Page 53 of Zane

“Nice to meet you,” Kelsey said as she held out her hand.

“You, too.” Carisa’s smile was warm and friendly. “We’ve been praying for you and Zane.”

“Thank you.”

“So how are you finding Serenity?” Carisa asked as Rori moved off to talk to Lexi.

“It’s a nice town,” Kelsey said.

Carisa smiled. “It’s a nicesmalltown.”

“Yeah. It’s a bit smaller than I’m used to,” Kelsey said. “I grew up in a big city.”

“So did I.”

“How did you end up here?”

“My dad brought my mom and I here when my mom was having some mental and physical health problems, and we ended up staying permanently. My mom is doing a lot better, and of course, I fell in love with Jackson, who was firmly entrenched in this place.”

“So you’re happy here?”

“Definitely. Even if I wasn’t married to the love of my life, I think I would have been happy to stay here with my parents.”

At that moment, Wilder reappeared, with Zane trailing behind him. For a heartbeat, Kelsey waited for him to search the room for her in the way he usually did.

Except he didn’t. His attention went to Jackson, who he greeted with a smile. Would there ever come a point where she didn’t anticipate Zane acting the way he had pre-accident? It would be great if she could reach that point soon and spare herself the pain she felt each time she expected something that didn’t happen.

“It must be difficult.”

Kelsey turned to see Carisa watching her with concern. She’d thought it would be pity, but that’s not what she got from the woman. “It is.”

“I wish I had some words of wisdom for you,” Carisa said as she slipped her arm around Kelsey’s shoulders and gave her asqueeze. “But all I can say is that I’m sorry this has happened to you.”

Carisa might be a gorgeous woman, but it appeared that she was also very kind.

“It’s not something you ever think you’re going to have to deal with,” Kelsey said. “Not in a million years.”

“Yes, that’s true. None of us start a relationship or get married imagining something like this happening. We’re praying very hard that Zane’s memory will return soon.”

Kayleigh and Hudson arrived then, and soon, they were putting the food on the table. When they all sat down, Kelsey was surprised that Zane actually ended up sitting beside her. Unfortunately, it hadn’t been because of his own actions, but rather the maneuvering of Rori, Lee, Jackson, and Carisa.

For a moment, though, Kelsey didn’t feel so alone. There were others who wanted things to work out between her and Zane.

Conversation was plentiful around the table, and Zane was the most talkative he’d been since the accident.

“How’s the house going?” Rori asked Carisa as they passed platters and bowls of food around.

“Pretty good. We’re in the home stretch now, so I’ve got more to do.”

“Carisa and Jackson flip houses, and Carisa also does staging for people who need to sell an empty house.”

“That sounds interesting,” Kelsey said. “Do you enjoy it?”

“I do.” Carisa picked up her knife to spread butter on her dinner roll. “It wasn’t what I intended to do when I completedcollege, but I discovered I had a bit of a knack for it after Jackson and I started dating.”

“Carisa is also pregnant,” Rori told her. “They just let us all know about a month ago.”

“Congratulations,” Kelsey told her. “How has the pregnancy been going?”

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