Page 45 of Someone to Remember
We’re quiet for a long time, so long that I wonder if she’s fallen asleep.
“If you die on me, I’ll never forgive you. I just want you to know that.”
I bite my lip to keep from laughing because nothing about this is funny.
“Thank you for letting me know.”
“I mean it.”
“I know you do.” I tug her in closer to me. “Come here.”
“I’m here.”
“Not close enough.”
She sighs dramatically and curls her sexy self against me, provoking the usual immediate reaction. “Put that thing away.”
I snort with laughter. “He can’t help himself. If you’re around, so is he.”
“How will she do it?”
“What? Who?”
“Taylor. How will she rebuild her life a second time?”
“She’ll find a way. She has to for the sake of her kids.”
“I couldn’t do it.”
“Yes, you could.”
“No, I really couldn’t. Somehow, I managed to survive losing Jaden, but you… If it happened to you… I’d never get over that.”
“You’d find a way for the kids.”
“I’m not sure I would. It’s not like I’m a helpless woman who can’t function without a man. That’s not what I’m saying. It’s that I can’t function withoutyou.”
“Aw, babe, that’s very sweet of you to say.”
“I’m not being sweet. I’m being serious. We’ve risen from absolute ashes to put together a life for ourselves that we both love. I’m just saying I can’t see myself doing that again.”
“Neither can I, so don’t you go anywhere either.”
“I’ll try not to.”
I run my hand over her back, hoping she’ll relax and get some sleep before the kids are up to run us ragged for another day.
“Adrian?”
“Yeah, hon?”
“I want you to know… I really, really loved Jaden. I loved him so much.”
“I know you did.”
“But this… After what we went through to get here… I just don’t know how I’d survive losing you. And honestly? It never occurred to me that it could even happen until I heard about Taylor’s husband.”
“We’ve all got an expiration date. Some just get more time than others. Gage always says life is a fatal illness.”
