19
Christmas was probably the toughest day of the year for Carolyn. When she was younger, she'd missed her mother terribly on Christmas. After she left the Light Keepers, the day became even lonelier. She'd gotten into the habit of volunteering somewhere on Christmas Day—a soup kitchen, a homeless shelter, wherever help was needed. This year, she'd offered to help Suzanne Marshall at the Star Bright Shelter for Teens, which offered a temporary home for runaways.
The Knight brothers were having their first Christmas together in years, now that both Tobias and Ben were out of the military. She had to admit that a sense of sharp envy filled her as he walked away, down her little walkway, past thorny winter rosebushes.
He was heading for his family, while she was alone. As always.
But she
