Page 123 of Someone to Remember
“Let’s do more of that and less of the sad shit, okay?”
I look over at him and smile as I nod.
He crooks a finger to bring me closer and leans across the center console to kiss me—and I let him. It’s a good kiss, soft, sweet and full of the promise of things to come. And when we pull back from each other, he’s smiling. “Our first kiss was on the side of the road on 395.”
“Maybe we should post a sign to mark the spot.”
“I won’t forget it.”
“Neither will I.”
Iris
The furorthat explodes around Angela and her friend Brad is horrific and disgusting. Social media is on fire, and the whole world suddenly has an opinion about what constitutes “too soon” for a widow to begin a new relationship. The WildWidows are in an uproar over it. Even Taylor has texted to ask if Angela is okay and if she can do anything to help.
Angela is most definitely not okay, but she’s keeping her head down, taking care of her kids and trying to mostly ignore the online dissection of her life and choices. From what she’s told me, Brad is doing the same. Her sister’s White House communications team has been outstanding with devastating take-downs of people who have opinions on a topic they’re lucky to know nothing about.
Some have gone so far as to suggest Angela should return the money raised by the GoFundMe since she was able to move on so quickly after the loss of her husband. And how is more than eighteen months considered “quickly”?
It’s disgusting and heartbreaking for all of us who understand what she’s been through and how taking that first step forward is such a big deal, only to have a nightmare unfold as a result.
She told me last night she’s still planning to attend the wedding and won’t let nasty people dictate how she lives her life. However, she won’t be bringing Brad, as she’d originally planned. That hurts my heart for both of them. I hope they can hold on to the friendship they were forming when all hell broke loose.
Gage comes into our room, where I’m curled up on the chaise, answering the multitude of texts that’ve come in over the last few hours as the Wild Widows went to battle for Angela—and themselves by extension. I’m so proud of the comments they’ve left on some of the nastier posts about how lucky those people are to not have any clue what Angela and Brad have been through. Our team is doing good work out there, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.
I’m staying behind the scenes so I won’t let this situation take over my life at a time when I should be focused on Gage, the kids and our wedding later today. My hair and makeup team is coming in hot in an hour, but until then, I’m trying to relaxand decompress while Mimi and Stan have Eleanor and the four kids out to lunch. Naturally, Mimi has bonded with Eleanor and declared Carter to be her fourth adopted grandchild. I couldn’t love her more.
“How’s it going in command central?” Gage asks when he sits at the foot of the chaise. We debated spending last night and today apart out of superstition and decided to hell with that. We wanted to spend this day like we do all the others—together.
“Pretty good, all things considered.”
“And you’re staying offline and out of the fray?”
“I am but still getting a few reports here and there.”
“No reports allowed. This is your day, and the others are taking good care of Angela and Brad.”
“Yes, they sure are. I’m so proud of them.”
“Me, too. We’ve raised them well.”
I laugh and hold out a hand to him. “We’ve helped to give them the tools they need to fight back in a situation like this, and that’s why what we do with the Wild Widows is so important and necessary.”
“Does that mean you’ve decided to stay fully involved?”
“I have, and it’s because I want to, not because I feel I have to. Imagine Angela facing something like this without the support of our group.”
“I can’t.”
“Exactly. We can’t let these sweet, wounded people fend for themselves in this unforgiving world.”
“No, we really can’t,” he says, “and this situation with Angela and Brad has made me see that, too. Imagine if this had happened to us when we were first together and didn’t have the amazing support of the widows to prop us up. We might never have gotten to this day.”
“Oh, we would’ve gotten here one way or the other, but having their support definitely helped.”
“Would you have crawled naked intobed with me with a justice of the peace waiting at the bedside to entrap me into marriage?”
“If that’s what it took, but mad props for your vivid imagination.”
