Page 60 of The Soul Never Forgets

No, that’s not how she rolls.

“If she loves you, she feeds you,” I tell him.

He chuckles. “I hope she comes to feel a deep love for me.”

Coco opens the oven door, and the room fills with the scent of toasted sugar. “There’s also praline bread pudding and ice cream for dessert.”

“Good grief. You’re spoiling Dawsey right off the bat.”

Coco arranges the flowers in a vase and places them in the center of the table. “You’re off to a very good start with me, young man.”

“That’s the plan.”

We carry our plates to the dining room and Coco and I take our normal places. “I would like it if you sat at the head of the table in my husband’s seat.”

“Are you sure?”

“Please do. It would be a pleasure to have a man like you in his seat.”

Wow. She doesn’t let anyone sit in that seat. Not even Chase.

Especially not Chase.

“I have to know, Dawsey. What did you think when you first met Caroline?”

Dawsey smiles as though talking about me lights up his world. “I had walked out of my office prior to her being brought in by my receptionist. When I returned, Cara was already there and standing with her back toward me. All I could tell about her was that she had long blond curls hanging to the middle of her back. And then the most beautiful girl in the world turned and looked at me. My heart and soul recognized her even though my eyes didn’t. It was the most extraordinary feeling I’ve ever experienced.”

“And confusing I would imagine,” Coco says.

“Confusing is a good word to describe the first time I met Cara.”

“Caroline tells me that you’ve also had dreams of Frank and Augustina.”

He nods. “Yes, but only twice. Both times happened after she read to me from her journals.”

“It’s astonishing for one person to have the capability, but two is incredible.”

“I wouldn’t believe it possible if it weren’t happening to me,” he says.

“You’re a psychotherapist. What is your professional opinion about what is happening in the brain when you recall memories that aren’t your own? And visit the past?”

Dawsey sighs. “My professional opinion is that I have no idea how it’s happening. This isn’t something we’re taught, and I can’t begin to explain it. I only know that it’s real, and I want to know more about the lives of Frank and Augustina.”

Coco’s expression turns from entertained to concerned. “Caroline was in a coma for three months. Aren’t you afraid the same thing could happen to you when you try to evoke these dreams?”

“The only thing I have to go on is my gut, and it tells me no,” he says.

“Your curiosity is understandable. I myself have been curious about Frank and Augustina. But please be very careful with the journal readings and evoking the past. Caroline wouldn’t survive losing you in this lifetime.”

“Oh, Coco. You’re so sweet to worry about us but what happened to me at Pascagoula was different from what Dawsey is doing.” There’s really no way to explain it to someone who’s never experienced it.

“I’m an old lady who can’t comprehend this. Yes, it’s happening to you, but I’m asking you to please be careful. This isn’t something that either of you fully comprehend either.”

“Dawsey and I aren’t going to lose each other. Not after it took so long to find one another. But I promise you we’ll be careful.”

“Please do because we saw what happened in your last life when one of you was without the other. I know you couldn’t bear that kind of loss again.”

“We understand that visiting the past isn’t a game. We’re careful.”

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