Page 122 of When We Were Young

“You can’t do all that stuff at once.”

“I can. I’m a structural engineer, remember? I build plans for the foundations of heavy structures for a living. I know I can get a support system in place so that when you come home, you only have to rest.”

“I guess, if they truly don’t mind. But don’t coerce them into it.”

I laugh. “How am I going to coerce this group of people into anything? Let’s be realistic.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” The hint of a smile teases at the corner of her mouth. “Okay. I’ll try it.”

“You won’t regret it. I promise.” I pop up out of my seat. “So, I’m going to prepare for the gig tomorrow.”

“Oh, my God. I forgot about prep. Maybe I should reschedule.”

“It’s somebody’s bachelorette party. Do you really want to cancel this late? I promise you, I got this. You’ve tasted my culinary masterpieces. Plus, Hayden loves to cook so⁠—”

She presses a finger to my lips and it silences me. She’s quiet for a moment as she studies my face. Then she wraps her arms around me and rests her head on my shoulders. I cocoon her in my embrace.

“Holden?” she whispers.

“Yeah, sweetheart?”

“Can I tell you something that might make you think horribly of me?”

“You can tell me anything. But I would never think horribly of you.”

“Well... this isn’t...” She clears her throat. “I’m not going to the funeral because I cared about him any longer. Not like a dad, anyway. I’m going because it’s the right thing to do, I think. And to make sure that I won’t have any regrets… for me. That’s selfish.”

I kiss her temple and allow my lips to linger on her skin for a few beats.

“Baby, selfish is the last thing you are. It’s okay to take care of yourself, to do what you need for you. And I’m never letting you go again, so if you forget how unselfish you are, I’ll be there to remind you.”

Chapter Forty-One

Lizzie

Like a spider crawling on my skin or nails on a chalkboard. That’s what he sounds like.

“Hello, Liz.” A voice I hoped I’d never hear again—Landon.

An annoyed huff escapes my sister, Lindsay, as she sits next to me.

I turn my head and give him a blank stare. “What are you doing here?”

“What do you mean, what am I doing here? I knew your dad.”

“You may have known of him, but you certainly didn’t know him. So why are you at his funeral?”

He sneers at me. “My, my. You’ve gotten testy since I last saw you. I have to say, I don’t like it.”

“Listen, I don’t really want to do this right now. If you haven’t noticed, it’s really not a great time.”

“How have you been?”

Is he deaf? He’s literally pretending like I didn’t say anything. I ignore him and turn back to face my sister.

“How long do you think we have to stay here?” she asks.

“I don’t know. I think we could go now if we want.”