AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We’ll leave you to go through these other things alone. They were very special to Seth, and I know you’ll need some time.”
Jesska nodded, tears streaming freely down her face. Mr. King rose to his feet, helping his wife out of her seat, and Jesska walked them to the door. Before they left, Mrs. King wrapped her arms around Jesska. “You will forever be welcome in our family. Don’t ever feel you have to call ahead or tiptoe around us. We love you as a daughter, and that will never change.”
“Thank you,” Jesska managed to squeak out. Seth’s mother released her and stepped outside, her husband following after he’d hugged Jesska.
She closed the door behind them and dropped her forehead against the door.
“Jess?”
She faced her brother and wiped her tears. Cameron hadn’t left her side since that day. He’d even gone so far as to pack a bag and move into the guest bedroom. “You okay?” he asked.
She shook her head, sobs welling up in her that she didn’t think would ever stop.
Cameron pulled her against his chest. “Oh, Messka, it’s going to be okay.”
“No it won’t. It’ll never be okay,” she cried, and pulled away from him. “It’s my fault.”
“What do you mean?”
“If I’d just kept my mouth shut, they wouldn’t have argued, and Jason wouldn’t have killed him.” She dragged her nails up her arm, relishing the pain. “If I’d just said nothing, he’d be here with me. We’d be planning our trip and then getting married. It should have been me that died. Not him.”
“What can I do?” he asked, his eyes searching hers. He was always wanting to fix things.
“Just leave me alone. Please. I just need to be alone.” She grabbed the bag that Mr. King had brought and ran upstairs to her room, slamming the door behind her and collapsing on her bed in a puddle of tears. She opened the little blue box and stared at the engagement ring before lifting it out of the satin and sliding it on her finger. The ring clinked as it touched her promise ring, and it fit perfectly. Of course it did. Seth knew her better than anyone, and did everything right all the time.
With a determination she didn’t really feel, Jesska forced herself to sit up. She gently poured the contents of the paper bag onto the middle of the bed. She sorted everything into chronological order. Her OCD tendencies were the only thing helping her to cope at the moment.
She smiled, running her finger over the face of the little teddy bear holding a heart that she’d given Seth on their first Valentine’s Day. She remembered being so nervous. She’d never given a boy anything before, and she wasn’t even sure he liked her. But he’d surprised her with roses and, when their parents weren’t looking, he’d kissed her. It had been her first kiss ever and the first of many to come between them. She laid her fingers against her lips as the memories flooded her mind.
Jesska touched every item on her bed, committing the emotions to memory. Every picture tore at her heart more and more, but she forced herself to look at them, even though she thought she might die of sadness. A knock at her door sounded but she ignored it. It came again, and she scowled. “Go away.”
Her brother pushed open the door. “I brought you something to eat.”
“I’m not hungry.”
Cameron set the tray on her desk and sat in her chair. “Jess, you have to eat. Megan and Sophia are downstairs, and Megan’s threatening to come up here and force-feed you.”
“Why?”
“Because you haven’t eaten in two days!” Megan pointed out as she forced herself inside.
“I thought you were downstairs,” Jesska grumbled. Her siblings were everywhere.
“I was. But now you’re going to eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” she insisted.
“Well, you have to eat,” Megan said gently as she pushed into Jesska’s room. Megan was in her forties, but barely looked thirty. Jesska thought she could have modeled, but law was Megan’s passion. That and her daughter, Sophia.
“I would just puke it up,” Jesska muttered.
“Cam, give us a minute, okay?” Megan said.
Cameron nodded, rising to his feet and walking out the door, pulling it closed behind him. Megan sat on the edge of the mattress and slid Jesska’s hair away from her face. “Did Seth’s parents give you this stuff?”
Jesska nodded.
Megan grasped her hand, staring at the ring. “Oh, Jessie, it’s beautiful. He did well, didn’t he?”
