Personal chef Beau St. Clair, recently divorced from his cheating husband, returns to the small Ohio River town where he grew up to lick his wounds. Jack Rogers lives with his mother, Maisie, in that same small town, angry at and frightened by the world. Jack has a gap in his memory that hides something he dares not face, and he’s probably suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Maisie, seeking relief from her housebound and often surly son, hires Beau to cook for Jack, hoping the change might help bring Jack, once a handsome and vibrant attorney, back to his former self. But can a new face and comfort food compensate for the terror lurking in Jack’s past? Slowly the two men begin a dance of revelation and healing. Food and compassion build a bridge between Beau and Jack, a bridge that might lead to love. But will Jack’s demons allow it? His history could just as easily tear them apart as bring them together.

Dinner at Jack's

And he stepped once more into the river’s current. 23: Ruth as Guide Dog


One thing about my girl—she’s always been an early riser. Friends told me Ruth would accommodate her routine to mine, and that by the end of puppyhood, she’d stay warm and snuggled in until I was ready to rise for the day. That’s just the way it was with dogs.


Ruth had certainly never gotten thatmemo. Like an alarm clock, daylight savings time or no, she was up bright and early every morning right around four thirty. If I dared to still be sleeping, she’d sit next to the bed, those appealing brown eyes staring intently, and make a soft chuffing sound, hoarse, not quite a bark. She had the good sense to at least be gentle about waking me. But if I didn’t respond, another chuffwould come, and then, after a pause, another. It was an uncomfortable truth that Ruth trained me, rather than the other way around.


Chapter 74