“I’d like to see that one day. They always look fascinating.”
“They can be fun. The next time I go to one, I can let you know if you’d like.”
He kissed me and tossed out his coffee cup. “I’d like.”
“Are you going to the next meeting? You know it’s on Friday this week, right?”
“Yeah. Are you?”
“Of course. I feel so bad for some of these people. My issues seem minor compared to what they’ve been through.”
Nate slid his fingers through my hair and cupped my jaw. “Don’t belittle what you’ve been through. Everyone deals with grief differently.”
“I guess. Meet you at the church?” I stepped away from his touch.
“Yeah. Drinks after? And maybe dancing?”
I had to laugh at the eager look in his eyes. “I haven’t been out dancing in years. I mean, I go out, but I always leave early.”
“Well, this time it’s with me. No leaving early.”
I knew I should go home and catalogue the new pieces that came in this week. My mailing list needed updating, and there were estate sales I needed to prepare for.
“Okay, sure. Sounds like fun.”
* * *
At Friday night’s group meeting, I sat next to Nate and returned the other group members’ smiles of greeting. I was sure Frisco would tell me to play the field and date both Nate and Monroe, who continued to chat with me before the meetings, but that was one game I wasn’t willing to play. Nate and I had set rules and boundaries, and I intended to stand by them. He was the man I wanted to be with now, and every time we talked or saw each other made it harder to say no to being with him, or to walk away.
Monroe brought the group to order. “Does anyone want to share something tonight?”
Elyse, the woman with the missing daughter, vibrated with excitement. “We found Kayleigh. She’d run away to Oklahoma with a man she’d met on the Internet. When he turned abusive, she waited until he passed out one night, then escaped and ran to the nearest police station. They called me, and I went to pick her up.”
We all clapped, and she stood. “I’m not going to stay because I don’t want to leave her, but I had to come tell you all. Never give up, no matter what it is you’re looking for. Thank you for everything.” She waved and left.
“That was so unexpected and wonderful. I always think we concentrate on the negative so much, we don’t celebrate the positives.” Monroe’s gaze swept around the room. “Does anyone else have anything positive to share?”
“I’ve been doing better.” My voice came out dry and cracked, and I cleared my throat. “I’ve been going out more, for lunch and dinner. My best friend sort of laid it on the line with me, saying there isn’t anything you can do for a person once they’ve passed, and that it’s often harder for the people left behind. We’re the ones grieving, but eventually you have to move on. And I think I finally understood he was right.”
Monroe gave me an encouraging smile. “That’s the first step. And possibly one of the hardest. Recognizing the need to let go will free you to look forward instead of dwelling on the past.”
Perhaps it already had. The excitement at seeing Nate for our dates, or even simply talking to him, surpassed anything I’d felt in years.
“I think you might be right.” It took all my strength not to look at Nate. I had to do this for myself. Everything in the past had been for Jared. This was my time. The change had to be for me.
“How about everyone else? Any breakthroughs or setbacks? If you voice your fears, many times you’ll be able to work through them with a fresh perspective rather than running them through your mind over and over again.”
“I’ve been better as well.”
I almost jumped, hearing Nate speak for the first time about himself. He’d talked before, of course, but it was always in response to someone else.
“Have you, Nate? That’s wonderful. Do you care to say anything more?”
I couldn’t tell if Monroe knew Nate and I had gotten close, but I thought I saw his gaze flicker between us.
“Not really, in case it’s an aberration. But I don’t think it is. And I know it’s because of the group. So I want to thank everyone. I’ll confess I didn’t put much stock in it at first, but hearing everyone speak and being courageous has helped me work through some things in my head.”
The people around the circle clapped for him and called out their support.
