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She left the room to go fetch them, because she’d hidden them from her mother as Logan ordered, and returned to find Dara and Logan helping Rayna Jo up the stairs.
“Oh, the dishes. I left a mess.”
“Mama, don’t worry about that. We’ll take care of it,” Dara said.
Logan urged her mother on to her room and then took the bottle from Devon while Dara tucked their mother into bed.
Logan checked the paper wrapping and then opened it to pour two pills in his hand.
“Take these. Here’s some water,” he said, using the capped bottle from the bedside table.
Her mother managed to swallow despite the tears and turned her face into the pillow.
“I’m so s-sorry. I don’t know why I’m crying.”
Dara sat on one side of the bed, gently stroking Rayna Jo’s shoulder, while Devon curled up on the other side, cuddling her mother close. “It’s okay, Mama. Sometimes we all just need a good cry.”
“But why? Something feels wrong. What’s happening to me?”
Oz lifted his head when he heard an engine and gravel crunch in his driveway. Michael got out of his Jeep and lifted his chin in hello before bounding up the steps to the porch, where Oz sat facing the ocean.
“Still working on it?” his best friend asked.
The eulogy had taken hours and hours to write, with multiple attempts tossed into the trash. “I’m getting closer.”
“Thanks for doing that, man. I know the cousins appreciate it, but so do I. I’m not sure I’d know what to say.”
Oz nodded and set the pages aside. “You heading over there?”
“Yeah. I took the rest of the week off and stopped by to see if you wanted to go with.”
Oz inhaled and shifted his gaze out to the ocean. “I do but I’m not sure I should.”
“What’s that mean? Did something happen between you and Dev?”
He wasn’t one to kiss and tell, but talking didn’t seem to be such a bad idea. “We… had a moment.”
“A moment,” Michael repeated. “What does that mean?”
“It means we almost kissed.”
“Almost?”
Was he going to repeat everything? “Last night. We were talking and we were about to kiss when you yelled to see if I was ready to leave. Great timing, by the way.”
“Ah, man. I wondered why you were such a bear on the way home. Sorry about that. I figured it was just because of Devon supposedly being engaged.”
“She’s not now,” he corrected. “She’s giving the ring back.”
“Good thing. I mean, where is this guy? He should’ve come with her.”
Oz glared at the pages in front of him and nodded his head. “I asked her that myself. Told her he should be here, supporting her.”
“At least she’s aware of his loser qualities now. Do you know if she’s talked to him since?”
“No. No clue.”
“Well, if you’re done for now, why not come with me? You can test the waters again today.”
