Page 29 of My Heart Before You

With both of them bundled against the brisk weather in hats, scarves, and gloves, he didn’t think he knew them until he saw a peek of a neon green collar from beneath the man’s navy peacoat. “You’re Bo.”

The old man’s bright smile wrinkled the entirety of his face. “You’re usually dressed in your medical scrubs, but I recognize the face. You come in with that red-headed fella.”

Colin felt his mouth lift in a grin as well. “Max. Yes, we work together.”

“Have you met my lovely wife, Mary?”

Holding his hand out to the woman, he said, “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure, though I’ve seen you at the restaurant. Colin. Nice to meet you.”

Mary held his hand firmly in her gloved grip. “Lovely to meet you.” Her eyes held the cloudy telltale of cataracts.

“What are you doing all this way north?” Bo asked.

The lab nosed his hand, and Colin gave his ears an affectionate rub. “I had the day off and thought the drive and seeing the beach would serve me well. What are you two doing here?”

“My sister lives up here. She couldn’t take the buzz of the city anymore, so we come up once a month to visit,” Mary answered.

The dog barked and pulled a bit on his leash towards the parking lot.

“We’d better get going. It was good running into you, son.” Bo took his arm from around Mary and held it out.

Shaking the man’s gloved hand, he said, “Good to see you too, and nice to meet you, Mary.”

Bo returned his arm around Mary and helped her navigate the plankwood walk back to the road. The dog bounded up the walkway and jumped into the opening rear hatch of their crossover. Bo gingerly placed Mary in the passenger side before heading to the driver’s side and putting the car into gear.

Colin inhaled the familiar briny scent of the ocean and felt his chest lighten.

Before him was an impeccable example of two people in love who spent decades of their lives together. Just because his family had seen tragedy didn’t mean that it was an automatic for him.

He turned toward the sea and the sky once more. “I love you both,” he said, allowing his gaze to settle over the horizon before fishing his keys from his pocket.

?Chapter 13?

Aslight line of grey light peeked through the folds of the blackout curtains and woke Emilie from her warm slumber. She turned away from the window to find an almost perfect reflection of herself on the pillow next to her, except for the distribution of freckles. The tips of Analie’s hair were still a shade lighter than their natural color—a leftover from when she’d dyed it. A large chunk was draped over her forehead, and the rest spread in messy knots across the pillow as she snored softly.

Shifting her weight towards the edge of the bed, Emilie silently slipped out. Analie tossed lightly, and Emilie froze for a few breaths, only padding to the kitchen when her sister settled again. Once she had a steaming mug of coffee in between her hands, she nestled onto the cushioned bench of the triple paned bay window seat. She’d moved some of the throw pillows from her loveseat here to make it an even more inviting place to sit. After a scalding first sip, she placed her coffee on the kitchen table beside her and gazed out the window down the street.

“Her elm,” as she’d referred to the lovely mature American Elm tree outside her window, had long lost its serrated, tear-shaped leaves and now stood naked in the brisk December air. Its branches reached to the clouds as if trying to grab the last fleeting bits of warmth from the sun before winter truly set in.

Today the sky was completely grey as far as she could see. She assumed it would be overcast the whole day, which always gave her the uneasy sensation of being trapped under a grey blanket or that she resided inside a snow globe. A sigh left her lungs as she laid her forehead against the cold windowpane.

“Is there another cup of that?”

Turning from her gloomy view, she found a disheveled Analie wiping sleep from her eyes. Her sister yawned and stretched her sweatshirt covered arms towards the ceiling exposing her midriff for the briefest moment. It was another funny difference between them. Analie was always cold and often slept in a sweatshirt, pants, and socks, while Emilie was always hot, opting for a tank and shorts. Before sliding out of her room this morning, she’d grabbed her bathrobe and slippers, so she was comfortable next to the chilly window.

“Mugs are above the coffee maker.” She pointed towards the kitchen.

Analie stumbled her way across the wide plank hardwood floor into the kitchen, grabbed a ceramic camp mug with “Let’s escape to the woods” printed on it, and filled it to the brim. “Sweet nectar,” she whispered into the cup.

Sitting opposite on the bench, her sister wove her sock-clad feet underneath her extended legs. Companionable silence stretched between them as they watched the movement on the street below and took tentative sips of their coffee.

“My weather app says it might snow two inches later today.” Analie pushed the hair from her long, wavy bob behind her ears.

“I wouldn’t be surprised. We had a dusting last week.” She took another sip, feeling her body and mind to wake up for the day.

“I'm surprised I slept in,” Analie said to herself, staring into her own mug.

“We were up late last night . . .” It felt like high school all over again, chatting with Analie until early this morning after she’d met her at the airport late last night. “. . . and you finally had your favorite teddy bear back.”

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