Page 8 of Not Faking it with the Colonel

“I remember how you used to tell Mom that if anything happened to you, you wanted her to move on. Find someone who made her happy,” Jace commented.

“That’s different.Iwas the one deploying to danger zones.” His gaze flicked over the scar on his left forearm. “Nothing was supposed to happen to her.” His voice cracked, and the ache that had dulled, but not abated, since her death mushroomed in his chest.

It still seemed surreal. Bethann had a headache that morning. That wasn’t unusual; she’d had migraines since he’d known her. But she’d collapsed while having lunch with friends. When Dianne Mahinis called to say they were taking Bethann to the hospital, he’d gone straight there.

The doctor told him the scan showed a major brain aneurysm had ruptured. He’d called it a silent killer.

Graham had been in a state of shock when he’d called Megan and Jace. They’d rushed to the hospital, where he’d broken the news to them. They’d barely had a chance to say their goodbyes before she’d died four hours later with Graham holding her hand.

“Mom would have told you the same thing if she’d had any idea. She wouldn’t want you to transfer away from us and a job you love just to honor her memory. You’ve got half your life ahead of you. She’d want you happy,” Jace stated with authority.

“Jace is right,” Megan backed up her brother. “You should think about it.”

Were they worried about his well-being? He was doing okay. Other than his weekly golf round, he didn’t get out much, but he wasn’t totally a hermit. In his grief group, they gave repeated warnings to have realistic expectations and said particularly the first romantic connections after losing a spouse rarely lasted and could compound and lengthen the grief cycle. He wanted to avoid that mistake for himself, but there were worse mistakes he could make that could alienate his kids.

“What are the chances I’d find someone I’d want to share my life with and marry in a few months?”

“Zero—if you don’t try,” Jace challenged.

“He can’t really expect you to be married in that short a time,” Reese said. “If the teams saw you in a serious relationship, thatcouldsuppress concerns.”

“I wouldn’t even know where to start. I haven’t dated anyone other than your mother in nearly three decades.”

“I remember you saying you knew Mom was the one by your third date.” Megan gave a dreamy sigh.

“We were nineteen. Now, I’m old and set in my ways.”

“You aren’t old-old.” Jace grinned.

“You could join one of those dating sites for mature adults,” Reece said.

“Don’t you have to be over fifty for those?” Graham was close but not there yet.

“You could check out the older singles groups at church. Take ballroom dance lessons or join a bowling league. Or pickleball! That’s big for people your age.” Even Alex jumped on the bandwagon.

“What about your grief support group?” Jace asked. “Wasn’t there some woman you knew who put out the interested vibes?”

“That was Major Jepson’s widow. She invited me to have coffee after a meeting is all.”

“Oh, she was interested,” Megan said. “Though she might be engaged or married since she was dating five months after her husband was killed in action.”

“Five months? Sounds a little desperate,” Reece said. “I’d wait at least a year if anything happened to you.”

“Thanks, honey,” Megan said with false sweetness. “But it was way too soon after Mom died to be inviting you out then.”

“I haven’t seen her in a while.” It would seem random to reach out now. Maribel Jepson was attractive. Having been married to a Special Ops soldier, she knew the life’s hardships, even if Graham was no longer kicking in doors. However, she had come off as over-eager.

Maybe that wasn’t a bad thingshouldhe consider dating. He had not expected his kids to encourage him to date. The idea of a grandbaby gave him another big reason to stay here. But the timeline was unrealistic, even if he had known he wanted to marry Bethann in much less time than that.

“I’ll think on it,” he conceded. “And I promise I won’t elope and then introduce you to my wife like Grandpa Warren did.”

“Your dad and Linda eloped before you met her?” Alex asked.

“No. My dad and hissecondwife.”

“He’s been married three times?” Alex looked from Graham to Jace.

Graham held up a hand with four fingers extended.

---