Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 139147 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 696(@200wpm)___ 557(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139147 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 696(@200wpm)___ 557(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
From SC: Otis, Hunter, Lucia, her husband Mario, and of course, Tito.
And get this…
Byron.
From Oasis Square: Martha, Linda, Bill, Zach, Jacob, Alexis, Patsy and Rhea. But the rest of the complex got together and paid for that beautiful spray of pink roses on Macy’s casket.
Last, the entirety of the RCHB.
Roam, by the way, had it going on.
I knew this because he allowed me privacy for the drama, but he did not miss this.
He hugged me the instant he met me at Dad and Deb’s condo and said when he did, “Shit reason to meet you, Raye, so fuckin’ sorry.”
I didn’t have a reply, because I agreed with him.
I also hung onto him.
I didn’t know why (and it wasn’t because he was as gorgeous as Cap and all the rest).
I did get confirmation of what I already knew. He was a great guy, because he let me hang onto him. He allowed this for a long time. And it was only when Cap was done with it that Roam carefully unlatched me and guided me into Cap’s arms when it stopped.
At Macy’s funeral, where we laid her to rest next to Mom, although I heard the weeping from behind me of family and friends I hadn’t seen in years, in the front row, we didn’t cry.
Our tears had been spent.
Now, it wasn’t about closure, nor was it about healing, because our hearts would never be closed to Macy, nor would they ever be healed at losing her.
It was about settling in the knowledge we knew where she was, and in a way, we had her back.
It seemed simple, and maybe even weird, but it had been a yearning we’d learned to live with that now was fulfilled, so in it, we found nothing but peace.
Though, I was overwhelmed by the show of love and support that was behind me.
And for that, later, when we were in bed together in Dad and Deb’s guest room, safe in Cap’s arms, I allowed myself to cry.
Two asides:
First, Tito cast aside the Hawaiian shirts and shorts and wore all black to the funeral. Black suit, shirt, tie, and opaque black sunglasses. Also, a black fedora with a grosgrain, black ribbon around the band.
He looked like a visiting mafioso.
And he sat directly behind my chair at the funeral.
He didn’t touch me, and he may have only said two words to me (okay, four, “I’m so sorry, Rachel.”).
But he was there, right there, for me.
In other words, I lost a mom and a sister.
In doing so, I got three dads (my own, Scott and Tito), two moms (Louise and Deb, perhaps three, including Shirleen) and three sisters (Luna, Jessie and Harlow).
I hated they made that sacrifice for me. I hated it with everything that was me.
But that didn’t negate the fact that their loss gave me great bounty.
And I knew both of them would be very disappointed in me if I didn’t treasure the gifts they’d given me.
So, I did.
And again, I did it with everything that was me.
Second, I met Brittany’s fiancé.
And Dad was right.
I couldn’t put my finger on it, and perhaps I was measuring him against Cap’s stick, which no one could compare to.
Still, I hoped Brittany scraped him off because she was as sweet as I remembered.
And her dude was a total clown.
Having a Hottie Squad had its perks, and they weren’t just the ones you normally got by having them around occasionally to look at.
They were the ones that made moving Luna into Oasis Square a breeze.
A new member of the team in from LA joined us.
He was a dude named Brady, who had dark hair with an auburn cast to it (definitely his thick, somewhat long beard was red). He was the same height as Cap, but he had the powerhouse build of Knox.
I called him Lumberjack Hottie, and oh yes, we made up names for them like they were the uber-gorgeous, testosterone-abundant Spice Girls—Cap was Captain Hottie (obvs), Gabe was Menacing Hottie, Liam was Sweetheart Hottie and Knox was Football Hottie (because I found out he was the quarterback of his football team in high school).
As such, with all this muscle, Luna was ensconced in the Oasis in no time.
Oh, and a bit of news.
Gabe looked like Luke Stark, one of the OGs, because he was Luke’s cousin’s son. Gabe’s last name was also Stark.
So that explained that.
The unit Luna took was Mick’s (I could have called that), so she was on the top floor, across the courtyard, a door to the south of me.
It was when, two days after Luna was in, that Jessie got a notification that a unit at the Oasis had opened up, and after signing the lease, she was free to move in November first, that I again grew suspicious.
“That can’t be a coincidence,” I said to Cap one evening after he got home from work at a decent hour, and I was at my normal spot on a stool, and he was in his normal place in the kitchen, cooking for me.