Sadness fell over Nikki’s face as tears immediately sprung to her eyes. She shook her head slightly as her hands clutched at her chest. “Adie passed? Oh…I’m so sorry, Tessa.” Again, Nikki’s arms came around Tessa as her voice filled with emotion. “She was such an amazing woman.”
Tessa had forgotten how much her Grandma had meant to the people in this small community. Over the last eight years of caring for her Grandma—alone—she’d lost sight of the fact that there were other people who had cared about her as much as Tessa had.
Nikki sniffed as tears fell down her face. She pulled a tissue out of her purse and blew her nose. “Sorry to get so emotional. It’s just with having no grandparents that lived in this country, Adie kind of adopted me as her granddaughter.”
Wiping her eyes, Nikki smiled as she said, “I remember that, whenever I would go to her house, she would just let me talk and talk. At my house, my family got tired of how much I had to say, which I can’t blame them. I was really talkative. They would make little comments about it or just have this look on their faces that I could tell they were irritated. But not Adie.” Nikki shook her head, smiling through her tears. “She always listened and would even ask questions. No one ever asked me questions. I think they were scared of how long it would take for me to answer.”
Tessa felt her own eyes filling as her lips twitched up in a smile. “That was Gran. She had a way of making everyone feel so special.”
Nikki nodded. “When did she…?”
“Oh, um about nine months ago.”
“I’m so sorry,” Nikki repeated. And Tessa knew that she truly was. She could feel it radiating off of her.
But before Tessa completely lost it, she motioned to Nikki’s left hand and asked, “So you’re engaged?”
“Yes!” Nikki’s entire face lit up like a bright, shining star. “Oh my god, you have to come to the wedding!” Her hands clapped together excitedly.
“When is it?” Tessa asked.
“Oh, we haven’t set a date yet. Mike, my fiancé, is finishing out his term in the Senate and I am working on my Master’s full time. We are thinking early next year sometime.”
“Congratulations on the wedding! Let me know when you set a date and I will definitely try to be there. What field are you getting your Master’s in?” Tessa had always thought that Nikki could be anything she set her mind to. She could rule the world if she wanted. She was bright, beautiful, and funny, and she just had an inner light that people naturally gravitated towards.
“Psychology,” Nikki stated proudly.
“That’s great, Nikki. You are going to help so many people,” Tessa said, and she genuinely meant it.
“You know, you’re just like her.” Nikki’s eyes once again got misty. “You make people feel special too.”
Tears fell down Tessa’s cheeks at Nikki’s words. She’d been back in Hope Falls for less than twelve hours and she felt as though she’d already been strapped in and gone on an emotional roller coaster ride.
Tessa really hoped this meeting with Henry was short and sweet. She wasn’t sure if she could handle another twelve hours here.
Chapter Five
‡
Jake jerked his head up in confusion. Quickly taking in his surroundings he realized, he was in his office. Sitting at his desk. With a massive crick in his neck.
A loud knock sounded at his door.
He must have fallen asleep while he was going over the paperwork. Looking down, he saw the file on the Crescent Road fire. One glance at his computer screen told him that he hadn’t even inputted two pages before he passed out.
Again, there was a pounding at the door.
“Come in,” he barked.
Jake rolled his neck from side to side, attempting to loosen it. He didn’t know who his uninvited visitor was, but it had better be important. He wasn’t even supposed to be here today. Normally when he was in his office with the door closed, the guys respected that and kept their distance.
The door swung open and his sister walked in with a very strange expression on her face. It was equal parts bubbling with excitement and etched with worry. His first thought was that she must have gotten pregnant and was scared to tell him.
He didn’t love the idea of his sister having a baby before she was married, but hey, she was engaged. And Mike was a stand-up guy, and Jake knew that the man would take care of his responsibilities.
Jake made sure to keep his expression blank. He didn’t want to ruin Nikki’s grand “I’m pregnant” speech—knowing his sister’s flare for the dramatics—by tipping her off that he’d figured it out. Plus, he thought it might be fun to give her a hard time about it. Act all shocked and shaken. That could be fun, and he could use some fun.