira J. Stimson, PE., and Captain John Galagher (retired), for input on aircraft design and accident investigation. To Hughes Cicoine, C.F.E.I., for advice on fire and explosion investigation. Your patience was amazing.