True Love

Y
OU’LL WANT TO READ THESE INSPIRING TITLES BY
L
URLENE
M
C
D
ANIEL

A
NGELS IN
P
INK

Kathleen’s Story
Raina’s Story
Holly’s Story

O
NE
L
AST
W
ISH
N
OVELS

Mourning Song
A Time to Die
Mother, Help Me Live
Someone Dies, Someone Lives
Sixteen and Dying
Let Him Live
The Legacy: Making Wishes
Come True
Please Don’t Die
She Died Too Young
All the Days of Her Life
A Season for Goodbye
Reach for Tomorrow

O
THER
O
MNIBUS
E
DITIONS

The End of Forever
Always and Forever
The Angels Trilogy
As Long As We Both Shall Live
Journey of Hope
One Last Wish: Three Novels

O
THER
F
ICTION

Breathless
Hit and Run
Prey
Briana’s Gift
Letting Go of Lisa
The Time Capsule
Garden of Angels
A Rose for Melinda
Telling Christina Goodbye
How Do I Love Thee: Three Stories
To Live Again
Angel of Mercy
Angel of Hope
Starry, Starry Night: Three
Holiday Stories
The Girl Death Left Behind
Angels Watching Over Me
Lifted Up by Angels
For Better, for Worse, Forever
Until Angels Close My Eyes
Till Death Do Us Part
I’ll Be Seeing You
Saving Jessica
Don’t Die, My Love
Too Young to Die
Goodbye Doesn’t Mean Forever
Somewhere Between Life and Death
Time to Let Go
Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep
When Happily Ever After Ends
Baby Alicia Is Dying

From every ending comes a new beginning.…

“I
’ll get the door!” Julie Ellis called, bounding down the stairs from her bedroom. She yanked open the heavy front door to see Luke Muldenhower on her front porch. He grinned as she pulled open the glass storm door and threw herself into his arms. “I’ve missed you,” she cried, snuggling against his chest.

“Blame your father,” he said, kissing her. “He’s the one who made the team stay for the championship game. It wasn’t fun watching the finals, feeling like it should have been us playing for the state title.”

Indiana’s Waterton Warriors football team, whom Julie’s father coached, had made it all the way to the state football finals in their division. On Thursday, the school had shut down. Buses were chartered and most of the
town had taken the trip to Indianapolis for the playoffs. Waterton had lost in the semifinals, and while the students and fans, including Julie and her mother, had returned glum and deflated, the players had remained behind until Saturday night to watch the game for first place.

Her father had returned only hours before. And Julie had been waiting anxiously for Luke to drop his stuff at his house, then come see her. She was sorry they’d lost, not only for the sake of school pride, but because she knew how much winning meant to both Luke and her father.

She led him into the living room, where a fire crackled in the fireplace, warding off the late-November chill, and sat him down beside her on the sofa. “Believe me, Mom and I’ve heard every detail about how bad things went for us. If only time hadn’t run out … If only Bobby Spencer had hit his man in the end zone with ten seconds left on the clock in the third quarter … If only the referee hadn’t called a holding penalty on the final play …” Julie ticked off the reasons she knew by heart. “Dad’s been over every minute of that game and why we lost it.”

She gave Luke a pouty look. “But enough
about the game. This is our first date in months that doesn’t revolve around football, and I don’t want to talk about anything except us and how wonderful you think I am.”

He laughed and hugged her. “You’re wonderful.”

“And?”

“And I love you like crazy.” He pressed his forehead against hers and kissed the tip of her turned-up nose.

“That’s better,” she said with a sly smile. “Forget about football tonight. Next year,
you’ll
be the senior quarterback, and you’ll take us to the state finals. For now, the season’s over. Let’s talk about the Christmas dance. It’s only three weeks away. Do we want to double with Solena and Frank? You know how they’re always fighting with each other.”

Luke didn’t have a chance to answer, because Bud Ellis, Julie’s father, walked into the living room. “I thought I heard you come in,” the coach said.

Instantly, Luke was on his feet, his hand outstretched. “Hey, Coach. Sorry about the game.”

“Not your fault,” Bud Ellis insisted. “I should never have pulled you out and put
Spencer in. You were doing great, but you looked tired.”

“It’s this flu. I’m having trouble shaking it.”

“You look like you feel all right now,” Coach said, his gaze flitting between Luke and Julie’s radiant face.

“Julie’s good medicine,” Luke said, taking hold of her hand and pulling her up alongside him.

“We’ve got a date,” Julie told her father. “No more football season. No more curfews.”

“
You
have a curfew,” her father reminded her.

“Curfew, shmurfew.” Julie put her hands on her hips. “Tonight we’re going bowling and then we’re going to eat a goopy, gooey hot fudge sundae, and since tomorrow’s Sunday, Luke can sleep in ’til noon before he has to come take me out to the mall.”

“Hot fudge sundaes! Sleeping ’til noon!” Her father looked horrified. “Don’t go spoiling my prize quarterback and making him soft, Julie-girl.”

Julie knew that would be impossible. Luke had a muscular physique to die for, made harder by the playing season plus hours of daily weight training in the gym. “The only soft thing about Luke is
me
,” she said with a
flounce of her blond hair. “And whose side are you on anyway?
I
’
m
your flesh and blood.”

Her father grinned and chucked her under the chin. “Yeah, but you can’t play football. And you throw like a girl.”

She knew her dad was teasing, but still his remark stung. She was her parents’ only child. And a daughter at that. She had never doubted that her dad loved her, but Luke was clearly the son Bud Ellis had always wished he had.

Luke reached his arm around her waist and pulled her next to him. “And I, for one, wouldn’t want it any other way. Julie’s just about perfect, I’d say.”

She felt gratitude for his gentle defense of her. “We’re supposed to meet Solena and Frank at the bowling alley in fifteen minutes,” Julie said, glancing at the antique clock on the fireplace mantel.

Luke helped her with her coat, and they’d gotten as far as the front door before her father said, “Some college coaches are sniffing around about you already, Luke.”

Luke stopped and turned. “They are? Who?”

Inwardly, Julie groaned. It was unfair of her father to hold out this carrot when he knew
they were in a hurry. “Can’t you talk to Luke tomorrow about this?”

“I could,” her dad said.

But Luke wasn’t budging. “Tell me, Coach … Who’s asking?”

“Ohio State for one.”

“No lie?” Luke broke into a grin. “One of the Big Ten’s asking about me?”

“You’re good, Luke; they
should
be asking. And you’ve still got another year in high school. They’ll be on you like white on rice after next season.”

Julie refrained from rushing the discussion even though they were going to be impossibly late. Football was Luke’s
only
chance to make it into college.

“So what did you tell him?” Luke asked.

“I told him to stand in line!”

Both Luke and her father burst out laughing. Julie smiled and shook her head. “You two are totally weird.” But she was glad for Luke. She loved him and wanted him to receive every break he deserved.

Once outside in the crisp November night, Luke took her in his arms and kissed her long and hard. She felt her knees go weak. “I guess you really
did
miss me,” she whispered when he released her.

“Now that the season’s over, I’ve got to make up for lost time. You know I love you, Julie.”

“I know. But it’s always nice to hear you say it.”

He opened the door of his car for her. The vehicle was old, but clean and well maintained. Luke had worked long hours the summer before to earn the money to buy it, and when he’d turned seventeen in October, his mom, who worked at the steel mills, had gotten it painted a deep navy blue. The car caught the color of the pale full moon in its shiny finish.

They drove to Waterton’s lone bowling alley, parked, and went inside. The sounds of balls striking pins punctuated the air. Frank sauntered over. “Sorry we’re late,” Luke said. “Where’s Solena?”

“In the bathroom sulking.”

“Don’t tell me you two have had another fight,” Julie said in exasperation.

“She’s impossible, Julie. Why’s she so jealous?”