“I made a big, huge, colossal mistake a year ago. I was the lucky one of at least three different women. I didn’t have Ricky’s baby, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t just as taken in by him as the other two girls,” Mia said.

“Is he back in town and wanting to see you again?” Stevie asked.

“No,” Mia said, and shook her head, “and if he was, I might be tempted to thump on him a little bit. But…it’s hard to explain…” she stammered. “I probably shouldn’t talk to you about this. Promise you won’t tell Mama and Daddy. I just need a sounding board, and you’re here, and—”

“And it’s easier to talk to a stranger than to your folks about whatever this is, right?” Stevie asked.

“Yes, only I don’t feel like you’re really a stranger. You kind of fit in with the family, and I bet you had some of the same problems I did when you were my age. Were you a bit of a misfit, what with being almost six feet tall, and I bet you liked animals more than people most of the time, right?” Mia set her coffee on the table and opened the package of cookies. “I need chocolate.”

“I didn’t make friends well in high school or in college,” Stevie admitted. “I wish I would have had one of those BFF girls in my life to talk to, but I didn’t, so I hit the books hard, and tried to forget a certain young man who broke up with me and broke my heart.”

“Was it with Uncle Cody?” Mia asked.

“Yes, it was, but you were telling me your story.” Stevie urged her on with a smile.

“I’m over Ricky,” Mia said, “but I don’t trust myself. He paid attention to me and told me I was beautiful, and even talked me into a tattoo. I learned later that three of us in this county alone have the same tat, like he was marking his harem. There’s no telling how many more there will be before he’s done.”

“That’s his problem, not yours,” Stevie said. “Let me see the tat.”

Mia shifted her position and pulled up her shirt to show a rose on the small of her back. “Justine has one just like it, and a girl over in Bonham. They both have babies with him.”

“As long as you think about Ricky and consider that tattoo as his mark, he has power over you. You can’t change him, but you can change the way you view that beautiful rose. Start to think of it as a warning to never let a guy sweet-talk you into doing something you know in your heart is wrong again,” Stevie advised her.