I hadn’t really thought too deeply about it before, but this added layer to their relationship, that they don’t even know about, makes this story so much more heartbreaking than what actually happened. All those years, all those clues that they’ll have overlooked once they begin working together, all those missed opportunities. But, I’m getting ahead of the story! I’m really excited to find out how they’re going to find out. Will one of them start to be curious or will it be one head smacking moment for them...

Author's Response: Yes, there's a reason for the angst tag here ;). Just as in the You've Got Mail (etc) series, I think the poignancy comes (assuming it comes at all in my story) precisely from that deepened sense of missed opportunity, but on the positive side it gives a real sense of ongoing future potential at the same time. Much less risk when you've known each other for decades...in at least some sense.