Page 64 of You're My Person - For Always

Her stomach rolled. "I feel bad having Zora come. She's not comfortable being off Gem Haven."

"I know, but there was no other way. Big John told us that Zora's name was the only one on the account, so she had to sign a piece of paper to go inside the safety deposit room and use her key. But because she rents the box, she can take whoever she wants with her." River chewed on her bottom lip. "We'll make it up to her. Maybe have pizza at the house so she can be around Zane and Kingsley more. She seems to enjoy being around her sons."

Kenna gasped. "Oh, no."

"What?"

"Zora has to sign in to use her key."

"Yeah, that's what I said." River frowned. "That's why we brought her."

She turned to her sister. "If there's a package in there from our dad and a key is included, we still can't use it without Dad's signature."

"Shit," muttered River.

Kenna exhaled heavily. "It's probably asking too much for someone to impersonate Dad and forge his signature."

River rubbed her stomach. "Let's just get today over with and deal with what comes next before we think up any more problems. The package that Big John and Zora remember might be something from Zane and Kingsley's dad, not ours. We're worrying about nothing."

A car door slammed. She turned and found Big John getting out of the truck and lighting a cigarette.

"I wonder how long it'll take." River paced.

"There're not many cars here, so it shouldn't take too long."

"Just think, at one time, we lived three streets over." She pointed in the opposite direction. "We went to that store with Mom all the time."

"Remember all the makeup she used to buy?" River laughed softly. "She'd stand in the aisle looking at all the shades of eyeshadow and holding them up to her face."

"And we'd always get a new color of nail polish." Her eyes burned.

She could get lost in all the good times in St. Maries. Her parents loved her and River. More importantly, her parents loved each other. A love like no other until her mom was killed.

She wanted a life with Kingsley. A good life. A loving life.

Her life was in Gem Haven now, not St. Maries. There was nothing here for her. River, Kingsley, and even Zane and Zora were the only ones who mattered to her.

"They're coming." River grabbed Kenna's hand. "Kingsley's carrying something."

"Oh, my God. Did we figure it out?" She surged forward and met Kingsley halfway to his Motorcycle. "Did you find it?"

"Yeah." He looped his arm around her shoulders.

"Open it."

"We won't do anything until we get back home." He stopped by his Harley and put the package—which turned out to be a Manilla envelope—in his duffle.

She turned around to tell River, but her sister was with Zane beside the truck, talking to Zora. "Is your mom okay?"

"I think so." Kingsley sat on the motorcycle. "We'll have Big John take her straight back to the cabin. She's comfortable there and she does better when Big John is helping her."

Zane and River walked toward them, hand in hand. She climbed behind Kingsley and put her feet on the pegs.

Kingsley's hand went to her calf and squeezed. "We're not going straight home."

"Why not?" She was anxious to open the package and find out what her dad had left behind for them.

"When we opened the envelope, there was a receipt on the top of the pile of papers. Your mom's ashes are placed in a memorial wall at St. Joe's Cemetery." He rubbed her leg. "About two miles away."

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