“Dude!”
“I know, I bloody know,” I said with a shake of my head. “She told me she was sorry for every mean thing she had ever said to me. I forgave her, but it will be a long time before I can shoot the shit with her, you know?”
“Totally,” Roman quickly said. “I’m proud of you for forgiving her in the first place. I know how much she and that Anna bitch messed with your self-esteem.”
“I’m just happy Layton isn’t secretly dating Anna. I would have exploded altogether.”
Roman laughed, which made me smile. “Are things okay with your family?” he asked.
“They are. I sorted things with my family. We’re all very good.”
“I’m so happy to hear that, babe. I know how much they mean to you and how much it hurt that you rarely spoke.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “That sucked arse.”
Roman chuckled, then said, “Are things with Kale any better?”
My shoulders sagged. “Yes and no.”
“Bitch, explain that,” Roman demanded. “I want to know everything.”
“He doesn’t hate me like I feared. He has spoken to me, joked with me, and he took care of me on the day of my uncle’s funeral. He was, as usual, his perfect caring self, but there is an emptiness in him, Ro. I see it in his eyes. I know that sounds crazy, but I can see the difference in them.”
“His son died. I don’t think that kind of pain will ever go away; it will just get easier to bear over time.”
I rubbed my face with my free hand.
“It feels like I’ve been home years instead of just four days.” I exhaled. “I’ve learned so much, and it’s draining.”
“Do you feel any better with your newfound knowledge?” Roman asked.
“Yes and no. It hurt to learn about Kaden and my uncle’s condition, but if I hadn’t been left in the dark, I don’t think I’d have made the decision I did.”
“What decision?” Roman quizzed.
Tell him, my mind urged.
“I’m staying, Ro,” I whispered.
He cleared his throat. “I had a feeling you would.”
I pulled the phone away from my ear and stared at it for a moment. Roman had never given me any inkling that he thought I would ever return to York, so his admission stunned me a little.
“Can you repeat that?” I asked, my eyes wide, when I placed the phone back against my ear.
Roman chuckled. “You’ve been away from home for six years, and while you think you’re pretty good at hiding your feelings, I can see how much you miss your family when you talk about them. Throw in your uncle dying and finding out your best friend’s kid died . . . there’s no way you’re leaving your family – or Kale. You’re home.”
My throat was tight with emotion.
“I just want you to know that I’d have been lost without you. I love you with all of my heart – well, with what’s left of it anyway.”
Roman sniffled. “Shut up. Stop talking like we’re never going to see each other again. We’ll talk all the time on the phone and Skype.”
I nodded even though he couldn’t see me.
“Will you stay in your parents’ house?” Roman asked.
Uncle Harry’s will, I reminded myself.
“Actually,” I chuckled, “my uncle has sorted my living arrangements for me.”
Roman gasped almost instantly. “You got his house?”
“He left me everything,” I emphasised. “His house, his money, his possessions. Everything.”
“Oh, my God,” Roman breathed. “I love your uncle so much for taking care of you.”
I swallowed. “He is still looking out for me.”
“He always will,” Roman stated.
I smiled. “He is sneaky, though. I inherit everything on a condition written in a letter he left me. I haven’t read it yet, but I can only imagine what he wants me to do.”
“Lane, you’ve been in York for four fucking days! How could all this have happened in four days?”
“You know what, Ro?” I laughed. “I’ve been asking myself that exact same question.”
Roman and I laughed and talked for a few more minutes. He assured me he would pack up my apartment and reminded me to email my landlord about my moving out. When it came time to say goodbye, I felt so much better about everything. Roman was a true friend and would be the only thing I would miss about New York.
When we hung up, I re-entered Jeffery’s office. My family and Jeffery were chatting, but when my father spotted me, he crossed the room and stood before me.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I nodded and gave him a hug. “I’m good, thanks, Dad.”
I pulled back from my father and looked to Jeffery when he called my name. He had a brown envelope extended in my direction. “Here is the letter from your uncle.”
With a shaking hand, I took the letter and thanked Jeffery. I stared down at the envelope and then excused myself from the room so I could go to the bathroom. I suddenly felt a little nauseated – the excitement had got to my nerves – and wanted to be near a toilet in case I threw up. After I splashed my face with water and took a few deep breaths, I entered an empty stall and sat on the closed toilet seat. With quivering hands, I opened the letter my uncle had written to me. I took a couple more deep breaths before I began to read.
Lane,
If you’re reading this letter, it means I’m with my Teresa. Please don’t be sad for me. Know that I’m out of pain and with my love. I’m happy. I’m sorry I never told you about my condition. I didn’t want you to worry or come home out of concern for me. I don’t know exactly when I’m going to kick it, but if the signs my body is showing are anything to go by, I think it will be soon.
Being thousands of miles away hasn’t fixed anything. You need to come home and get some closure. I know that you’re stubborn, though, and only something drastic will bring you home. I think it will be my funeral.
I’ve watched Kale over the last few years, and I’m just going to say it: that man loves you, kid. His face lights up when I talk about you and what you’ve been up to in New York. You make his day, even when you’re not here. I know very well that you still love him too; you wouldn’t be running away if you didn’t.
No more excuses from you, sweetheart. I’ve made sure that when I’m gone you’ll want for nothing. You’ll just have to come home and fix things with Kale. I don’t know what the outcome will be, I don’t know if things will turn out the way you both want them to, but you need to talk. You know what talk I mean.
Take care of yourself, trust yourself, love yourself as much as I love you and be happy. You deserve it, darling. I’ll see you later.
All my love,
Uncle Harry xx
Tears blurred my vision as I reread my uncle’s letter over and over. I missed him so much it hurt, but I also wanted to whack him around the head for being such a sneaky shite. I laughed as I cried.
I folded his letter up and put it into my bag for safekeeping. After I exited the stall, I splashed some more cold water onto my face. I dried myself off as I glanced at myself in the mirror. As I stared at the woman looking back at me, I was happy to find that I was starting to recognise her again. I wasn’t a stranger to myself anymore.
I left the bathroom feeling drained, but good. My uncle had single-handedly secured my financial future and given me a beautiful home in the process. I was truly blessed.
I re-entered Jeffery’s office to find that my family had left. I signed the papers to start the process of my inheritance.
“Hey,” Lochlan called out to me when I walked down the hallway of the office building in the direction of the exit. “Everyone has gone back to Mum and Dad’s. I told them I’d bring you home. Are you okay?”
I nodded. “I am – I just feel very overwhelmed. He’s left everything to me with the condition that Kale and I talk.”
“He did?” Lochlan laughed. “That sneaky son of a bitch.”
I guffaw
ed. “You can say that again.”
“Are you ready to go?” my brother asked me.
I nodded but placed my hand on his arm. “Can you drop me off somewhere first?”
Lochlan raised an eyebrow. “Sure, where do you want to go?”
“I need to go and clear my head. This is a lot to process.”
My brother frowned and gave my shoulder a squeeze. “Where will you go to do that?”
I smiled and looked up at the sky when we walked out of the solicitor’s office. “To see Lavender, of course.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Six years ago (twenty years old)
Lane,” my father shouted up the stairs, “can you come down here for a minute?”
I sighed and looked up to the ceiling.
“Can it wait?” I asked, irritated that he was interrupting me. “I’m meeting Lavender at the cinema in twenty minutes, and I’m not ready yet. She’ll kill me if I’m late.”
I think she knew I’d be late; it’s probably why she was ignoring my calls and texts. She wanted to tell me off in person. I snorted to myself but stopped when my father replied.
“We need to talk. Right now.”