online real estate course she could to get the rest of the instruction hours she needed to get her license. The final exam had ended and the ink on the new license was barely dried, but she was making her move. Juliana stood at the doorway of what had been her classroom, getting ready to walk away for what might be the last time. She’d been granted her year’s leave of absence for personal reasons by the school board, but somehow she knew she’d never be back. This part of her life was ending. For good. After making a couple of trips to her car with boxes of her things she couldn’t leave behind, she came back to grab one last box and bid Douglas High School a fond farewell. The room was a lot different from when she’d arrived. It had been so stark, walls painted in the typical “school beige.” An empty teacher’s desk and a few traditional student desks but not much else. She’d had to fight for a padded area that had been necessary for some of her out-of-control students. The attached bathroom had been an even harder battle, but it was another she’d won. The walls now held murals of letters and numbers painted by art students. There was even a row of older computers her students could use whenever they wanted. The place was finally a proper special education area. The cabinets were filled with tactile activities, many of which she’d paid for herself but was leaving behind. What would she need them for? Real estate agents didn’t play with wooden puzzles or foam shapes or coloring books. A real estate agent. Was that what she was now? So much of her identity had been tied to being a teacher. Each time she’d introduced herself to someone, that was how she defined who she was. I’m Juliana Kelley. I teach special ed. Would she be able to find the strength to do this? She’d always been the strong one, especially among the Ladies Who Lunch. Mallory was the wise one. Bethany the enthusiastic one. Danielle the grounded one. But Juliana had been the backbone—the one who held them all together. She’d planned their trips. Encouraged them in their goals. Destroyed their enemies. A laugh slipped out at that notion. How many loser guys had she rebuffed on their nights out? How often had she been the one to tell Beth or Dani that the man she had her eye on wasn’t as perfect as her young brain might have believed? How could she handle not seeing them every day? Tears blurred her vision, but she refused to let a single one fall. This choice was the right one. She knew it, deep in her heart. She had to do this. Now was the moment. A hand settled on her shoulder. “Hey, Jules.” Mallory had come to help her through this. “Hey.” “Sad?” “A little. I did good work here.” “Damn right, you did.” Mallory’s hand fell away. “Need any help carrying stuff outside?” Juliana nodded at the small box in her hands. “Last of it’s in here. Hard to believe I’m really going.” She sniffed hard, willing herself not to cry. This change was for the best, for her and for her students. These kids deserved a teacher who could give them every bit of her time and energy. “I’m doing the right thing.” If only saying the words could make them true. “I sure think so.” Mallory’s authoritarian tone helped soothe Juliana’s rapidly fraying nerves. “Then it’s time to go.” “The Ladies are taking you out tonight. We’ve got a table reserved at Santiago’s.” “You don’t have to do that.” “Didn’t say we had to, did I?” Mallory took the box from Juliana’s hands. “Let’s go.” One last look, and Juliana walked away from her old life.
Chapter Eight Juliana knocked on the door before smoothing down her skirt, nervously trying to remove any wrinkles. She wanted to look her best, hoping to convince the owners of the home to list with her instead of selling the home themselves. The Ladies and Ben had helped her search through for-sale-by-owner listings to