Chapter 54
FIFTY-FOUR
“Sometimes the thing we need most is right in front of us.”
—excerpt from the unpublished memoir,
Darling, I Must Say by Gloria Hayes
ME: I’m at your front door.
The porch light flickered to life a second before the door opened to reveal Abe.
“Iris?”
“She’s gone.” My breath hitched as another wave of grief rushed through me. This time I didn’t hold back the sob or the tears that followed.
“Iris,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry.”
His arms were wrapped around me, holding me up, taking part of the weight pressing down on me. He didn’t say anything, just let me hold on.
I’m not sure how long we stood there. Seconds, minutes, hours.
He pulled away. With his hands on my cheeks, he tipped my head up, so we were eye to eye. Gently, he wiped away my tears.
“Come on.” He took my hand and guided me inside, then led me to the couch. He sat and pulled me onto his lap. I buried my face in his neck and started crying all over again.
He never let go.
At some point, I’d fallen asleep. When I woke, it took time for the fog in my brain to clear enough for me to figure out where I was. Lying on a couch, the heavy, comforting weight of an arm wrapped around me. Abe.
And just like that, it all rushed back. Gloria was gone.
Abe’s arm tightened. “Hey.”
“She’s really gone, isn’t she?”
“Yeah.” He pressed a kiss to the top of my head.
“Who’s going to boss me around all the time? And… and make me write down those ridiculous quotes for the memoir she’s never going to write? Who am I going to tell all my secrets to?”
I turned around so I could face him. His hair was a wild mess of curls. I pushed it out of his face.
“When Kathy called and told me, you were the only person I wanted to see. I don’t even remember driving over here. I just knew I needed to see you.”
His eyes were dark and watchful. He held himself so still and yet, I knew he was hearing every word I was saying.
“One of the last things she said to me”—my voice caught—“was that you would always take care of my heart. She said I should never let you go. But I’m not sure if I even have a hold on you.”
“You have such a hold on me, it’s hard to breathe sometimes.” He kissed me softly, sweetly.
“There are a lot of things we have to work out and it will be messy and hard and—” I said.
“—and it will be worth it.” He kissed the tip of my nose.
“Are you sure? I still don’t quite have a plan. And our families are going to have opinions.”
“They already have opinions now.” He kissed my cheek.
“I might not be worth the trouble. I lie a lot. That’s a character flaw you should take into consideration before you go making any declarations.”
“I can always tell when you’re lying.” He smiled. “I talk to plants.”
“That’s not a character flaw. That’s just adorable.”
“We’ll figure it out,” he said.
“We’ll figure it out,” I repeated.