The Story Behind This Book

A. Setting (time period and location):

In 1998, in her sixties, Katie lives alone in the same home where she and her husband moved as a couple; they raised a family and planned their retirement and then suddenly her husband died. Katie is upset, and in the midst of frantically hunting her wedding band, the one she’d worn for over thirty years, when out of the blue, Taylor, her high school sweetheart, calls. Taylor tells Katie he is traveling through Georgia, on his way to a family gathering, and stops to call, hoping to locate her. Katie learns Taylor is also widowed and lives in Clermont, NC, about a four-hour drive north

Taylor’s voice stirs up memories of 1947 when they fell in love, and fills Katie with fantasies of what might have been. Taylor checks out the territory, questioning Katie if she is married or involved with someone and, though he hangs up abruptly, he intends to pursue Katie, and this time not let other concerns get in his way. Katie worries that if she sees Taylor her settled life will be disrupted.

What do you want people to take from your book?

First, I hope the reader enjoys the story and feels uplifted. If the reader is an older person and considering changing one’s living situation that involves another person, I hope he/she will learn from the story and think about the advantages and difficulties of marriage later in life, while at the same time understands some of the issues that should be discussed and perhaps resolved with one’s partner before they marry.