Page 39 of Come Back to Me

When the bell above the door rings and I glance up, my gut tightens as soon as my eyes lock on our first customer. Sara Moretti.

Acid crawls up my throat, and lead fills the soles of my feet.

“Pete said I might find you here,” she says. Her voice is meek and sweet. Just as I imagined she’d sound.

“Sara,” I finally manage. “Wh-what are you doing here?”

It’s not how I expected our first meeting would go, but I also expected this woman would be my sister-in-law someday.

“I’m sorry…I…I just meant, is everything okay?”

“I don’t mean to frighten you by showing up like this. It’s jus’, I’ve asked you to call…in my letters. And you haven’t. So I’m assuming you haven’t been getting them…my letters.” She tucks her dark hair behind her ear nervously.

The way her eyes sparkle and the timidity in them is an uncanny resemblance to Leo. It makes my stomach stir, and I worry I’ll be sick.

I swallow the rising lump in my throat. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you can understand, after your last letter, I couldn’t bring myself to read anymore.”

She purses her lips and blinks rapidly. “Then I’m glad I came. It was past due time anyway. I’ve been anxious to meet you.”

Without time to prepare for it, she throws her arms around me and brings me in close for a hug. It takes all my strength to resist crying. Sara is already doing enough for both of us.

“Here, why don’t you sit down on a stool. I’ll get you some coffee.” I round the counter and grab the kettle and a clean mug. While I pour the steaming coffee, Sara gets situated on the stool. “What are you doing here, Sara?”

“It’s Marco.”

My fingers still. “What is it?”

“He’s gettin’ married.”

My stomach drops to the floor. Probably my jaw too.

“We want you to come. Me, Marco, Daddy.”

“And your mama?”

She shrugs. “Mama will come around.”

“I don’t know what I ever did to her.”

“When we held the service for Leo…and you didn’t come…” Her voice trails. She doesn’t need to finish.

I put the kettle back and brush my hands over my apron. “I can’t come.”

“I haven’t even told you the wedding date.”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“Giana, please?—”

I slap my palms onto the counter and tingles shoot up my arm. “You had a funeral for him, Sara. You didn’t even know if he was dead, and your family had a funeral for him.” My lips tremble, and I cup my hand over my mouth.

“I know, I know. That was Daddy and Mama’s idea. They thought it would be good for closure.”

“Closure? What if he’s still out there? What if he’s stillalive? And he comes back to find out you held a service for a living man? It’s messed up.” I cross my arms.

Sara bites on her lip. “So, you still think he’s alive?”

“I don’t know,” I shout. I glance over my shoulders and then lower my voice. “But what I do know is, just because the military presumed him to be dead after one year of missing in action doesn’t mean I have to believe it.”

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