Chapter 9
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Chapter 9
“Piper, you’ve been on your feet all day. Let me take it from here,” I said.
Piper wanted to refuse, but I gently pressed her back into the chair. She gave up with a sigh. “Fine. The driveway’s a mess with
cars. Be careful.”
I promised I would and headed outside.
Traffic was thick at the curb. I stood near the lane, waving guests toward the entrance, when someone in the crowd shouted, ” Watch out!”
I turned and saw a sedan speeding straight toward.me.
A second later, I was knocked down, my shoulder hitting the pavement, and then everything went black.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a hospital bed.
Piper clutched my hand, her voice trembling. “Thank God! The doctor said you were lucky. You’ve got just a few scrapes. You’ll be out soon. But please, be more careful. You scared me half to death!”
She pulled me into a tight hug. I wrapped my arms around her, but something felt off. It seemed too quiet somehow.
Then, it hit me–Grandma was gone.
I let go of Piper, pulled out my phone, and opened my conversation thread with Elena. The last message on the screen still read, “I only remember that Miles is my boyfriend.”
If Grandma had seen that, she would have had a field day. But there was only silence in my head. No matter how hard I reached
for her, she didn’t answer.
That was when I realized that Grandma had finally let go after seeing me marry the right person.
Three days after Grandma left me for good, Grandpa took Piper and me to her grave.
We laid fresh flowers on her headstone. Grandpa sighed and requested, “Give me a minute alone, would you?”
Piper and I exchanged a look and stepped back down the path.
Grandpa rested his fingers on the carved name and spoke softly. “Martha, you came to me in a dream. You said that in another life, Rowan married the wrong woman and spent years in misery. You couldn’t bear to see it. You told me that you had surrendered all the blessings you’d earned for one more chance to give him a different life.
“You always did sound like you were telling a story. But I know all you ever wanted was for Rowan to be happy. Don’t worry. While I’m alive, I’ll watch over him. And when my time comes, Piper will be here with him. Rest easy now.”
He talked to her for a while longer, then patted the stone. “I’ll be back next year.”
Five years blurred past. Piper and I had a daughter, and we were just as happy as we had been on day one.
Our small group at the cemetery now had one more member.
Piper cradled our daughter and crouched by the grave, and I smiled at the headstone. “Grandma, this is our baby girl. Her name is Melinda Becker. We hope her life will be as sweet as her name.”
Melinda looked around with her wide, curious eyes. Grandpa and Piper couldn’t help laughing.
“Hand her over,” Grandpa said, holding out his arms.
Piper turned her shoulder, frowning. “You’ve been holding her all morning. It’s my turn now.”
“Oh, come on. Let me hold her a little longer,” Grandpa said.
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Chapter 9
I covered my mouth, grinning at those two bickering like children.
Above us, a bird watched us for a long while before spreading its wings and flying into the blue sky.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
