Page 56 of Southern Storms

I inhaled deeply and released it. “She was with me for six beautiful years. When she began writing her name, she’d write her Ds backward, every single time. I’d correct her over and over again. One day when I was telling her yet again that she was writing it wrong, she told me, with her hands on her hips, ‘It’s fine, Mommy. Don’t take life so seriously. Ds can be backward, too.’” I laughed, wiping the tears that had fallen from my eyes. “I got the tattoo to remind myself of that idea, that I shouldn’t take life too seriously. I’m still working on absorbing that message.”

“What else?” he asked me.

I arched an eyebrow. “You want to know more about her?”

“Yes, if you want to share.”

My broken heartbeats began to take shape again. I shifted around a bit and sat up in my chair. “Well, okay. She loved—and I mean loved—bubbles. Whenever we were upset, we’d blow a million bubbles into the air and keep doing it until we were laughing. It became a fact to us that you couldn’t be sad if there were a million bubbles surrounding you.”

He smiled.

Jax smiled.

Gosh, I hadn’t known I needed his smile until he gave it to me.

“What else?” he asked me.

“What do you mean?”

“What else do you want to share about her?”

I arched an eyebrow. “You want to know more about her?”

“Yes. If you want to share.”

I gave him more. I gave him all the details about my sweet little angel, and the way she changed my life for the better. From her favorite television shows to her favorite color. From the way she loved butterflies and chocolate cake. Then, he let me talk about my parents. How Mama’s singing voice sounded like an angel. How Daddy would tell the worst jokes in the world, and they would still be funny. How Mama snorted, how Daddy laughed like a hyena. How Daisy loved to dance in the rain.

Once the words started pouring out of my mouth, the tears that were falling turned into laughter. Laughing. I was laughing from the memories. When the laughter died down, we both sat there quiet as the sky grew darker and darker.

He cleared his throat. “I have to go visit my father at the nursing home.”

“Oh, okay. Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do? If you need someone to talk to about—”

“Sun.”

“Yes?”

He gave me a sad grin. “I’m not there yet.”

I could respect that.

He stood to his feet and held his hand toward me. “Can I walk you home through the woods?”

I took his hand. The spark was there—it never left.

We walked in silence, and when we reached my house, I thanked him.

His hands were stuffed in his pockets, and swayed back and forth in his shoes as if he had something on his mind that he was trying to share.

“What is it?”

“Daisies were my mother’s favorite flower. I planted them out there for her and to hear that that was your daughter’s name makes it feel…” He snickered to himself and shook his head. “Kismet.”

I smiled ear to ear. “What is this? Is Jax Kilter believing in destiny as we know it?”

“Don’t hold your breath. I’m just saying.” He shifted uncomfortably as he stared at my yard. “I can help you with the landscaping at your place if you need a hand. I’m sure Lars pulling out made it tricky to find someone else. My mother was a landscaper. I used to help her when I was younger, and I did the work in the woods. If you need a hand, I can do the landscaping for you.”

My motherwasa landscaper.

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