“You called him Daddy Pawpaw in your emails.”

I chuckle. “I did?”

She nods and, thankfully, smiles.

“That man is Gavin,” I tell her in a serious voice, and she slaps her hand over her mouth.

“No way! You mean the guy whose arms are covered in tattoos and who has a perpetual frown on his face? I can’t believe it.”

“It’s true. You know the others too. But when I”—I shift in my seat because that’s one more thing I haven’t told her about—“had to take retirement, Connor approached me. Kings Security is an awesome place for a guy like me. I decided to join him as a partner and invested in the company.”

“So you own Kings Security?”

“A part of it.”

“Then why isn’t it called Kings and Spencers?” She raises an eyebrow, biting her smile, but her chin trembles nevertheless.

I chuckle. “I didn’t want to ruin the perfect name.”

A snicker finally escapes her lips. “It is perfect, and it probably suits what you guys do there. But you still had a few more years of service left. Why did you retire early?”

I take a deep breath and look away from her. “A mission failed. Everyone except me died, but I was seriously injured. When I went to see their families, there were young wives with kids, houses with white picket fences and green lawns. Everything was waiting, but my friends were never going to return home.”

I don’t tell her that those seven days of travel were hell. I hadn’t felt that helpless in such a long time. The whip of life had hit me once again, reminding me I was someone destined to be alone.

Mom was gone.

My grandparents were gone.

My friends were gone.

I can’t help the burning fear for Autumn’s safety.

“I couldn’t take it. I felt I was somehow responsible for some of those tears. I didn’t do enough to protect my friends.”

“Lukas!” she gasps.

“I know I shouldn’t think that way, but it was too much to bear. Plus my injury made me of no use to the Navy.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were going through so much?” Her cheeks turn red, and her eyes shine with unshed tears.

“Do you remember the time we watched that movie together?”

She’s quiet for a second, as if confused by the change of our discussion, and then she slowly asks, “That was the day?”

I nod. “You’ve been with me for all the important days of my life, Autumn. You were there.”

She’s quiet for a while and then asks, “So you agree it’s the best movie ever made?”

And my mind goes back to the day when she sent me an email about it.

From: autumnthefallqueen

To: lukasspencer

What is your favorite movie?

Mine is A Walk to Remember.