kind of twinkle in his own eye. But he needed to focus on work instead of the absence of one woman and the appearance of another.
* * *
“JUST COME WITH US. It’s only dinner.”
Megs tried to hand Kelly her jean jacket, but she refused. “I’m not hungry. I’ll stay here.”
Megs folded her arms across her chest. “And mope and feel sorry for yourself? You’ve done enough of that already today.”
That wasn’t what Kelly had been feeling. She had missed her grandmother so much that the ache in her belly didn’t make food appealing. “I’ll be spending enough time with people over the next few days. I want to be left alone for a while. Is that too much to ask?”
Her sister opened her mouth, as if to say something, but shook her head. She tossed Kelly her jacket. “Fine. I’ll be back later. Call me if you want me to bring anything home for you.”
“I’ll be all right.” Kelly walked Megs to the door and glanced at Sam who sat in his pickup, staring at them. “You’re sure you two aren’t an item? He seems awfully attentive and concerned about you.”
“It’s called friendship.” Megs walked out the front door and down the steps to the truck and got in on the passenger side. Kelly held up her hand before Sam put the truck in reverse and backed out of the driveway.
Kelly shut the front door and leaned against it. Closing her eyes she listened to the night sounds of the house. The tick of the grandfather clock in the living room. The hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen. She lingered for another moment, and trailed her fingers along the smooth wooden banister as she stole up the stairs to her old bedroom. Once there, she flopped on the bed and stared up at the ceiling.
Grammy. The deep blue eyes that twinkled as she spoke of her life with Pop Pop. The white hair that she kept long and pinned on top of her head. Her tiny body wearing T-shirts and jeans underneath a pink apron with ruffles and pockets. She had often smelled of honey.
Grammy had grown up in Lake Mildred, and her own father had built the house she’d lived in until now. She’d married Pop Pop right before he shipped out to the Pacific during World War II and waited for him to return. Once Pop Pop was stateside, they tried for over a decade to have a child. She’d told the girls that their father had been a miracle baby because Grammy had given up hoping when she found herself finally pregnant. As much as she loved the bakery, she loved her son more and doted on him. When he died, a light dimmed inside Grammy, though she kept telling the girls that she was fine. Kelly remembered the look on her face each holiday as she stared at the empty chairs around the table.
And now hers would stay vacant, too.
Kelly flipped over onto her belly and sank her head into the pillow. She gave in to the despair she’d felt all day and sobbed.
Then there was a hand on her back. She shrieked as she found Sam sitting on the bed next to her. His voice was low, meant to be comforting. “I don’t mean to keep startling you.”
She propped herself up on one elbow and observed him. He looked as if he’d showered and changed since their meeting that morning. She could smell the faint but enticing traces of soap coming from him. “What do you want?”
His serious green eyes bore into hers. “You need to come to dinner with us.”
She shook her head. Didn’t they get the hint? “No. I already told Megs that I’m not hungry.”
“It’s not about the food. It’s not even about you, although I get it that you’re hurting, too. It’s about being there for your sister, who won’t insist that you come with us, even though it’s killing her not to.” He eyed her from head to toe. “She needs you right now. And if that means you paste a smile on that pretty face and pretend that going out to dinner with us is the best idea you’ve ever heard, then you do it.”
He thought she was pretty? She squelched the pride that compliment rose in her chest. “You’re wrong. She doesn’t need me.”
He shook his head. “The woman she loved like a mother is gone, and no one can ever replace her. But you’re a close second. So go wash your face and meet me downstairs in five minutes. And do it because you love your sister enough to be there for her. Understood?”
He made it sound so easy. But what did he know about losing the woman who had meant the world to her? He had been friends with her grandmother, sure. But Grammy had been her everything.
Just like she’d been for Megs.
Her refusal to go to dinner started to sound hollow in her ears now. Maybe she should go. Her sister appeared to be doing well, but what if she was as messed up as she was? What if the carefully constructed outside only covered up the grief and turmoil on the inside? She glared at him. “I may not have been around lately, but I love Megs.”
He picked up her jacket from where she’d hung it over the back of her desk chair. “Prove it by coming to dinner with us.”
She looked at the jacket, then snatched it from his hand. She stood. She thrust her arms into the sleeves. “Why does it matter to you, anyway?”
“Because I loved Addy, too. And tonight I want to be around people who loved her as much, if not more. I want to hear stories about her and remember the good times. I didn’t get enough of them, and I want to hear your memories.” Sam took a deep breath as she buttoned the jacket, then grabbed her purse. “Thank you.”
“I’m coming to dinner for Megs, not you.” She pulled her hair out from underneath the jacket.
“At least you’re coming.”
She followed him down the stairs and to the pickup truck. Megs sat staring out the passenger side window. When she saw Kelly joining them, she scooted towards the center of the seat. “I didn’t think you were coming.”
Kelly glanced at Sam’s figure as he walked around the truck and got in on the driver’s side. “Changed my mind.”
She kept her gaze fixed on the passing landscape as they drove the five miles from the countryside into town. Sam parallel parked the truck on Main Street, then hurried around to give a hand down to both of them. They strode down the street to the diner and entered. The overwhelming scent of grease in the air made Kelly’s knees buckle and wish she had more of an appetite. Instead, she followed Sam and Megs to a back booth and squeezed in next to her sister.
A waitress brought them menus, but Sam and Megs laid theirs aside. Obviously they knew what they wanted while she had no clue. A salad? Probably should, but it didn’t appeal to her. A burger? She remembered that Rick made the best, but she wrinkled her nose at the idea. She thought of Grammy and the dinners that she used to make for them when she was growing up. Grammy’s roast chicken with stuffing had been her favorite hands down, although her meatloaf was a close second. And real mashed potatoes.
She sighed. Comfort food wouldn’t heal her hurting heart, but it wouldn’t harm it, either. She skipped to the dinner section and settled on her choice. Meals ordered, Kelly sipped her ice water and tried to think of something to talk about. She glanced at Sam briefly, then settled her gaze on Megs. “Is anyone else feeling lost, or is it just me?”
Megs tried to smile. “I was thinking the same thing. We brought Grammy here every Tuesday night for their all
