Page 8 of Between the Shady Groves
And then, the one that just came in.
Lauren, I’m on my way to my sister’s house. If you’re not there, you can save me some time and let me know where you are.
He was going to look for her? He was leaving his precious business? She looked at the time. It was three o’clock in the afternoon. Maybe he wasn’t leaving his business, but he was definitely taking off early, which he never did. Well, he’d needed to take off early so he could go to her mom’s funeral. He had tried to talk her into having it in the evening, but the best time had been in the afternoon so people could come and get back home if they wanted to. Plus, they were going to have a little graveside service, and she didn’t want that to happen in the dark.
She had won, she supposed, although there really hadn’t been an argument. He had capitulated pretty easily, although it had been obvious that he hadn’t been happy about it, and she had seen him on his phone two or three times during the service.
She had been standing by the casket. He had stood in the back, until it was time to sit down. Then he had come and sat beside her.
She hadn’t really felt like he was supporting her. She had felt like he was just there and couldn’t wait to leave.
Still, he had driven her to the graveside service and stood beside her during it.
He had also helped make the arrangements. Which she should be thankful for.
She really hadn’t been in any condition to do it, and she probably would have screwed it up anyway. As it was, he got a really good deal on the funeral. Or at least, that’s what she understood from talking to other people, because they paid about half as much as what normal people paid.
But that was one of Cannon’s fortes—he was good at knowing business owners, and he had a few who owed him favors. She would never have thought that having a funeral director on one’s list of people who owed one favors would be a good thing, but it turned out to be not bad, she supposed. Still, she didn’t care how much it cost. She had to bury her mom somehow.
A breeze shifted the trees overhead, and it was almost like her mom was beside her again. Or maybe waiting in the branches.
She missed her so much. Before she knew it, she was crying, hot tears streaming down her face, an empty feeling in her stomach, and a desperation to see her mom one more time and be able to talk to her almost driving her to the ground. Why? Why her? Why couldn’t someone else lose their mom? Why did it have to be her?
But she knew the answer to that question, or rather, maybe a better question to ask would be, why not her? Why did she think she was special and shouldn’t have to lose her mom?
She didn’t have any answers.
Six
“Hey, Cannon. We’ve been expecting you.” Philip, his brother-in-law, opened the door and stepped back so Cannon could go in.
Monique, his sister, walked over, a baby in each arm. “Cannon. You came to see your nieces finally.”
“I did?” he murmured, and then he realized that he’d just told them he was coming, he hadn’t mentioned why. “Right. They look cute,” he said, looking at them and then back up at her.
“Where’s Lauren?” she asked.
This was going to be more awkward than he anticipated. He had assumed that she would be here. After all, she and Monique had found out that they were expecting together. Twice now, they’d celebrated together and been so excited. And twice, Lauren had lost her baby, while Monique had had a son first and then twin daughters.
He just assumed that Lauren would want to go where the babies were. She was such a baby person.
She loved children. That’s why she became a teacher. He didn’t really understand the pull, but hey, if that’s what his wife liked, he was okay with it.
“She’s not here?” he asked, and he knew immediately that he had just opened a huge can of worms.
“She’s not here. Was she supposed to be?” Philip had shut the door and came over and stood beside them.
“I just assumed she was.”
“No, she’s not.”
Lonnie, the three-year-old son, zipped through the room, making truck noises and dodging around people and furniture and several toys that were strewn around.
“Watch the babies, son,” Philip said in a tired voice that almost made Cannon laugh. If he hadn’t been so concerned about his wife, he probably would have.
As it was, he couldn’t figure out where in the world she would be. She must have gone to Raspberry Ridge. And he found himself irritated that he’d texted her, specifically asked her to let him know if she wasn’t here, and she hadn’t.
He just assumed that meant she was. And he’d figured he was pretty clever for figuring it out.
