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“I’ll be fine,” I promise.
“When do you go back to the Army?” Gray asks as he joins us.
“I don’t. I was medically discharged.”
“So, what are you going to do?”
“I thought I’d stay in Rosewood for a little bit. I need to clean up the house and take care of a few more things.”
“Then what?” Gray asks with a frown.
“Honestly, I don’t know. I think I might like trying to figure that part out though.”
My mind flashes back to the sway of Evangeline’s hips and my dirty fantasies.
“We’re on the fourth floor,” Gray tells us and I nod.
“I’m the third,” I say as he hits the button for the elevator. “Room 314, if you need anything.”
Gray just nods, and Nora leans against him, her eyes starting to droop.
“See you in the morning,” I say as we get to my floor and they both nod sleepily.
I head to my room but I can’t seem to fall asleep. I try pacing around the room, taking a shower, watching TV. Nothing works.
I stare at the ceiling, letting my mind go back to thoughts of Evangeline. I must doze off because I wake the next morning only remembering images of Evangeline spread out on a bed, flowers all around her, and that sweet smile on her face.
I groan, rolling over and climb out of bed. I want to go back to sleep and my dreams of Evangeline whispering dirty things in my ear but then I remember what today is and my mood plummets.
“Shit,” I say as I throw my legs over the side of the bed, dragging my hands down my face.
I shower and pull on the only suit that I own. I need to check in with the church and priest and make sure that everything is set. I should check with Gray and Nora and see if they want to ride together.
I take one last look around the hotel room before I grab my phone and call Gray. He answers, sounding groggy and I wonder if I woke him up.
“Hey, I was just calling to ask if you and Nora wanted to ride together today?”
“Yeah, that works. Nora is just getting out of the shower now, so we’ll be ready in twenty.”
“Sounds good. I’ll go grab us some coffee and food and meet you in the lobby then.”
“Thanks,” he says and we both hang up.
I wish that we could have deeper conversations. Every time we talk lately it feels like we never really say anything. I know that this is at least partly my fault. I’m the one who left and my job made it so that I couldn’t talk often or about what I was doing half of the time. I wonder if it’s too late for me to make this right.
We eat breakfast and Gray drives us all to the funeral in silence. I’m not sure if they’re still tired from their late flight or if the funeral is throwing everyone off.
We head into the church and I’m not surprised to see that it’s just the three of us here. Gray heads up to pay his respects and say goodbye and I take a seat in one of the pews. I’ve already seen him and I don’t need to say anything else to the bastard.
Nora and Gray join me in the pew and the preacher starts his sermon a few minutes later. It’s a little awkward to sit there and listen to the preacher go on and on about our dad being in a better place and walking with Jesus now. It feels like one of us should speak up and inform the preacher that there’s no way in hell our dad made it into Heaven.
Gray and I exchange a look and I can tell that we’re both thinking the same thing. I smile, holding in a laugh as I relax in the pew.
The funeral doesn’t last long and soon we’re filing back out to Gray’s car and following the hearse over to the cemetery and standing around his casket.
We form a small circle around the grave and watch in silence as the priest says a quick prayer as he’s lowered into the ground. None of us thought to bring flowers and his headstone seems bare next to the big ones on either side of him.
“Did you want a minute?” I ask, nodding toward the casket in the ground and Gray shakes his head.
