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“Hi, Sienna.” She had a package in her hands that she held out. “This came for you earlier today, but it looked like rain and I didn’t want it to get damaged sitting out on the porch, so I brought it inside. I hope you don’t mind.”
Taking the package, Sienna smiled at her. “Not at all. Thank you! Are you doing okay?”
“Oh, you know me...every day is a blessing,” the older woman said. “But just so you know, I’m going to be out of town for a while starting tomorrow.”
“Really? Where are you going?”
“A cruise! My girlfriends and I decided it was time to do something fun for ourselves,” she explained. “We know it’s the holidays coming up, but we all talked about it and felt like it was okay to miss Thanksgiving this year. We’ll be home for Christmas.” Then she grinned. “The thought of being someplace tropical instead of here where it’s cold makes me giddy!”
“I know that feeling well!”
“You’re young, Sienna! What are you waiting for? Travel more!” And with a laugh, she took a step back. “Anyway, I need to go. Jeopardy is about to come on and I never miss an episode. Have a good night!”
“You too!”
Closing the door, Sienna glanced at the package and the return address and frowned.
It was from the hospital where Eleanor had been.
“Okay, that’s a little odd,” she murmured as she walked back to the sofa and sat down. Staring at the box like it contained an explosive, her heart began to race. And rather than open it, she immediately reached for her phone to call Mick.
“Hey, beautiful,” he whispered, and that’s when she realized he was busy.
“I’m sorry,” she blurted out. “I didn’t even consider the time difference.”
“Uh-huh...” It was obvious he was distracted.
“It’s not important,” she told him. “We can talk tomorrow.”
“Are you sure? I’m in a meeting and then have two more after this and a late dinner scheduled, but...”
“No, no, it’s okay. Really. Like I said, it’s not important. Go and we’ll talk tomorrow.”
“Okay, great. Bye.”
It was the first time he didn’t say he loved her when he hung up and while it made her heart sink a little, she knew he was just being professional while in a meeting.
It was a wonder he picked up the phone at all.
She had no idea how long she sat there simply staring at the package, but ultimately her curiosity got the better of her and she took it to the kitchen to get a pair of scissors to open it.
After digging through a layer of packing peanuts and then tissue paper, she found a photo album.
Actually, it was a photo album that said Our Adventure Book on the cover.
“What in the world...?”
Once again, she walked back to the living room and sat down. Flipping open the book, she found an envelope with her name on it and had to fight back tears as she opened it.
If you’ve got this book in your hands, then you know I’m gone.
How cliché do I sound right now?
This book is a labor of love that my wonderful care team encouraged me to do. After listening to me talk about you and then sharing all the pictures and texts and gifts you were sending me, it seemed like a great idea. So this, my dear friend, is something for us both to remember. Consider it like a gift that keeps giving and promise that you’ll take it off the shelf and dust it every once in a while when you’re feeling a little claustrophobic in your life.
Although, I’d like to think that Michael won’t let that happen ever again.
And can I just add that I know his given name is Michael, but when I look at these pictures, he’s definitely more of a Mick. I can tell he’s got that sexy, rock star swagger.
