Page 113 of Love is a Harmony
Ava put a hand on his back, and he pulled away, looking from Stella to the casket. His brother wasn’t there, but he couldn’t leave yet. “Ava, can you take Stella back to the house? Get her something edible to eat.” Not the fancy food his parents would serve.
Ava slipped her hand into Stella’s. “We’ll pick up burgers on the way. Come on, Stell.”
Noah nodded to Ben and Drew to join Ava. “I’ll meet you at the house.”
After they left, he waited for the remainder of the crowd to disperse. Not even the priest remained.
Noah lifted his eyes to the stained-glass windows that depicted scenes from the Bible. The only sounds were his steps as he walked toward the empty casket. Putting a hand on the smooth wood, he bowed his head, letting the silence wash over him.
He’d done what his parents asked, kept his emotions in check. But now, as he stood alone with only memories of Carson for company, he couldn’t hold them back.
A shaky breath leaked past his lips. “Well, you’ve done it now, mate. This isn’t just a short kip. You’re really gone.” He curled his fingers in and removed his hand.
Walking around the casket, he lowered himself to the steps up to the altar. Next to him, Carson’s grim face stared down at him.
“Don’t give me that sour look,” he said to the picture. “You’re the one who died on me, the one who left his daughter in my incapable hands.” He lowered his face to his hands. “You should be the one sitting here, the one holding Stella’s hand. She’s a great kid, but you won’t get to see everything she does in her life. You won’t get to see that she made me love her—just as you knew she would. What have you done to my life, Carson? I need you to tell me it’s going to be okay.”
His back shook. “I need you to tell me I can do this. You always did have more faith in me than I did.”
A presence loomed over him, but he didn’t look up, assuming it was the priest come to tell him he needed to leave.
A hand slid into his, pulling it away from his face as someone sat beside him. He recognized her without seeing her face or hearing her voice. His eyes slid shut as a tear squeezed through.
“Carson isn’t here to say you can do this,” Melanie said softly. “So, I’ll have to do it instead. You, Noah Clarke, are capable of anything. You’re more than you think you are.”
“Mel.” It was no more than a whisper. “You’re here.”
“I’m sorry I’m late.” Those words held so much meaning. She wasn’t only late to the funeral, but in coming to him, in being here.
And he needed to know. “Why did you come, Mel?”
“This probably isn’t the best place.” She tried to stand, but he pulled her back down.
“This is the perfect place. I need hope, Mel. Right here, in front of my brother, I need you to give me courage to keep going, to be the man I need to be. For Carson. For Stella. Because I don’t know if I can find that courage myself.”
She took both his hands in hers. “But you can. You don’t need me for that.”
“Mel, why are you here?”
“Because the man I love is in pain.”
He stopped everything. Speaking. Breathing. Blinking. And he turned to her, removing his hands from hers. “I just sat through my brother’s funeral. I’ve spent days trapped in a house I hate. My two lives are suddenly coming together in the strangest way. So, forgive me if I need you to say that again because I’m pretty sure I imagined the words.”
She reached up to run her fingers along his jaw. “I was wrong before in thinking we only get one great love. Justin is my past, but you, Noah Clarke, are very much my future.”
He kissed her then, stealing all her words, all her confessions. In front of God, in front of Carson, he let some of his pain go.
Melanie infused strength into him with each kiss, infused belief. Because if she believed in him, then maybe she was right. He could do anything.
He could raise his niece.
He could love the woman before him.
He breathed her in like she was life, and he’d been half-dead before.
As he pulled away, he caught sight of Carson’s picture once more. Noah spent so long creating scandals Carson would chastise him for just to get him to contact him.
But this time, Noah knew Carson would approve.
