by Jeff Shelby
I knew the moment was fleeting. I knew it would dissolve and we'd have to go back to dealing with the present. Life didn't let you tie a nice little bow on things in that way.
But, for a moment, it was nice to pretend.
Lauren reached me first. She dropped her bag and hugged me.
“Hi,” she whispered.
“Hi.”
She pulled back from me, but kept her arms around my neck, her eyes showing concern. “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “Fine.”
“Joe?”
“Fine,” I said, pulling away from her gently.
She let go, but her eyes stayed on me.
Elizabeth set her backpack down and we stood there awkwardly for a moment. Then she stepped forward and hugged me.
I wrapped my arms around her and shut my eyes.
“Did you run today?” she asked.
Her hair smelled like lemons and soap.
“No,” I said. “Not yet.”
“Maybe we can go tonight then?” she asked.
I held onto her, felt my heart catching again.
Like life hadn't gone off the rails for so long.
“Sure,” I said. “Whatever you want.”
I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but I'd do my best to give her whatever she wanted. I wasn't naïve enough to think we were out of the woods yet, just because she and Lauren were getting along and she'd wanted to come back to Coronado. There was still a long road in front of us.
I opened my eyes, still hugging her tightly. My vision was blurred through the tears and I looked at Lauren.
“Are you alright?” Elizabeth asked. “Your voice sounds funny.”
I laughed and kept my arms around her.
I smiled at Lauren.
“I'm fine,” I said.
THE END
AUTHOR'S NOTE
After I wrote the third book in the series, THREAD OF BETRAYAL, the number one question I received was, “Will there be a fourth book in the series???”
The obvious answer, if you've read this far, is yes, because you just read it.
(And, by the way – thank you. A myriad of folks turned down the first book in the series, Thread of Hope, for a myriad of reasons. My wife, because she is brilliant, told me they were wrong. As usual, she was right and Thread of Hope is, by far, the most widely read book I've ever written. So thank you for reading the books and supporting the series.)
And I assume that now, even though all of the questions asked in the first book have been answered, the number one question I'll be receiving is, “Will there be a fifth book in the series?”
My answer right now?
I don't know.
Here's why. These characters have had a rough ride and they need a breather. They need to, like, go to the Bahamas and lay on a beach and not worry about anything for awhile. And, most importantly, the mystery has been solved.
But I know there are still unpaid debts for Joe and uncertain futures for all three of the Tylers. And that absolutely means there are more stories out there involving these characters.
So they'll probably be back. I just can't tell you when. In the meantime, I'll be working on some new projects that I hope you'll find just as entertaining.
Table of Contents
Thread of Innocence by Jeff Shelby
Copyright
Books by Jeff Shelby
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY ONE
TWENTY TWO
TWENTY THREE
TWENTY FOUR
TWENTY FIVE
TWENTY SIX
TWENTY SEVEN
TWENTY EIGHT
TWENTY NINE
THIRTY
THIRTY ONE
THIRTY TWO
THIRTY THREE
THIRTY FOUR
THIRTY FIVE
THIRTY SIX
THIRTY SEVEN
THIRTY EIGHT
THIRTY NINE
FORTY
FORTY ONE
FORTY TWO
FORTY THREE
AUTHOR'S NOTE
