Page 60 of The Magic of Sea Glass
He also couldn’t simply go home. He wanted to see her, at least. He needed to be sure that happiness was evident in her eyes, and if she looked content, he’d have to take that with him. That was all he’d have of her.
Angrily brushing a tear off his cheek, he got back into his car and snatched up his map, locating Penelope’s address. Not too far from where he’d asked for directions, he pulled onto her street and was met with an unusually long line of cars and other vehicles. Both sides of the road were full, people gathering outside a small fishing cottage. Was there a party of some sort going on? He squinted at the number—it was the one the shopkeeper had given him. Certainly with all these people he could get out unnoticed and have a walk around. Not wanting to cause her any pain, he’d be careful not to let Penelope see him.
He found a place to pull over and parked. Looking around to be sure she wasn’t nearby, he got out of the car. A cold morning haze hung in the air as his feet ground against the gravel, his face tipped down to be inconspicuous. When he found out she was married, he should’ve turned around and returned to Fairhope, but something pulled him toward her. He knew what that something was—love. He loved her more than anything—more than his family, more than his money, more than his entire life.
“Hello,” a voice said, drawing him from his thoughts.
He looked up to find a middle-aged woman. Her nose and the rims of her eyes were red, a balled handkerchief in her hand. “Are you here for Penelope?”
Shocked by the mention of her name, he wrestled with an answer, his hands beginning to tremble with unease. He jammed them into his pockets, the bracelet jutting against his fingers. He held on to it, trying to figure out what to tell her.
“I know, dear,” the woman said, her eyes glistening. “You don’t have to say anything.” She took his arm. “It’s unbelievable, isn’t it? I can’t believe she’s… gone.”
An electric current flowed through him with the heat of a raging fire. “Gone?”
“And now, her poor husband has to deal with this all on his own.”
The blood drained from his face, leaving it clammy in the damp air. His mouth went dry once more and his head began to pound. Suddenly, his whole body was shaking. “What happened?” he finally asked. At the woman’s look of confusion, he added, “I don’t know a lot. I’ve just come into town from Alabama.” He could barely get the words out, his heart feeling like it might explode in his chest.
“She died due to complications with her pregnancy.”
All the oxygen left his body and he struggled to focus, his vision distorting with the onslaught of tears that suddenly pushed through to the surface. Would he wake up and realize this was some horrible nightmare? He prayed for relief. “Oh, my God.” The words finally came out.
The woman wiped her eyes. “Yes, yes,” she said, pulling him through the small yard up to the house. “Come inside. Let’s get out of this dreary weather.”
The rest of the day was a blur. Phillip stood among strangers, staring into the void of his anguish as people shared things they knew about Penelope, none of which were really who she’d been—not with him. People offered him food, but he declined. And then, as the day stretched on, he finally sawhim, Penelope’s husband. He knew right away because the man’s pain matched his own. He walked over to him and introduced himself as an old friend from her summer away. The man nodded and shook his hand, telling Phillip his name was Joseph.
“I thought I’d be with her forever,” Joseph said, his voice breaking. “But I suppose that some people come into our lives to help us get where we’re going, and they were never meant to stay.”
Phillip locked his joints to keep from collapsing into his own sorrow.
“She was too good for this world to stay very long,” Joseph whispered.
“Yes,” Phillip agreed, Joseph’s words hitting him like a load of bricks. “She was put here to show us what goodness was like.” His eyes brimming with tears once more, his heart aching for the lost time with Penelope, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the bracelet. Swallowing hard to give room for his words, he said, “She left this in Alabama. I want to return it.”
“Ah,” Joseph said, tears falling down his cheeks. “Please. Keep it.”
As a cold rain began to fall outside, the two men who loved Penelope Harper more than life itself sat with each other, united by their sorrow.
SIXTEEN
Rodanthe, North Carolina
With the dawn of a new day, Lauren had a fresh perspective regarding her talk last night with Brody. She shouldn’t have been so forward when she absolutely wasn’t ready for anything with anyone. Especially when he was about to take off for six months or so on his road trip. And then there was the lingering shame that she was moving on… At least her gesture hadn’t gone any further.
She finished up the last of the wedding details on the computer, double-checking the final RSVPs and waivers online, getting them loaded into her list for Dave. Given the time crunch, the wedding planning was going more smoothly than she’d ever expected. It helped that Stephanie and Mitchell had done some of it prior to working with her, but given all that she had to accomplish, things were moving along surprisingly well. The officiant hadn’t been her first choice after seeing clips online, and she’d had to mix white roses with the gardenias for the bouquets, but other than that, things were moving right along. She went through the last few items to be sure she hadn’t overlooked anything and then went out to let Mary know that the designer had called and said she’d be there in an hour.
“Where were you last night?” Dave asked, coming down the hallway at a clip. “I texted.”
“There was an emergency.”
“Well, you could’ve at least responded. What happened?”
“A friend of Mary’s had a heart attack.” She dared not say it was Stephanie’s escort down the aisle. They’d cross that bridge when they came to it.
“Everything okay?” he asked, clearly trying to seem empathetic.
“Yes. Everything seems to be fine.”
