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“Need a refill?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “No. I’m fine.”
I met Mia’s gaze across the table. Her mouth turned up at the corner and then she shrugged.
There was no murmur of conversation, and I ate in silence.
“Someone say something,” Darcy finally said. “I can’t stand the quiet.”
“Where are the kids?” Brooklyn asked. “I baked Lily’s favorite cookies.”
“She ran upstairs after we got back. Boxer went up to sit with her.”
“Two peas in a pod,” Doc said.
Darcy nodded. “Cam and Silas are playing video games.” She looked at Mia. “Thank God for your son.”
Mia reached out and took Darcy’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
“The three of us dogpiled in the bed last night,” she said quietly. “What am I supposed to do without him?”
Her eyes met Rach’s and the two of them shared something that the rest of us couldn’t understand. How could you go on after the love of your life died? The father of your children. The man who swore to love and protect you until death do you part.
“You put one foot in front of the other,” Rach said. “And you lean on us.”
“Whatever you need,” Allison said. “Any hour of the day or night, you call.”
“And we’ll answer,” Doc whispered.
“Because that’s what we do,” Brooklyn chimed in.
“And if you need us to drive over in the middle of the night, we’ll do that too,” Willa added.
There we all sat—mothers, wives, friends. We’d be there for each other through it all. Births, deaths, and everything in between.
Because that was life.
Chapter48
Two days later,I was the proud new owner of a silver Toyota Tacoma. Well, new to me. It was a used truck, but it was all mine.
“You look good in my truck,” I said to Viper as he climbed into the passenger seat. “You especially look good as my passenger prince.”
“That’s another sass added to the tally,” he stated, buckling himself in.
“How many does that make?” I asked.
“Three...hundred thousand.”
“So basically, what you’re saying is, I’ll never stop being sassy and you’ll never stop wanting to spank my ass.”
“Pretty much, yeah.” He leaned over, grasped my chin, and kissed my lips.
When he pulled back, I was an emotionally drippy mess. “Are you sure you don’t mind hanging out with Slash while Brooklyn and I cook?”
“Nah. It’s fine. Slash is a good guy. You’re finding your way, aren’t you?”
I nodded and turned the key in the ignition. “I wish there was something more I could do for Darcy. But I guess food is the language of grief.”
