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he had come to love in Japan and that her mother had taught her. “I’ll be right back.” He kissed her again and hurried toward the tables, still laden with the food Olivia and her mother had prepared, and then as he started back toward her with a plate, he stopped, unable to believe his eyes. Still carrying Hiroko’s long-delayed lunch, Boyd hurried toward the tall, dark-haired man shaking hands with Tom Parker. He stood out from the rest of the guests in a dark blue blazer and white slacks, with a bright red tie, and an aura about him that bespoke a world of ease far, far from the valley. He was only five years older than Boyd, and he looked different now, but they had been close friends in the Pacific. Spencer Hill had been his commanding officer and Tom’s, he had even come toBoyd and Hiroko’s wedding in Kyoto. And as Boyd approached him with a broad grin, Spencer was shaking Tom’s hand and congratulating him, looking suntanned and at ease, and as comfortable there as he had been in Japan in his uniform. He was a man who seemed at ease anywhere, his deep blue eyes seemed to take in the whole scene at a glance and a moment later he was laughing at Boyd Webster.
    “Well, I’ll be damned … you again! The freckle-faced kid! How’s Hiroko?” Boyd was touched that he remembered her name, and he smiled as he waved toward the trees where she was standing.
    “She’s fine. Christ, it’s been a long time, Captain….” Their eyes met in instant memory, of the pain they had shared, and the fears, but there had been more than that, there had been a closeness that would never come again. A closeness born of sorrow and excitement and terror, and victory too. But the victory had seemed a small moment compared to the rest, and it was the years before that they all remembered. “Come and say hello to her.” Spencer excused himself from the group and left Tom to his cohorts, in high spirits by then, and anxious to get back to the barn for more whiskey.
    “How’ve you been? I wondered if you’d be here. Or if the two of you would have moved to the city by now.” He had often thought that it would be easier for them to live in a place like San Francisco or Honolulu, but Boyd had been determined to go home to the valley he had so often talked of.
    Hiroko’s eyes filled with surprise and she bowed when she saw him. As Spencer smiled down at her, she looked as tiny and delicate as she had a year before at her own wedding. But there was something more in her eyes now, a wisdom and sadness that hadn’t been there before, andSpencer easily suspected that the past year had been neither kind nor easy.
    “You look beautiful, Hiroko. It’s good to see you both again.” He gently took her hand in his own, as she blushed, not daring to look up at him, as her husband watched them. The Captain had been so decent to both of them, he had done everything he could to discourage them from getting married, but in the end, he had stood by Boyd as he had all his men, in battle and out. He was the kind of man his men knew they could always turn to. He was strong and intelligent and kind, and relentless when they let him down, which they seldom did. There had been few men in his command who didn’t want to live up to the example he set them. He worked hard, fought alongside them, and was seemingly tireless as they struggled to win the war, and now it was so strange … it was over, and here they were, halfway around the world, safe again, yet none of it was forgotten. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” Spencer’s eyes met Boyd’s, and he saw something older and wiser there, they had both seen pain together in the war. Yet, out of uniform the handsome captain seemed much younger than he had the last time they’d met, when Boyd left Japan for San Francisco.
    “I didn’t know you’d be here today,” Boyd said quietly, happier to see him than Spencer knew. He was the first person who had spoken kindly to Hiroko since