Loving a Man Who Forgot Me Novel Chapter 77
I ignored her and draped it over her shoulders. “I have long sleeves. You don’t.”
She didn’t fight me and worked her arms into the coat, pulling it tight around her.
Jesse walked over and dragged her into his protective embrace. “It’s okay, I got her.”
She laid her head on his chest, a few more tears were squeezed from her eyes.
My beautiful friend had such a sensitive soul. She’d struggled all her life, trying not to feel things as deeply as she did, believing there was something wrong with her.
It was no use though. There was nothing wrong with her, she just felt things on a different level than most, but it made her the most compassionate, caring person I knew, despite how hard she tried to hide it or appear tough.
And make no mistake, she was tough, just not in the unfeeling way I knew she sometimes wished she could be.
Leaving Jesse to take care of her and get her to a car, I sauntered ahead of them toward the exit with the last of the other stragglers.
Aunt Jax put her arm around my shoulder when I sidled up next to her, and we walked out together.
I broke away when we reached the parking lot, and walked over to the car where Jason was waiting with my family. Nobody spoke on the short drive to the church.
Unlike other memorials and funeral receptions I’d been to, this one wasn’t any easier or lighter than the funeral service itself. Usually some of the heaviness would lift as reminiscing began and stories and memories were shared.
It was too hard to look back on Molly’s life and see anything but this tragedy. She herself was so young, but Amelia, she hadn’t even gotten to live. Her first birthday was only last week.
How could you laugh or smile or think of anything except for how tragic and awful it was that she wouldn’t see her second?
Molly wouldn’t see twenty-five, and Jaime was left to go on without them both. I filled a plate with food, not even sure why, except that it seemed to be what everyone was doing.
I had no appetite, but I forced myself to pick at the different salads and casseroles, sitting around the table with my family.
Jason was on one side, Addie on my other. Abel, Jesse, and Colton also sat with us. The rest of our families were spread out amongst the little round tables all around us in the church’s reception hall. “Agh,” Addie sniffed, “My nose won’t quit running.”
“There are some tissues in my jacket pocket,” I told her. I thought nothing of her reaching into the pockets, until she pulled her hand out of the wrong one, clutching something other than tissues. “What is this?” she asked hoarsely, holding the ring up.
I cursed silently and snatched it from her fingers, but everyone at the table had already seen it. “Holy crap,” I heard my brother mutter. “Is that . . . an engagement ring?” Addie asked, wide eyed and bewildered.
I nodded jerkily. “Please don’t make a big deal of this right now. We weren’t planning on telling anyone until we got through this and back home.” Addie bobbed her head up and down, looking a bit dazed. “Yeah, okay,” she whispered.
I quickly met Jesse’s and then Colton’s eyes pleadingly, “Please, can you guys keep this to yourselves until we’re back home?”
They both agreed, albeit somewhat uncomfortably, and only then did I dare to look at Abel. There was no mistaking the raw pain I saw when our gazes collided, and my heart squeezed painfully, but he quickly shuttered it and cleared his throat. “Won’t say a word.”