Page 15 of Right With You
I pulled her in, clinging to her, breathing through my tears that felt so all-encompassing, I grieved that, too. Eventually, I huffed out the frustration and anger and sadness and leaned back, the comforting, sweet scent of her shampoo still lingering in my nose.
“Guess I needed that,” I said, chuckling as I wiped at my eyes.
“It helps.” She dabbed at her own eyes with a tissue while handing me one. “And I’m not convinced it’s because you haven’t dealt with a lot of what you needed to. Maybe you should go to therapy again, but maybe it’s just part of being human. Most of us don’t fold up our feelings and tuck them in a drawer, never to see them again. We take them out and wear them around from time to time. Sometimes, we decide we hate how they feel, and we get rid of them for good. But other times, we keep them in that bottom drawer.”
I grinned. “What a metaphor.”
She tucked a long lock of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. I tried.”
We laughed at her prim retort, and I shifted our focus. “What’s the latest with everything?”
She instantly knew what I meant. “Oh, did I not tell you? We got a spot at Silverton Springs. I have like, a month to get everything ready.” Her smile pulled in a way that looked strained, but her eyes held their sparkle.
“It’s expensive, right?” A stupid question. Silverton Springs was a gorgeous retirement community that also had a nursing home section for when residents needed medical care, too. It was highly sought after, and Dove had been waiting over a year for a spot to open up for her grandmother.
She chuckled. “Yeah. I’m… I mean I’ve been working, as you know, but seeing it in reality…” She shrank a little but sniffed and perked up. “It’ll be fine. It’s going to be amazing and I’m so excited. But I may not sleep more than four hours for a while.”
Another laugh snuck out and amazingly, it didn’t sound forced. I slipped my hand into hers and squeezed, knowing she craved the contact.
“You’re an amazing granddaughter. I wish I had some way to help.” The inability to assist in any way—whether offering some work or giving her a loan or anything—chafed more than ever.
She patted the back of my hand and offered me a soft smile, her eyes glistening. “Thank you. I know. Maybe if you marry a duke, you can hire me as the on-call nurse.” She swung part of my cream-colored throw blanket over her head and wrapped it around like a bonnet. “Or a part-time maid.”
We both cackled at her ridiculousness, but my heart weighed heavy in my chest.
Before I could stop myself, something pushed me to admit something I hadn’t admitted fully to myself, let alone told anyone else.
“I’m not sure I can do it again—not with Luc so much as… ever.”
She eyed me, trying to catch up to where my mind had gone. “Date?”
I shook my head. “Love.”
Her eyes shone with a fresh round of tears, but she simply nodded. “Well then, maybe a hot half-French fake fiancé is just the ticket.”
CHAPTERSEVEN
Luc
My sister’s grin was so wide, it hardly fit on the screen of my phone.
“Don’t look so happy,” I demanded.
“Don’t look so sad. You’re an almost-engaged man!” She clapped and cackled like the little she-devil she was.
“I had no idea you were so desperate for me to get engaged.” The glare I sent had her sobering up after her gleeful giggles. I was more than a little uncomfortable about lying to her, and I didn’t want to embellish anything I didn’t have to.
“I’ll have you know I’ve always wanted you to get married so I have a sister. And after finding my own wonderful husband, I want you to find that, too.”
I sighed. “I don’t think I’m interested in a wonderful husband, but thanks.”
She grumbled. “Wonderful wife, in your case.”
“I’m not interested in that, either, if it’s someone Grand-père picks out.”
To someone who didn’t know anything about our family dynamic, such a statement could sound incredibly juvenile.
“Ye of little faith. Grand-père set me and Michele up.” She glanced to her right and hearts jumped into her eyes as she looked at the man in question, no doubt.
