EXCERPT 1.
“You have feathers for brains,” Sarah berated herself as Brett closed the distance between them. She accepted the hug he gave her as the impact of how deeply Ben—and inadvertently she—had betrayed him abruptly hit her. The realization of what she’d done made her head begin to pound.

“I’m so glad you came, Sarah. I stopped by to see you earlier, but your mother said you were out, although she didn’t seem to know where. I looked around town and in our usual spots but couldn’t find you,” Brett said, pulling back and giving her a curious glance.

“I’m sorry. I had a busy day,” she said. It had been busy. Sneaking around, being deceived, and making the biggest mistake of her life had taken the entire day.

Brett offered her a smile of such tender warmth, she wanted to burst into tears and confess what had happened. Only she couldn’t. It would ruin the trip, if not cancel it, and Brett had been excited about spending the summer with his grandparents. There would be time enough to sort out all the complicated details when the twins returned in August.

Three months away from Ben might be long enough for her raging wrath to reach a simmering point instead of teetering on the edge of it boiling over at any second.

“I couldn’t let you leave without saying goodbye. I hope you,” she emphasized the word and cast a withering glare at Ben before looking back at Brett, “enjoy your time with your grandparents this summer.”

A shadow passed over Brett’s face, but it was there and gone so quickly, she began to wonder if she’d simply imagined it.

“I’m sure we will. I hope you have a wonderful summer, Sarah Beth.” Brett was the only one who called her that, and every time he said it, her insides felt warm. He leaned down and placed his lips close to Sarah’s ear, making her heart pound in her chest. “No matter what happens, don’t ever forget how much I love you.”

“I won’t. Remember I love you, Brett,” she said, speaking around the sudden tightness in her throat. How could she profess her love to him after what she’d done with Ben? If a bolt of lightning shot out of the sky to strike her down where she stood, she knew she deserved it.

 

EXCERPT 2.
“Let’s go,” Ben said as they rushed out of the train station and flagged down a taxi to take them to the docks.

The taxi turned onto the street just as the 78th Infantry Division that they would now be part of arrived.

“Can you let us off down the block?” Ben asked when the driver started to stop near the front of the line of soldiers waiting to board.

“Sure,” the driver said, turning around and driving down the street to the end of the line of soldiers.

“Thanks, sir,” Brett said, paying the driver and giving him the basket of food their grandmother had packed. He and Ben hustled out of the car, moved into the line as though they’d been there all along, and hoped no one would notice them.

They’d learned from Paul and Jack they were part of the division that had been based in Camp Dix, New Jersey. The two men had been there training for months, so Brett and Ben could only hope they wouldn’t be immediately missed.

They figured if they made it to France, they could assume a different identity, or hopefully by then no one would notice or care they had taken the place of Paul and Jack.

As they stood in line, trying to act like they belonged there, Brett was at least gratified to see their haversacks appeared to be the same as everyone else’s and their uniforms were an exact match.

It took more than an hour of waiting for their turn to board. Brett kept his head down as he handed over his paperwork and the name of Paul Lewis was checked off the list followed by Jack Lewis.

Ben looked like he was about to crow in victory, but Brett gave him a warning look. Together, they made their way onto the ship and down to their quarters, where they’d sleep in a slung hammock with barely enough room to move between them.

As the ship set sail away from the dock, a band played patriotic tunes as befitted the occasion. Excitement and trepidation blended together among the occupants of the ship as they crowded together on the deck.

 Surrounded by cheering soldiers, Brett removed his hat and tipped his head toward heaven, hoping and praying he would see the shores of New York again someday.

 

EXCERPT 3.
Deputy Kade Rawlings pulled open the doors and hurried upstairs to the office where he left the paperwork, then made his way to an office down the hall to sign the necessary statement. He’d just finished and turned around, nearly bumping into Judge Obidiah Kirkman.

“Deputy Rawlings!” the man said with a smile, reaching out to shake Kade’s hand. “Congratulations!”

“Congratulations for what, sir?” Kade asked, shaking the judge’s hand, confused.

“The marriage of your son.”

“My son?” Kade asked, having no idea what the man was talking about.

“Yes. A few weeks ago, your son and his sweet bride came to get married. I had the pleasure of uniting them in marriage. Although, I thought your twins were still of school age.”

“They are. Ben and Brett turned sixteen a few months ago.” Kade felt like his head was spinning. Surely the judge had confused one of his boys with someone else. “You’re telling me my son was here and you performed the ceremony?”

The judge nodded.

“May I see the registry?” Kade managed to choke out as anger and dread filled his throat.

“Of course.” The judge led the way to another office and pulled the registry book across the counter. He flipped back a few pages, then pointed to a line.

There in black ink, Brett’s name was written next to Sarah Richards’ name.

Stunned, Kade felt lightheaded. What had Brett done? And why in the world would he talk Sarah into marrying him the very day the boys had left to spend the summer with their grandparents in New York? It didn’t make a lick of sense.

Brett loved Sarah Richards, but he wouldn’t resort to lies, deception, and keeping secrets to sneak off and marry her.

Kade lifted the registry and studied the signature made by his son. Despite it being Brett’s name, Kade knew down to the soles of his boots that Ben had written it.

Surely to goodness the boy hadn’t tricked Sarah into thinking she’d married Brett. If so, what would that mean for her? Or for Brett? He was absolutely daffy for Sarah, and Kade was certain she felt the same way.

Sarah Richards was a girl he and Caterina both liked. She was pretty, tall with dark blonde hair and big blue eyes. Sarah was always quiet and shy, as well as polite and sweet. She was nothing like the twins, which was probably what had attracted Brett to her in the first place.

Kade knew Ben had flirted with her just to annoy Brett, but he thought that’s all it was. Just one more example of Ben irritating his brother by trying to take what Brett had.

What if Ben had taken things a step further? A step that couldn’t be undone.

 

EXCERPT 4.
Movement outside drew Sarah’s gaze to the front window as she dusted the furniture in her parents’ family room. Kade and Caterina Rawlings marched up the front walk.

She’d wondered how long it would be before she had to face them, and dreaded the moment it would happen. Because of her own preference to avoid conflict, Sarah hadn’t said a word to her parents about her unexpected marriage.

Quickly whipping off her apron and tossing it and the feather duster in her hand into the closet beneath the stairs, Sarah took a deep breath and smoothed the sides of her hair as she strode to the door. A loud knock echoed through the house before she reached it.

She put on a polite smile and pulled open the door, but the smile quickly melted at the sight of Caterina’s white face and tear-rimmed eyes and Kade’s square jaw set in a firm, unyielding line. She would have been terrified of the deputy if she hadn’t known him to be a kind, caring man.

“Sarah, may we come in?” Kade asked, removing his hat and holding it in the hand not wrapped around Caterina’s waist. “We need to speak to you about an important matter.”

“Of course,” she said, moving back as they stepped inside. As far as Sarah knew, it was the first time Caterina had come to the house. Kade was the one who had usually retrieved the boys if they’d stayed too late when visiting.

“Sarah? Who is at the door?” her mother called from the kitchen.

“Deputy and Mrs. Rawlings,” she replied, wishing her mother hadn’t heard the knock or their voices. It seemed impolite to be yelling up and down the hallway, but she certainly wasn’t going to mention that to her mother.

“Invite them in. I’ll bring lemonade,” June Richards said in a loud voice.

Sarah motioned for Kade and Caterina to step into the living room. It was Sarah’s favorite room in the house, with big windows that let in plenty of light, and comfortable furnishings positioned to take advantage of the warmth of the big fireplace in the winter. Bookcases were filled with much-loved stories and a few mementoes gathered through the years.

Kade and Caterina took a seat on the couch, while Sarah perched in one of the side chairs across from them. She leaned forward and moved a stack of magazines off the low table in front of the couch, anticipating her mother setting a tray with lemonade and glasses there.

“Is your father home, by chance?” Kade asked, giving Sarah a probing look.

“No, sir. He’s at his office,” Sarah said. Harry Richards owned his own dental practice in town. Sarah helped at the office by keeping her father’s books, writing correspondence, and assisting his receptionist with patient appointments. However, her mother was hosting her garden club tomorrow and had tasked Sarah with helping clean the house from top to bottom today. To keep her two younger brothers out of the way, her mother had sent them outside to play, with orders not to come back in before supper.

“It might be best if you have him come home,” Kade said in a voice that sounded more like an order than a suggestion.

Sarah certainly wasn’t going to argue with him. She hopped up, rushed down the hallway to the back door, and whistled loudly, drawing the attention of Clark and Simon as they valiantly fought in a mock battle with swords made of tree branches.

“Boys!” she yelled, and they stopped grunting and flailing the branches to look at her.

“What?” Clark asked, running toward her, branch still in hand.

“What?” Simon mimicked, following his older brother.

Clark gave him a shove, and they were back to swatting at each other with the branches.

Sarah jumped off the porch, marched over to them and took Clark’s arm in one hand and Simon’s in the other. “Deputy Rawlings is here and wants to speak with Dad. Will you boys run down to the office and tell him it’s urgent? Please?”

“I bet Dad’s going to jail!” nine-year-old Simon declared, tossing down his stick and starting for the gate.

“Maybe he formed a gang,” eleven-year-old Clark mused as he ran after his brother.