The avocado-colored sinks, toilets, and draperies hinted that it had been 50 years since Mickey last remodeled the home. The pale-yellow kitchen cabinets reminded me of Boyle’s west Texas interrogation room.

I carried the empty box to the garage, using caution not to trip on the blue shag carpet’s long piles. I added it to the massive pile of flattened cardboard and gazed into the front yard. Mickey’s landscaping would be a highlight by anyone’s standards.

The home may have been in desperate need of updates but the thought of making them excited me. Deciding the colors to paint the walls, the type of flooring we preferred, and choosing cabinets together would convert Mickey’s house into our home.

I traipsed through the lush lawn—barefoot—and retrieved a palm frond that had fallen. When I returned to the garage, Val was tossing a flattened box on top of the others.

“That’s it,” she announced with a clap of her hands.

“The last one?”

She chuckled. “It was full of shoes.”

“I own four pair, total.”

“You’re a guy. Girls need options.”

“Apparently.”

“Can you believe it’s December?” she asked. “It’s eighty-something degrees.”

“I know.” I gazed at the clear blue sky. “It’s perfect.”

“I think I’m really going to like it here.”

“I think I am, too.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked. “We’ve never discussed it.”

“I’m going to buy a fishing boat.”

She belted out a laugh. I put my hands on my hips and glared back at her.

When she caught her breath, she gave me a look. “You’re serious?”

“I am.”

“What do you know about fishing?”

“Absolutely nothing. That’s what’s attractive about the entire concept. It’ll give me something to focus on. I figured I’d do some studying, take a few chartered tours, and find out what people expect when they pay a guide to take them fishing. Then, I’ll start my own fishing tours.”

“It should be relaxing.”

“Relaxing and rewarding.”

“No more military operations? That desire’s gone?” she asked. “For good?”

“I’m done saving people for a while,” I responded. “It’s time I focus on saving myself.”

“Just for a while?”

“A long while.” I put my arm around her. “What are you going to do with your time?”

“I haven’t decided. I thought I’d like to open a practice where I focus on veterans and their needs. I don’t know. I need some time to think. I may not want to be exposed to that mindset for a while. For now, I feel like I need to get my head screwed on straight before I can fix anyone else’s.”

“I can be the boat captain, and you can be the first mate. Until you figure something else out.”

She chuckled. “I might take you up on that.”

We’d driven sixteen hours in one day, slept no more than a few hours, and unpacked the following day. Although it was only mid-afternoon, we wandered into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed for just a minute.

I fixed my eyes on the ceiling. Thoughts of Shephard and Martin faded. Moonlit walks along the beach, fishing expeditions to locations unknown, and learning to cook fresh seafood took occupancy in the vacant space.

While my mind drifted away, the salt water breeze crept through the open sliding glass doors, bringing a hint of Val’s perfume with it. I rolled to my side. Wearing a slight smile, she, too, gazed blankly at the ceiling.

I rested my cheek against my open palm. “What are you thinking about?”

“Progress.”

“Are you making it?”

“I think so.” She tilted her head to the side. “This is our first step away from our former lives and into our new ones.”

I kissed her.

Her lips were softer.

Sweeter.

She returned the kiss, passionately. I eagerly continued, exploring what her intimacy offered my clouded mind. The longer we kissed, the less prominent my past became. In a moment, the thoughts that had littered the forefront of my mind were gone, replaced by the longing for a woman’s touch.

My hands explored the curves of her body, hungry to convey my mind’s desires without allowing our lips to part.

Soon, her naked flesh was against mine.

Neither of us spoke. As if it were as natural as drawing a breath, we continued our sexual journey, each providing the other with exactly what words simply couldn’t convey.

Her body grinded against mine, and mine hers. The sweetness of her perfume melded with my manly musk, creating one scent that was ours, and ours alone.

With the aroma of our life’s progress lingering lightly in the room, we reached the pinnacle of bliss, together.

I collapsed onto the bed. She did the same, nestling into place at my side. I studied her, trying to memorize every curve and line of her body’s perfection. When I was satisfied that I had, my lips parted.

“I think I’m going to be okay,” I said.

She looked at me and smiled. A lone tear escaped the corner of her eye. “Me, too.”