In the time it had taken her to admit her horrid feelings, Drew had pulled up outside Gloria, Patrick, and Larry’s house. Biting her lip as the tears spilled over her cheeks, she glanced down to where two male hands held her.
Their tanned flesh looked odd against her pale skin. She couldn’t go out in the sun for long because she ended up ill from sunburn. During the summer she was one of those women who looked like a zombie.
“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Noah captured her chin in his hand and stared into her eyes. “Never apologise for being honest.”
The intensity of his gaze startled her.
“I don’t want to cry.” A sob broke from her. Pressing her face into her hands, she broke down in front of them. The tears kept coming, and she had no control over them. Noah and Drew held her between them. She felt their strength, and for the first time in over six years, she had someone else to lean on.
“You’ve got to let it all out,” Drew said.
“We’ve got you. Let it go,” Noah said.
She let go. Noah and Drew held her while she sobbed her heart out. For too long she’d been a strong woman, fighting to care for her mother, fighting to get by through school. Giving up was never an option, but the years had pulled her down. At twenty-four, Cheryl was exhausted from fighting.
The time went by, and she felt one of the men waving their arms, but they weren’t interrupted. After a time, the tears and sobs left her. She was numb inside but not losing control.
“I must look awful,” she said, wiping her eyes. Both of them tucked her hair behind her head.
“You look beautiful,” Drew whispered, and so did Noah.
“And you were wrong about one thing,” Noah said.
“What?”
“You’ve got us.”
They let her clean herself. Neither of the men would leave her alone. They stayed by her side in the truck. No amount of rubbing was going to rub away the tears. Noah got out of the truck and helped her out.
Drew followed Noah and Cheryl round the back where Patrick and Larry were setting the table. It looked like they were going to enjoy the sunshine, and dinner would be an al fresco affair.
Placing a hand on her lower back, he offered Cheryl support. Her face was red and blotchy from her crying. Watching her emotional outbreak had struck something inside him. He’d never once considered the fact she might not have allowed time to break down. She’d been young when the problems with her mother’s cancer had started. At the time he’d never thought about how it might affect such a young woman.
Gloria came out with a bunch of plates.
“When do you think they’ll be here?” she asked. He watched Patrick give her a signal, pointing in their direction. Gloria turned towards them with a huge smile. The love that woman had inside her could fill the whole world. She looked at Cheryl, and he saw the sadness enter her eyes.
“Cheryl, honey. I’m so glad you could come.” She took Cheryl out of their arms and led her away. “I think you boys can finish the table while I take Miss Fisher in for a chat. We’ve got some girly things to attend to.”
All four men chuckled. Drew watched her go inside. He noticed Cheryl lean a little heavily on the other woman.
“Don’t worry. Gloria will make her feel right at home,” Patrick said.
“She broke down. I don’t think she’s ever cried like that at all.”
Drew glanced over at his friend and noted his pale complexion.
“Her father’s fault. Fucking waste of space. It was good riddance when he got up and left, but hard on a young one like Cheryl. Someone that young should never have been in charge of her mother’s care,” Larry said.
“I thought people didn’t mind her father?” Drew spoke up.
“We minded, but the people of Law Castle don’t go interfering with other’s business. Cheryl’s mother married because her daddy told her to. Things were a little different here back then. We did what our older folk told us to. Her dad told her to marry, and she married. Of course, only a few of us knew what he was like back then,” Patrick said.
Drew heard the anger in the older man’s voice. Larry placed an arm on Patrick.
“Stop talking about it. You know it’ll only upset Gloria. She hated it when old man Fisher ran out on his wife. Don’t give her any more cause to upset her,” Larry said.
Both men were quiet, and Noah shrugged. All four of them finished setting the table. The time passed with them talking about football and work. They were sat down enjoying a bottle of beer when Gloria came out carrying the roast chicken. Cheryl was walking behind her with a heaped bowl of mashed potatoes.