“I’m not sure. I haven’t had time to think about it properly, since I’ve only just become aware of it.” Rosie glanced at the urn on the bookshelf. She’d put it in five different places before settling on that position, as temporary as it might be. Everywhere else had creeped her out. “I’ve had other things on my mind.”
“Is she there?” Lori shuddered visibly when Rosie nodded and jutted her chin toward it. “How are you feeling about everything? About your mom?”
Rosie topped up her wine glass before answering. “I’m grieving in a way, but I think I’ve been grieving all my life for the mom I never had. It could be that I’m all cried out.”
“Have you cried?”
She nodded. “But I find myself wondering what I’m crying for. It can’t be for all the good times we had?—”
“God knows, the only good thing your mom ever did was give birth to you.”
Rosie couldn’t argue with that. And she appreciated that Lori always had her back. “Do you think your parents will adopt me now that I’m an orphan?”
“I don’t see why not. I’ve always wanted a sister.” Lori chuckled. “It figures that you’ve processed quickly. Your relationship had been bare minimum for a while now.”
“Yeah, I guess it has. I’ve been pulling away since college, but I’ve never been quite able to make that final separation.” She shrugged. “Now I don’t have to because Mom’s done it for me.”
“Did you get the full story of how she died?”
Rosie recounted the details of her mom’s demise. When she finished, she waved the piece of paper with her mom’s last wishes on it. “Now I’ve got the memorial to organize, which includes some weird-ass requests, including black roses, which I don’t think even exist. And her estate to finalize, though that shouldn’t take long since she didn’t own anything, and I’ll bet that if she had anything of value at her house, Keith will already have taken it. Not that I have that address anyway.”
“So you never met this guy?” Lori asked.
“Nope. I suppose I should be grateful that he even called me. He could’ve just left her there in Mexico, and I would never have known what happened.”
“Small mercies.. How did Aunt Sheila react?”
“She didn’t. Not really. It was like I’d told her I painted my nails a different color.” Rosie shrugged. “She just wasn’t interested.”
“Is she coming to the memorial?”
“She said she would, yes.”
Lori took another sip of her wine, and Rosie took the opportunity to drink away some of the bile that had risen when she thought of Keith. She hadn’t spoken to him for long, but he’d managed to leave quite the impression.
“So what do you need me to do?” Lori pulled a notepad into focus and held a pen in the air. “I’m poised and ready to scribble.”
Rosie waved the offer away. “That’s okay. You’re sick. I can handle it on my own.”
Lori shook her head and wagged her finger. “I tested negative today. I’ve just got this nasty cough and some residual symptoms, but I’ll be fine. I’m really sorry that I couldn’t go with you to Tijuana, but nothing’s stopping me from helping you any way you need.”
“You not coming turned out just fine.” Images of Shay, mostly naked, and all the positions they’d taken each other in, covering almost the entire hotel room flicked through her mind, and she grinned. “Is it bad that I had such a good time with Shay when Iwas handling my mom’s death?”
“No. I think celebrating you’re alive is the best thing to do when you’re dealing with someone else’s death.”
Rosie liked the instant nature of Lori’s response. “That sounds like a bumper sticker.”
Lori laughed. “It’d have to be a pretty big sticker.”
“Anyway, enough about me.” Rosie shifted to lay on the couch to get more comfortable. “Tell me what’s been going on with you and Gabe.”
Lori groaned and harrumphed. “I haven’t been able to see her, except on screen and through the window when she brought Max back from Ellery’s.”
“Wait—what? Is Max okay? Did something happen while I was away?”
“Yeah,” Lori said. “Gabe was exercising Max off the lead, and he jumped over one of the fences. But he landed funny and went lame, and Gabe had to carry him back.” She clearly tried to suppress a grin.
“And that makes you smile because?”
