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I’d been deprived of this basic human contact and now that I had it again, I realized how much I needed it. As I breathed out, Briana filled in the space and I just felt…still. Calm. Grounded.

“I wasn’t even nice to you,” she whispered into my neck.

“You’re nice to me,” I said quietly.

She pulled away and peered up at me with wet eyes, her chin quivering. “Jacob, how can I ever thank you for this? There are no words.”

I dug in my pocket and handed her a tissue from the pack I always carried.

She took it and dabbed under her lashes. “Thank you.”

She was calming down a little. Catching her breath.

I studied her while she regained her composure. So beautiful. Even crying, she was beautiful. I felt like I should look away from her, but I didn’t even know how. I still felt the hug, even though it was over, and it disabled something inside of me again, just the way she did that first day in Benny’s hospital room. I was rendered frozen and speechless and completely at her mercy, and I had to wonder with a touch of awe and amusement if she had bewitched me. If I was under some spell. Because I’d never felt like this before, this compelled to do something for someone I just met, this drawn to anyone.

Maybe she’d started that coven after all.

She sniffled and looked up at me. “Jacob, you have changed his whole life. Like, I know you know, but you don’t know. My brother is alive again. He’s him again.”

I gave her a soft smile. “Good.” Then I tilted my head. “How did you find out?” I asked.

She wiped under her eyes. “Gibson. I think he slipped.”

I nodded. “Ah.”

I guess that was a fair mistake. He didn’t know I was donating anonymously. I hadn’t even seen him yet today.

We’d managed to keep this under wraps for an entire twelve hours.

“I would really appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone else,” I said.

She shook her head. “I won’t. I promise you I won’t. Are you mad at him for telling me?”

I slipped my hands into my pockets. “No. It was an honest mistake.”

“You should text him and tell him. He’s probably freaking out.” She sniffed.

I nodded. “Okay.”

She gazed into my eyes. “Do you know what today is, Jacob?” she asked, peering up at me. “It’s the day my divorce is final. I don’t know if you knew that, that I was married?”

“You had a wedding ring in some of your pictures.”

She nodded, looking down at the tissue in her hands. “I didn’t think that there was anything that could have made today okay.” Her eyes came back up to mine. “But then this happened.” She smiled up at me, blinking through tears. “This is one of the best days of my life, on one of the worst days of my life. And all I’m going to remember when I think about it is you and what you’ve done. Thank you so much.” She choked on the last word.

I didn’t know what to say. So I didn’t say anything at all.

Silence was always my default response. Sometimes things are easier to understand when unsaid. Sometimes words complicate things and make them murky. This moment didn’t need them.

We just stood there. Me with my hands in my pockets and her dabbing at her eyes, gratitude coming off her in waves.

For so long I’d wanted this kind of admiration from Amy—and even this wasn’t really real. Briana was just grateful and excited, and it would wear off. But it felt good anyway.

My phone chirped in the silence.

I cleared my throat. “That might be Gibson. I should probably check it.”

I pulled out my cell and sighed looking at it. A missed call from Briana that I hadn’t heard and five texts from Mom. She was asking about tonight.