I need something.
I need them.
“Just…this.” I gesture vaguely between the three of us, the warmth of their presence settling over me. “You two being here is everything.”
Dominic nods. “Consider us glued to your side, indefinitely.”
Elijah pulls me in close, shaking my shoulders against him. “Yeah, no chance of getting rid of us at this point, babe.”
Dominic nudges me. “Just…don’t shut him out completely, okay? You don’t have to have answers right now. But don’t make up answers that might not be true.”
I sigh, rolling my eyes. “How are you two so annoyingly rightallthe time?”
Elijah grins. “Because we’re amazing,” he says, practically crawling over me to give his husband a not-so-brief kiss. “See? We’re experts in emotional support.”
I huff a quiet laugh, pushing him off me, the tightness in my chest loosening just a little.
My heart still aches, and my mind still swirls with so many unanswered questions. About Hayden, about fate, about the tangled mess we made. But wrapped tightly between two people who’d brave any storm just to hold me together, I start to feel steady again.
Like the path ahead doesn’t seem completely impossible to walk.
• • •
The shop feelssmaller today, each ticking second pressing in.
Naomi begged to stay, using inventory and the loominggroundbreaking as leverage, but I needed space to fall apart without an audience.
Dominic and Elijah haven’t stopped hovering, dropping off elaborate meals I barely touch and flooding my phone with hourly threats of staging an intervention.
I’m rearranging the eucalyptus display again, my fourth attempt today, desperate for distraction, when the bell above the door jingles. My stomach tightens, bracing for Elijah and another aggressively healthy lunch.
But it’s not him. It’s my mother, standing uncertainly just inside the door. Alone. Uneasy. Eyes rimmed red and cardigan buttoned unevenly. My heart jolts sharply. I haven’t seen her look this shaken, this fragile, since we lost my brother, so of course my mind races to the darkest possibilities.
“Mom?” Panic chokes my voice, raw and immediate. “What’s wrong? Is Dad…”
“Your father’s fine,” she rushes to say, waving a hand. “He’s back at the RV. But I needed to talk to you.”
“I didn’t know you were back in town. Now isn’t really the best…”
“Five minutes. Please, Levi.” Her voice trembles, as if the effort of asking this much from me is nearly breaking her.
I exhale, gripping the counter for support. “What’s going on?”
She steps forward slowly, her eyes locked on the worn tiles, like the answer might appear in the seams if she stares hard enough. “Hayden,” she says softly, confusion coloring each syllable. “I know it’s not possible, but I can’t shake this feeling he was at your brother’s funeral.”
My chest tightens, a suffocating ache zipping straight up my spine. “Mom, no, no…” I start, exhaustion from carrying a secret that’s not mine slipping into my voice. “That makesliterallyno sense.”
Mom looks up, brows knitted together in disbelief, as though grappling with a memory that refuses to align with reality. “I know you’re right.Of courseyou’re right. Ignore me…There’s just something about his…”
A brittle laugh escapes. “I’d really rather not talk about Hayden, if that’s okay with you.”
Her confusion shifts into concern. “Is…everything okay with you two?”
The pain sharpens, raw and fresh, the more I think about him. I glance away, frustration spiking hot beneath my ribs. “Not at the moment.”
“Oh.” Her voice wavers again, careful and tentative. “Honey, I…I didn’t realize. Do you want to talk…”
My head snaps up, anger flaring at the irony. “Talk about it?” The words feel foreign coming out of my mouth. Sharp and direct in a way I’ve never really allowed myself before. “Mom, when have weevertalked about anything that mattered? When did you ever ask how I really felt? I’m sorry, but please, let’s not pretend now.”
