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Be safe.
I hit send, even though I have so much more I’d like to say. Those words are not meant to be shared in a text message.
Finn breaks my concentration, “Lucy and John leave already?”
“Yes, a little more than an hour ago,” I answer.
“That guy was something else,” Hannah adds, shaking her head.
“Last night, he was really putting on the charm. I think he was even trying to win us over to his side,” Mia adds, then meets my gaze. “Of course, he didn’t, Henry.You have nothing to worry about. We all know you’re much better for her than he ever was.”
“Even aftertwentyyears…” Finn mockingly repeats John’s favorite piece of evidence in his case, causing laughter to erupt around the table.
Oliver turns to me with a serious expression. “How are you holding up with all of this? Her leaving with him can’t be easy.”
“It’s not.”
He nods, “Why don’t I come with you to town? You said you had to pick up a few things, and I’d like to get some flowers to bring to Hannah’s mother.”
Oh yes, I almost forgot this was our cover story for leaving the house today to make final preparations for his proposal. “Yes, thank you. I’d appreciate the company.”
The first stop in town is at the bakery. I have a smaller order of pastries to be delivered on the twenty-seventh for Lucy and me, then a larger one to be delivered on the thirtieth for when everyone rejoins us.
Oliver finalizes the order of a dozen double chocolate cupcakes, Hannah’s favorite, for New Year’s Eve. I coordinate with the bakery to be the contact person for deliveries, giving my cell for them to text upon arrival so we can be sure to sneak them in without Hannah noticing.
Next, we move to the florist. Oliver orders a customized garland to decorate the banister of the staircase and large vases to sit on the bottom steps filled with red roses.
To Oliver’s surprise, I also place an order for a few bouquets of fresh flowers to have around the house for Lucy.
Before we leave, I remind Oliver that he needs to get the flowers he announced at the breakfast table he was picking up to bring to Hannah’s mother.
“Thanks, Pop. It completely slipped my mind.”
The rest of the day is spent cooking with everyone pitching in. As we set the table, I take a photo of the arrangement and post it to my account with a caption Lucy came up with, “Happy holidays from my family to yours.” Dinner is a success.
After dessert, we move to the lounge and settle in for our Christmas Eve gifting. Once my gifts are open, I excuse myself like I do every year and give the two couples privacy to exchange between themselves.
Checking my phone again, it’s nearing midnight, and I’ve only received two additional texts from Lucy today. The first briefly said everything was fine. The second confirmed she wouldn’t make it back here this evening but would call tonight.
My phone battery is almost dead, so I grab my charger and plug my mobile in, turning the volume up as high as it can so I don’t miss her call while I am in the shower.
Stepping under the powerful streams, I let the warm water consume me while trying to remain positive.
Everything is all right.
She can handle this.
There’s nothing to worry about.
If something was wrong, she would have called.
Everything is all right.
I keep repeating these rational thoughts over and over in hopes of drowning out the many more irrational ones that refuse to go away. I stay in the shower longer than normal to delay the inevitable, having to sleep in my bed alone.
I turn off the water as my skin begins to raisin. Using a towel, I dry off my hair and then wrap it around my waist. The phone screen is dark as I walk back to my nightstand. The screen lights up when I tap it.
MISSED CALL: LUCY
