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Most are of Jack in his youth, and these are just as interesting. I try not to linger too long on the photos of him in his twenties—Navy uniform, bright brown eyes, gorgeous smile. He’s shirtless in some of them with his perfect physique and shredded abs. I’ll have to come back to these later and take a longer look while he’s busy in the shower. I might even have to sneak some of them when I leave.
“Oh wow,” I whisper when I spot a photo of Jack and my dad. They’re in their Navy SEAL gear in some jungle. My father looks just how I remembered him. Tears fill my eyes as I stare at his gorgeous smiling face.
He has his arm on Jack’s shoulders, looking so carefree and happy.
“That was the day he found out your mom was pregnant,” Jack says. “He couldn’t wipe that smile off his face.”
I graze my finger over his face, smiling through my tears as I picture him finding out that he was going to be a father.
“Do you miss him?” I ask.
Jack looks like he’s holding back tears. “All the time.”
I turn back to the photo and this time I look at Jack. He’s so handsome in the picture, but I much prefer the older version in front of me. This young Jack may have the youthful energy and exuberance, but he’s missing the wisdom and softness behind those brown eyes that my Jack has.
“I always felt so… horrible, about what happened,” he says. “I want you to know, Ruby, that I would change spots with him if I could. I wish it would have been me who died and then you’d still have your father.”
“Don’t say that ever again,” I say as I look at his blurry face. I wipe the tears from my eyes and sniff. “He was being what he was born to be—A hero.”
Jack lets out a long sigh. “He was definitely a hero.”
“I’m glad you’re here with me right now,” I say as I touch his big hand. “I’m glad he saved you.”
We look at each other for a long moment and then a picture of my mother catches my eye. I grab it out of the box and smile when I see her in her wedding dress. It must be the end of the night because she looks tipsy as hell.
More happy tears flood my eyes as I start cycling through the photos. They’re all photos of the wedding, but they’re not the staged, everybody-standing-still-for-the-photographer kind of photos. These are the backstage, unrestricted access shots.
I laugh when I see a photo of my mom and dad taking a shot. More pictures are of them dancing on the dance floor, kissing at the head table, my mom sleeping on my dad’s shoulder at the end of the night. He looks so happy as he kisses her head.
“These are amazing,” I say as I cycle through them again. “I’ve never seen anything like these before. What I wouldn’t give to go back in time and be a fly on the wall. To see them so young, so happy, so…”
It’s so overwhelming. The emotions get the better of me and I start crying for real.
Jack gets up and stands behind me. He wraps his big warm arms around me and holds me as I cry. “It’s okay, baby girl,” he whispers. “Wherever they are, they’re thinking of you.”
I put my hand on his forearm and take a deep breath, trying to get a hold of myself.
“You can take those with you,” he whispers. “I want you to have them.”
I shouldn’t accept such a precious gift, but I do. “Thank you,” I whisper back. “Thank you for everything, Jack.”
“Anything for you, baby girl,” he says as he gives me one more hug before letting go. “Anything for you.”
Chapter Seven
Ruby
After the emotional morning, we head outside and have some fun.
Jack takes me on a breathtaking hike. Literally. The mountain is so steep and he moves so fast that I’m huffing and puffing by the time we get to the top.
“What do you think?” he asks with a grin when we arrive at the summit. I spin around, taking in miles of gorgeous mountains, the picturesque little town below, the trees, the rivers, the lakes—it’s untouched wilderness and it’s fucking perfect.
I haven’t been in a natural wonderland like this since I was a kid. It warms my soul and fills my heart. I can already feel the trauma and horror of what happened slipping away like it was all a bad dream. I feel lighter and more at ease.
No stress from work and the constant grind. I’ve needed a vacation for so long. I may only be hiding out and it’s going to be a lot more stressful when I have to eventually remerge into society worse off than I was before—no job, no more sticker company, no apartment, no stuff—but I’m going to take what I can get. I decide to treat it like a vacation and give myself a well-deserved break.
