Then she turned the tables on him, watching his face carefully. “How did your date with Holly go?”
Jack stiffened slightly. It was subtle, but Jane noticed. Concern hit her immediately, a spike of worry for her father, who had finally seemed to be finding happiness again.
“It was great. Holly is always good company.” But his voice sounded off. Forced casual in a way that set off alarm bells in Jane’s mind.
“You should get going if you’re going to meet your party in an hour,” Jack said, clearly changing the subject. Clearly, closing down the conversation before Jane could ask more questions.
Jane stared at him for a long moment. She knew something was wrong. Could see it written in the tension of his shoulders, the guardedness in his eyes. But she didn’t push. She left the officequietly, her mind now spinning with worry about her father as well as her own situation.
Alone in her room, Jane sat on the edge of her bed and thought over what Pamela, whom she refused to call her mother, had said about a genetic disease.
A moment of panic ripped through her, sharp and breathtaking. She had heard of diseases like this. Knew they could have devastating effects on a person. Progressive. Debilitating. Life-altering.
Is that what her maternal grandmother had died of? Jane tried to remember, to pull up memories from her childhood. She realized with a start that she knew so little about Pamela’s family. She had never met them. Pamela had never spoken of them. It was as if that entire side of Jane’s heritage simply did not exist.
Jane glanced at the clock on the wall and was surprised to see it was almost time to meet Gabe, Trinity, and Maddy. The hour had slipped by while she sat there spiraling with questions and fears.
She finished getting dressed quickly. Jeans, a warm burgundy sweater, and comfortable boots. She tied her hair back in a ponytail and checked her reflection in the mirror. She saw fear in her own eyes, but she took a deep breath and pushed it down. Tonight was about dresses, junk food, and normal teenage fun with the girls. Not about Pamela. Not about diseases. Not about fear.
Jane went to meet them in the lobby. They were already there waiting, and Trinity and Maddy were practically bouncing with excitement, their energy infectious.
Jane’s heart did a flip when she saw Gabe. He was dressed in jeans and a dark blue shirt that brought out his eyes, making them seem even more intense than usual. His bomber jacket was draped over his shoulders while he balanced on his crutches, and Jane felt warmth spread through her chest at the sight of him.
She couldn’t help but smile. All her problems seemed to fade in that moment, pushed back by the simple pleasure of his presence and the infectious innocence of the two teens.
“You were going to drive with that cast on?” Jane asked, gesturing to his injured leg with a teasing smile.
Gabe grinned sheepishly. “Okay, so I didn’t only invite you for the company.” He admitted it with such honesty that Jane laughed. “We need a driver.”
The girls giggled at his confession. Trinity rolled her eyes fondly at her father, clearly used to his straightforward admissions.
Jane took the keys that she knew were for Holly’s car. “Come on then. Let’s go before the stores close.”
They left the inn together, the girls chattering excitedly about the dresses they wanted to find. Gabe managed his crutches beside Jane, and she felt lighter than she had in hours. Maybelighter than she had felt since Pamela had walked through those doors.
The drive to St. Augustine was filled with the girls’ excited planning. Trinity wanted something sparkly but not too sparkly. Maddy wanted something elegant but not too grown-up. Jane found herself smiling at their twelve-year-old logic, at their earnest deliberations over colors and styles.
By the time evening had fully settled over the historic streets of St. Augustine, Jane and Gabe were sitting on a bench at the Christmas fairgrounds. They were eating hot dogs while bags of dresses and gifts were piled beside them. The girls had found their perfect dresses after visiting what felt like every shop in the city, and now they were roaming around the fair having fun, riding the carousel, and looking at craft booths.
“I was dragged from dress shop to dress shop,” Gabe moaned dramatically. “And you were worse than the tweens.” There was a teasing accusation in his voice that made Jane laugh.
“That’s what you get for asking a woman to be your company supervising tweens and dress shopping,” Jane told him, enjoying his teasing. It felt good to laugh. Felt normal in a way nothing had felt normal in years.
The moment quieted and sobered. They fell into a comfortable silence, watching people walk by bundled in coats and scarves, listening to Christmas carols drifting from speakers hidden throughout the fairgrounds.
Gabe broke the silence, turning to her. “Are you okay?” His voice was gentle. Serious.
Jane was astounded by the question. Her family asked her that all the time. But this felt different. Deeper. It was a question from someone who understood what it really meant to ask. Who understood that “okay” could mean a thousand different things.
Jane didn’t deflect the way it had become her habit over these past three years. She didn’t shrug and say “I’m fine, really” with that practiced smile that fooled no one but let everyone pretend.
Instead, she surprised herself by opening up. “I honestly don’t know.” Her voice was quiet but honest. “It’s a shock. I’m finally deciding to start really living each day again, and it’s like fate just slapped me in the face with yet more potentially devastating news.”
“I understand more than you know,” Gabe said quietly. There was something heavy in his voice. Something personal and painful. “Can you keep a secret?” he asked, meeting her eyes directly.
“Of course,” Jane said immediately. She meant it completely.
Gabe took a deep breath, as if steeling himself. “When I broke my leg, there was more to it than just a fracture.” He paused, choosing his words carefully. “I took shrapnel. A piece lodged near my femoral artery. It’s too dangerous to remove.”
