Through tears, I made myself keep going.
“I didn’t know what to say, so I just patted his shoulder and told him everything would be okay. To just give it time. A few weeks later, he was dead. If I’d just stepped in then. Well, you all know the bargaining thing.”
Nods around the room.
“But as I was sitting there, looking at the ocean in the dark, everything sort of fell into place. I wasn’t unsure about how Ifelt about Delphine. I was terrified—to love someone who might leave.”
“Like Nate left,” June said softly.
“Yeah, that,” I said. “When I was with Becca that night, dropping off the photos, she said something that actually penetrated my thick skull. Nate’s legacy should not be a lesson on fear and avoiding love and entanglements. She said that would be tragic. And she’s right. But as you all know, it’s not easy. Losing him the way I did rocked everything I thought I knew about life and the world.”
More nodding from around the circle.
“What does that mean to you? Actionably speaking,” Ellen asked. “Are you ready to tell Delphine how you really feel?”
“I am,” I said. “Even though I’m not sure she’ll be open to hearing it.”
“You might be surprised,” Lorrie said, picking up her knitting from the bag at her feet.
“If you say it right,” Mateo said. “Apologize. Tell her you were wrong.”
“Becca said she needs more than words,” I said. “But I don’t know what that would be. Words are all I have.”
“It will come to you,” Ellen said. “We all believe in you.”
Everyone chimed in with yes andfor sureandyou got this.
“Thanks, guys, for listening,” I said. “This group’s meant so much to me.”
“Does anyone else want to share?” Ellen asked.
“I have an update,” Everett said. “I mentioned I was going on a date. Someone I met online.”
“Oh, yes, how did that go?”
“No sparks in person, but it wasn’t as hard as I’d worked it up to be in my mind, so I kept my profile up. A few days later, I had a match and a message. We really connected online, so I asked her out.”
“And?” Ellen asked. “Sparks?”
Everett glanced at June. “As it turns out, I knew her already.”
“We were corresponding without realizing who we really were,” June said. “Isn’t that crazy?”
“Crazy?” Lorrie asked, chuckling. “Perhaps divine intervention.”
“When did you figure it out?” Mateo asked.
Everett grimaced, but he was smiling. “When I walked into The Pelican and saw her sitting there— first I thought, what a coincidence that she was there the same night I was. I’m not the brightest bulb, apparently.”
June nodded, leaning forward, her eyes shining. “I had no idea it was a friend from support group on the other side of all the messages we’d sent to each other through the app.”
Ellen, for once, seemed flummoxed. “I’ve never heard something like this. Not in all the years I’ve been doing this.”
“So what did you do when you saw each other?” Mateo asked, sounding as if he wished there were some popcorn to go with this fascinating show.
“It took us a minute to figure it out,” Everett said. “When we did, we laughed and laughed.”
“Then we had dinner and laughed some more,” June said.
