Page 128 of Courage, Dear Heart

Her lips part, and her eyes widen. “You’ve seen the book? CJ’s book?”

“Yes. Jamie asked me to read it for him once.”

“When?”

“Upstate. At my grandma’s house. When he fell asleep, and I brought him into the house. He asked me to read it for him.”

“The whole thing?” There’s surprise in her voice.

“Yes. I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was—I didn’t know what it meant when I started reading. By the time it clicked, I was fully absorbed by it. And honestly, I don’t think I could have stopped. I wanted to know what happened. When I finished it, I looked back at the beginning and saw the author and dedication.”

Her gaze goes to her son. “Oh, Jamie. You are much smarter than I am.” Then back to me. “It’s CJ’s book. He wrote it for Jamie. A time capsule of our time together. For the last year, Jamie asked me to read it to him every night. But never the whole book. Just the first few pages. I was never allowed to move forward.”

I nod. “He was stuck.”

“No. I was. And Jamie was trying to tell me the only way he knew how.”

My mouth opens, but I have no words. I look at the boy and back at her. “And now?”

She meets my gaze. “And now?”

“Are you stuck still?”

Tears rush to her eyes. Her lips tremble. “No. I’m not stuck anymore.”

I open my arms and she steps into them. I hold her, rubbing her shoulders, and she hugs me back. “I have so much to tell you.”

She steps back. “Before you do, I want to tell you what I’ve decided first.”

I take her hand and we walk to a bench under the shade of a tree, my heart drumming with apprehension.

We face each other and I watch her every expression, trying to guess at what’s coming.

“The rental agency found a place for me and Jamie not far from the store. I signed a one-year contract.”

My heart squeezes, not sure if this is good or bad, but at least she’s in the city and I can work with that.

She reaches for my hand and that tight grip in my heart eases. “I got a job offer to take over the Tulips store.”

My eyes widen. “That huge flower shop near the 34thprecinct?”

“Yes. I’m good friends with Diana, the manager there. I always send her jobs that are too big for me. Diana heard about what happened and called me.”

I watch her, looking for clues of where I fit in all of this. “And they offered you a job?”

“That’s the crazy part. Diana told me she’s pregnant withtriplets and her doctor wants her on bed rest starting at twenty weeks, and she’s eighteen weeks now.”

“Triplets?”

She smiles. “Yes, she went through IVF, and she and her husband are ecstatic. Anyway, Diana called me and asked if I can take over until she returns from maternity leave, which with the bed rest, birth, and all that will be at least a year. And the best part is that I can bring some of my crew with me.”

“That’s fantastic news, Jillian.”

“Yes, I’m happy things are falling into place.” She lets go of my hand and cups my face. “Which brings me to you.”

“Me?” I stop breathing. My voice no more than a whisper. This is it.

“Yes, you—us. I’ve done a lot of thinking the last few days, and as much as I didn’t want to come back here, the distance helped me see things more clearly.”

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