“You need a break,” Robert had told her three weeks ago, wrapping his arms around her waist as she reviewed case files at their kitchen table.
“When’s the last time we actually went somewhere, Mel? Just the two of us?”

She’d looked up at him, realizing he was right.
“It’s been too long, hasn’t it?”
“Way too long,” he’d agreed. “Let’s go somewhere warm. Somewhere with beaches and no courtrooms.”
That conversation had led them to Mexico, to a beautiful resort where Melissa had finally allowed herself to disconnect from the weight of her work.
For ten glorious days, she’d walked on beaches at sunset, swam in crystal-clear water, and laughed more freely than she had in months.
Robert had been right, as he so often was.
She’d needed this.

Now, sitting in seat 12B on their flight home, Melissa felt refreshed and ready to return to her life.
