Page 91 of Above All Else
“Maybe.” I stared down at the forever young version of Amber, tears brimming in my eyes as though she’d died yesterday. Blinking, I sniffled and dropped it in my lap, turning her imageover, my stomach turning to ice. “I found it in a wooden box with a necklace and stuff.”
“Hmm.”
“Do you know which one I’m talking about?”
He shrugged. “We have lots of boxes around here.”
Not like this.
Not filled with girl stuff.
Not with a lock and key.
“Do you know why it would be there?”
He shrugged and turned his head, glancing at the other page. “I don’t know June-bug. I’m sure the movers got it mixed up when stuffing things in boxes. You know they broke my shavers? I spent a fortune on those, and they just tossed them into a box.”
I cringed. “Sorry, Dad. We can file a claim with the company once you have a list of items. Is there anything else?”
He gave a nonchalant shrug. “It’s not worth the time.”
We sat in uncomfortable silence as though I annoyed him. “Are you guys coming to dinner tomorrow?”
“We’ll see.”
I nodded and stood. “Let me know so we can plan enough food.”
“Hmm.”
My eyes found the photo again, and I jerked them away, flipping the painful photo down against my leg. “I’m going to go then. Carter is going to be waking up soon and heading into work. I want to eat—“
“Mhmm. Yep. See youlater, June-bug.”
I hung my head, grabbed my purse off the hook, and walked out the door, tucking the photograph into my purse pocket.
The drive home went by on autopilot, my stomach roiling. I shut the garage door, the familiar tranquillity of the house settling around me like a soothing blanket. Tossing my keys onto the kitchen counter, the metallic clatter echoing in the silence, I dropped my purse beside them. My legs moved like lead to the barstool, collapsing onto it with a sigh, my head in my hands.
Amber’s face haunted my thoughts. Seeing her again—alive and smiling—tore open a wound that had long since scarred over.
God, I miss her.
Where would she be now?
Would she be married?
Have kids?
Would she have gotten her arts degree?
Tears dripped down my cheeks, the sadness like a jagged piece of glass lodged deep in my chest.
I rubbed my temples, pushing away the pain, but it clung to me, gnawing at the edges of my mind. My throat tightened, and I swallowed hard, willing the tears to stay back.
Footsteps slapped against the marble flooring as they descended the stairs. I looked up as Carter entered the kitchen, dressed in his deep blue scrubs. They clung to his broad shoulders and lean frame-his eyes alert.
“Hey.” He crossed the room in a few strides, his hands findingmy shoulders with practiced ease.
“Hey. How’d you sleep?”