Page 28 of Marry Your Best Friend

I see the way my brothers are looking at me and Chrissy, but I don’t care. Right now, the only thing that matters to me is that Chrissy is going to be okay.

She fell asleep a little while ago. She started next to me, but the longer we’ve sat here, the more she’s burrowed into me, and it’s then I realized that she needs me just as much as I need her. Eventually, I moved her onto my lap and held her against my chest. She’s curled up on my legs, and my arms are locked around her. Her face is pressed against my neck, and I can feel her hot breath on my skin.

King continues talking. “So Ledger will be here on Wednesday. I’m planning the funeral for Thursday, is that okay?”

I nod, and so do Holden and Dom.

“What can I do, King? This shouldn’t all fall on you.”

King just shrugs. “You know Ledger. He had it all taken care of. Everything was laid out how he wanted it.” King nods toward Chrissy. “Does she know that he made her his beneficiary?”

I think back a few years ago when Ledger got King, Dom, Holden, and me together. He wanted to know what we thought about him putting Chrissy as his beneficiary. It’s what he wanted to do, but he didn’t want any of us upset with him about it. We all agreed and thought it was a good idea. “No, she doesn’t have a clue.”

King nods. “She’s not going to be happy about it.”

I nod in agreement.

Holden gestures to Chrissy. “She going to be okay?”

I shrug. “Yeah. She’s an empath, so she feels things ten times more than any of us do. Plus, she’s stressed anyway.”

Dom shakes his head. “Yeah, with her patient the other day and now this. Cat said she was thinking about changing jobs.”

I nod, recalling our conversation. “Yeah, she’stalked about moving from the emergency room to another department. She told me what she was thinking after her patient died and she was stressed out, and I told her not to rush into anything. I told her she should take some time and think about it.” I let out a breath. “Maybe I should have told her to just quit.”

None of the guys say anything, making me believe that they’re not sure what the right thing to do is either. We all know Chrissy, and for the most part, her job makes her happy. None of us want her to lose that.

Needing to change the subject, I ask King, “Did Ledger say where he wanted to be buried?”

King nods his head and leans forward. Haven, Luciana, and Cat all come into the room before he can answer. They each sit down with my brothers, and it brings me some peace to know that they each have someone to lean on right now.

King clears his throat. “So last year when Ledger came into town, I talked to him about this, and I know I should have talked to you all, but well, I dunno. If you don’t want it, you don’t have to take it, but it’s yours if you want it.”

Holden is the first to ask. “What is it?”

King is never uncomfortable, but he seems to beright now. He shifts in his seat. “I bought a few acres on Whiskey Mountain. It’s off Hidden Hollow.”

We all wait for him to continue. “Anyway, Ledger is going to be buried there. I got us all plots on the side of the mountain…” His voice drops, thick with emotion. “So we can always be together.”

Holden wraps his hand around Cat’s. “And our families?”

King smiles and nods. “Yeah, there's enough space for everyone in our families since it's getting bigger.”

I let out a breath. It's a weird thought, I know, but it makes me happy knowing we'll all end up on that same mountain someday. “Yeah, I’m good with it.”

My brothers look at their wives, and they nod, so my brothers agree too.

Chrissy shifts in my arms and starts mumbling, and I whisper to the room, “I should probably get her home.”

They all nod, and I gently wake Chrissy up. “Honey, we should go.”

Everyone stands up and Dom says, “Yeah, we should go too.”

Holden nods. “Yeah, we need to pick up Cole from his friend’s house.”

Chrissy stretches in my arms, then stands up and goes around hugging everyone and apologizing for falling asleep. We all walk outside, waving at King and Haven while we go. Chrissy’s house is just down the street, so the trip takes no time. It’s not until we pull into her driveway that Chrissy says anything. “I know this is going to sound really crazy. I mean last night I’m asking for a break, and then well, now… I don’t want to be alone.”

I’m worried about the way her voice is void of emotion. Chrissy has been through a lot through the years, and I’ve never seen her like this.

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