EPILOGUE
A few miles back the SUV rode past the sign welcoming them to Maine. They came to a stop in a crushed gravel parking lot by the Atlantic Ocean. The driver’s side door opened.
Charlie went to the back of the vehicle and lifted the rear door. She removed the stroller and set it up. From the back she extracted the car seat and affixed it in place, ensuring it was snapped in properly.
The baby, wide awake, squinted in the sunlight. She dabbed the tip of his nose with her fingertip and lowered the canopy. While James’ mother and brother called him James, Jr., Helen and Sarah called him J.J. It was Kelly who insisted on referring to her cousin as Jimmy J. It took, and soon it was what everyone called him. “Want to go see the lighthouse, Jimmy J.?”
He cooed while she reflected for a
