Page 41 of All the Beautiful Things
“He asked me to come in early. I’m so sorry, but he’s a fighter—”
“Yeah.” A fighter. Beatable. He could kick cancer’s ass. Too bad we’d heard and said all of this before. “I need to get to work.”
I side-stepped Stephanie and headed toward my door.
“Let me know if you need anything. You know I think of you all as family, right?”
I shoved a hand through my hair and scrubbed. “Yeah. I know.”
In my office, I tossed my messenger bag to the couch, tore off my coat and threw it over the bag. I went immediately to the windows and pressed my hands to them. They were freezing cold and at least today, the gray, drizzly skies fit my mood to perfection.
Fuck. Everyone was going to hear. The entire company would learn soon, I imagined, and then I’d have to deal with all that bullshit for the next several months. The pitying looks. The useless well wishes and awkward pauses because no one knew exactly what to say because there was nothing that could be said to make me feel better about this. Then there’d be the people who would avoid looking at us all together, because they didn’t want to be the one to say something awkward or pointless, so they choose to ignore and act like they didn’t know their boss could die.
I’d been through this before. So many damn times that by now, I could graft my own “things to say when someone’s family is going through hell” chart complete with all the appropriate steps and inappropriate bullshit remarks and the worst ones.“I know how you feel.” “Things will get better.” “We’re praying for you.” “You’re in our thoughts.”
Blah-blah-fucking-blah.
I closed my eyes and rested my forehead to the window. What a goddamn fucking miserable week this was going to be.
“Figured I’d find you in here.” I didn’t bother lifting my head at Brandon’s voice.
I’d recognize his voice in my sleep and I wasn’t surprised he was in, looking for me.
“Sorry I didn’t call last night.”
“I could say the same, but I figured I’d give you the night.” At least he had thought of me. Once Lilly and I got home, all I thought about was sleep. He came to me like I knew he would and settled his hand on my shoulder. “Fucking sucks.”
“Yup.”
“You talk to him last night?”
“Yeah. Eventually.” I pushed off the window and shoved my freezing cold hands down my face. “He said it’s slow growing, had it for a while and it hasn’t spread, so that’s good.”
“It is.” Brandon’s focus was in the distance. “Sounds like shit we heard before though, yeah?”
Of all people, Brandon knew. He and Melissa had a bond even I couldn’t breach. She took him in and became his best friend before he ever gave me a chance. But that was how Melissa was with everyone.
I turned and pressed my back to the cold glass. It did nothing to simmer the burning pain and fear that had coursed through my veins since last night’s dinner.
“How’s Jenna?”
“Worried about me. About you. Did you get any sleep last night?”
“Some. Lilly stayed.”
Brandon’s brows arched high on his forehead. Before he could say something stupid, I stopped him. “Just to sleep. I didn’t want to be alone. That’s all.”
“How’s that going?”
I shoved off the window and headed toward my desk. Needing the distance, from him, from the truth, from the fear. I had no idea what was going on in her mind. “Don’t ask.”
“That bad?”
“No. Because I don’t know.” Pressing my hands to the top of my desk, I blew out a breath that didn’t bring me any calm. “Dad told her last week and only told her so she’d be there last night.”
“But she came.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “That’s a good sign.”
“Not if she’s doing it for David.”
