Page 111 of My Fiancé's Brother 2

“Oh God, Emily,” he winced, his green eyes were wide on my face as he found his release. We stared at each other. And then, as if he couldn’t take the intensity between us, he wrapped his strong arms around me and buried his face against my neck. “Emily.”

My arms wrapped around his head. We stayed like that for a long time. Holding each other. Without meeting my eyes, he lifted me off him, back onto shaking legs.

Without looking at me, he said, “Now you should leave me alone.”

I nodded, my cheeks wet with tears. “Okay. I’ll be upstairs in bed if you need me.”

CHAPTER 37

Three days passed.Jackson was gone long before I woke up and he came home long after I went to bed. I heard him come in at night, but he never came upstairs. The man was mourning, and he wanted nothing to do with me.

Lauren was my seeing eye dog through all of this. She told me about the funeral, what to wear and how there was going to be a massive get together at the community hall after the military funeral service.

She explained that pretty much the entire community would pay their respects to Chris and his family. Instead of making the widow foot the bill for such a huge gathering, it'd be a giant potluck with a cash bar. All proceeds from the bar would go towards his wife. Everyone would pitch in to help serve and clean up. The men would set up and tear down the tables. Together, everyone would work together as a team to say goodbye to Chris.

The morning of the funeral,I brought my food to the hall. Lauren had coordinated the food, and I was responsible for bringing a pan of brownies, potato salad, and a fruit tray. I dropped the food off at the community hall, where men were already setting up the tables.

I got dressed for the funeral and waited. Jackson came home. Without saying a word, he shaved and put on his dark military uniform. We drove in silence to the cemetery.

The service was devastating. Jackson, Alphie, Guinness, Forbes, and Typhoon were pallbearers. Chris was given a full military service that included soldiers firing their weapons. Chris’ wife was flanked by her two parents and Chris’ parents. The ceremony was short and hard to watch.

There must have beentwo hundred people at the hall. Chris’ widow and the parents sat at the front table. Everyone took their turn, filing past them to give their condolences.

I was an interloper. I had only met Chris once, and I had never met his wife. Jackson stood with his unit. None of them talked. They just stood there together, silently drinking. Brothers banded together. They didn’t talk to anyone else, and no one approached them. Not even their wives.

I walked into the kitchen and looked at Lauren.

“Put me to work.”

Her eyes were red from crying. “Okay. We need a dishwasher.”

She showed me how to use the industrial dishwasher. And then I spent the next three hours spraying dishes and running them through the machine. Another woman came and took away the clean dishes for me.

Finally,the onslaught of dishes slowed down to a trickle. Lauren came back and looked at me.

“Are you still doing dishes?”

“Of course.”

She put her arm around my waist. “Come. Let’s find you some food.”

I ate with the woman who had helped me with dishes. We didn’t speak. I picked at my plate of food. I was hungry, but I didn’t feel like eating.

Finally, I pushed my plate away and stood up. I needed to go to the washroom.

I washedmy hands and looked up when the door opened. Harper stood with her back against the door. She looked stunning with her blonde hair pulled into a chignon and a slash of blood-red lipstick that contrasted with her black dress. Leave it to Harper to look sexy at a funeral.

I ignored her while I studied my reflection in the mirror.

“I don’t know why you are even here,” she said. “You’re not part of this group. You don’t belong here.”

I began to dig through my purse for my lipstick, hoping that she could not see my hands shake.

“Jackson hates being tied down to you. He resents everything about you. Your neediness. Your lack of friends. This baby. You represent everything that he never wanted.”

Without my permission, my head swiveled so I was looking at her but words failed me.

She gave a knowing smile. “That night in San Lucas. Did he ever tell you what he did? He dragged me onto the beach. He couldn’t get enough of me. He was an absolute animal. Savage, insatiable. That was the night he told me that as soon as you gave birth, he was going to leave you.”

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