His head turned suddenly.
Hope exploded inside me. Maybe he heard me or saw me. But his gaze slid right past me toward the center of the room. I followed his line of vision. A woman danced in the middle of the crowd surrounded by her friends, head thrown back in laughter, hands in the air completely carefree. Beautiful. Bright. Alive.
And the way Remy looked at her…like he had just found something he'd been searching for his whole life. The sight made my chest ache strangely.
Then everything faded. The music. The lights. The party. Gone.
Now I stood outside surrounded by sunshine so warm it kissed my skin. A soft breeze drifted through the air carrying the scent of flowers. White roses stretched endlessly around me.
The mood felt celebratory. Sacred almost. I stood at the end of a long aisle. Looking down toward the front, I saw Remy dressed in an all-white tuxedo. His eyes glossy with tears as he smiled.
Music swelled somewhere around us. I turned slowly. A woman stood at the opposite end of the aisle in a gorgeous white gown, her face hidden beneath light so bright I couldn't make out her features. But I felt her.
The love. Pure overwhelming love. It crashed into me so hard tears instantly sprang to my eyes. And Remy… He looked at her she was his everything.
Then I was gone again—
Now I was standing inside a delivery room filled with voices and movement.
"Push baby! You got this!" Remy's voice cracked with emotion. "I'm so proud of you."
I turned.
He was beside a hospital bed gripping a woman's hand tightly, kissing her knuckles over and over. The woman's face was hidden behind damp strands of hair sticking to sweaty skin as she cried out in pain.
Remy kissed her forehead desperately. "I love you," he whispered. "Thank you so much."
The woman lifted her head—
I gasped stumbling backward.
It was...me. Sweaty. Exhausted. Determined.
Moments later, a beautiful baby was cradled against my chest while tears streamed down both our faces.
Images started crashing around me rapidly after that—
Remy standing proudly at the opening of another restaurant.
Me laughing in his arms.
Melo older.
Family dinners.
Christmas mornings.
Dancing in the kitchen.
Arguments.
Kisses.
Life.
A whole life. So much love. Then suddenly—
Darkness. The warmth vanished instantly. I landed inside his bedroom. Different furniture. Different walls. The air felt thick and heavy. All I could feel was grief. Grief so suffocating it settled into my bones and stole the air from my lungs. A figure lay motionless on the bed. Remy collapsed beside it sobbing. Deep aching, body-wracking sobs that pierced straight through me.
