Page 17 of Never Less

A tan woman with long, curly blonde hair meets us in the middle of the road. Her smile is bright as she takes me in. “Hi, Marcus. And you must be Liliana?”

“That’s me.” I extend my arm for a handshake, but I’m immediately pulled into a hug.

“None of that nonsense. If you’re with Marcus, that means you’re family. I’m Lori.”

My heart warms at the gesture, and I squeeze Lori gently. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“You too, darlin’.” She takes my hand. “Now, I hear you’re in need of a necklace?”

“I am,” I say with a smile.

I’m not sure why, but something about this woman sets me at ease. Her easy demeanor is rubbing off on me, and it’s like I can feel my stress slowly bleeding out of me.

“Marcus texted me and said it was an emergency.” Lori’s eyes sparkle as she pulls me across the lawn. “I’m neighbors with Char, so I brought a couple things down from my bedroom. Here, they’re on my porch.”

“Oh, wow,” I breathe as we step up. She brought her whole jewelry box down. “Thank you so much. I feel so stupid for forgetting. And I know it’s just a necklace and it doesn’t really matter, but I—”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me.” Lori’s voice is gentle and reassuring, matching the expression on her face. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look beautiful.”

I relax, nodding as Lori shows me her different necklaces. They’re all pretty, and it looks like we have similar tastes. It feels like more than just a coincidence that Marcus texted Lori instead of one of his other friends.

“… and this one—well, I’ve never worn it, but I think it’s so pretty, don’t you?” She holds up a delicate silver chain with a tiny star hanging from it.

A gasp escapes me before I can stop it. Little star.

“You like it? Here, let’s put it on you so you can see what it looks like.” She steps around me and clasps it behind my neck. “Oh, I don’t have a mirror out here. How about I take a picture and show you?”

“Sure,” I say with a nervous giggle. It feels so weird for a stranger to be helping me this much, but it looks like Lori is enjoying herself.

She takes a picture and then shows me on her phone. “What do you think?”

“I love it. You like it?”

“I think it works quite well. What about you, Marcus?” Lori turns me to face him.

For a second, I’m caught in his gaze, unable to move. The look of admiration in his eyes catches me off guard and keeps me frozen in place. And with him dressed in sharp navy blue pants and a crisp white shirt, he looks stunning himself.

“I think it’s perfect,” he says softly.

Lori glances between us, and I realize Marcus and I have been staring at each other for a few seconds too long. With a cleansing breath, I tear my eyes away from him and refocus on Lori.

“Thank you so much,” I tell her. “I appreciate it a lot. I can give the necklace back once—”

“Oh, no, darlin’. Keep it.” She squeezes my arm. “It suits you better, I think.”

I just about melt into a puddle. There’s only so much kindness and generosity a girl can take before she bursts into tears. “T-thank you.”

“Now why don’t you two head off to the party. I’ll be over in just a sec.”

Marcus takes my arm as I step off the porch. Even though I try to hide it, he hears my sniffle. “You need a minute?”

“I’m fine.”

“Don’t lie to me, Liliana.” His voice is quiet but firm. He stops halfway down Lori’s driveway, his grip on my arm strong enough to force me to stop but not painful.

“I’ll be fine.” Somehow I’m able to keep my voice from wobbling. “The past couple days have just been a lot. A distraction would be nice, honestly.”

For a few seconds, Marcus watches me, probably trying to gauge just how close I am to losing it. But then he nods, and we make our way into the house. When we find Charlotte and John, they both pull me into hugs.

---