Lynn looked at her with a mournful expression. “My head is telling me that, but my heart is broken.” She shook her head. “Something keeps telling me that maybe I’ll never find anyone ever again.”
“That’s just the grief talking. And you have to do whatever you have to do to push through it. Cry, scream, yell, punch.” She made a face. “And if you’re going to punch someone, you probably should start with Kai.”
Lynn burst out laughing. “You always knew something was off about him, didn’t you?”
“He was kind of a walking red flag, but I definitely understand why you fell for him. He’s good-looking in a weaselly kind of way.”
Lynn dabbed at her eyes. “I’m sorry about crying so much, especially in a public place.”
Bailey leaned toward her. “You don’t ever have to apologize for that. Not to me or anyone. You feel how you feel.”
“It’s just that I think growing up, we all saw tears as weakness and something to be a little bit afraid of because of Mom and what she went through.”
“We all went through it, but I know what you mean.When she went through that depression, we were all just so happy when she rebounded that we wanted to keep the status quo. Keep up the smiles, don’t cry, don’t complain. Don’t talk about Dad.”
Lynn nodded solemnly. “It’s weird to compare the two, but I do feel as if I’m really mourning for the first time in my life.”
“Take your time with that. You need to go through it and feel whatever you want to feel. That’s how you’re gonna heal.” She reached out and patted her sister’s hand. “And you are going to heal.”
“I appreciate your faith in me. Some days I’m not so sure I can move forward.”
Bailey totally understood Lynn’s feelings. “That’s okay. One day at a time. Before you know it, you’ll be on the other side of this.”
Her sister heaved a gigantic sigh. Her body shuddered. “I’ll be counting the days, because at the moment I feel like roadkill.”
For a moment they just sat in the moment, gripping each other’s hands in solidarity.
“Hey, what are you drinking? Did you order anything?” Bailey asked her.
“No,” Lynn said, “my stomach has been in knots.”
“Let me get you a tea and we can share my omelet and hash browns.” It had been quite a while since she and her sister had spent quality time together as just the two of them. They needed to fix that.
Bailey heard her name being called, and she rushed up to the counter. She placed a tea order for her sister, and after a few moments it was ready. Bailey returned to the table andplaced the items down along with two plates and two sets of utensils for sharing.
“Dig in,” she instructed. “You have to keep up your strength.”
“Why are you being so nice to me? I’ve been a bit of a pain lately.”
Bailey met her gaze across the table. “Because no matter what, we’re sisters, and that’s for life.”
“That’s a good point,” Lynn said. “I couldn’t get rid of you if I tried.” She began to chuckle.
“And you did try,” Bailey said, referencing all the times Lynn had ditched her when she’d attempted to tag along on her childhood adventures.
“Those were the days,” Lynn mused. “Despite the accident, we had some amazing times.”
“We did,” Bailey agreed. Sometimes she needed the reminder that there had been happy times despite their loss.
Lynn sipped her tea and peered at Bailey from behind the rim. “A little birdie told me that you have a new boyfriend, by the way.”
Bailey stopped eating and looked across the table, feeling shocked. She couldn’t believe that anyone in her family had spilled the beans when she deliberately wanted to keep that information from Lynn.
“Who told you that?” Bailey asked.
Lynn giggled. “Who else? Gemma, our resident chatter-box.”
“Wait till I see her!” Bailey fumed. So much for keeping confidences.
