women who helped me. I wouldn’t be here talking to your . . . ah . . . spirit if it weren’t for them. Truly, I owe them my life. I don’t know if I will ever be able to repay them, but I am going to search for a way. I learned from them that it isn’t about weathering the storm but learning how to dance in the rain. I did it. I can now dance in the rain.
“I’m not going to go into all that went on with your sister. I think, wherever you are, you know. And I don’t want to ruin this visit.”
Bella rummaged in her bag and pulled out a mini recorder. “I brought something with me that I think will sum up my visit. Remember when you kissed me out on that pier, and we could hear the music from the bar. It was so romantic. They were playing that song Dolly Parton wrote and Whitney Houston sang and made famous, ‘I Will Always Love You.’ You kissed me and said you would always and forever love me even though we had just met. I cried the way I’m crying now, and this song is saying what I feel. Andy, a part of me will always love you. Always. I had to come here to tell you that.
“Paul Montrose came to help me when those wonderful people I told you about asked for his help. He stayed on. We got to know each other. We were friends, and that friendship went further as time went on. He asked me to marry him. I didn’t give him my answer because I wanted to talk to you first.” Out of the corner of her eye, Bella noticed a flash of pale blue. A tiny blue hummingbird was sucking at the nectar on the sunflower. She smiled.
“I’m going to go back and tell Paul that my answer is yes, Andy. By the way, I scrimped and saved and the mechanic felt sorry for me and gave me a good deal so I got your truck fixed, painted, and worked over. And then I gave it to Paul. He loves it as much as you did. I just don’t get that whole truck thing. I guess it’s a guy thing. Somehow, deep in my heart, I thought you would want Paul to have your truck. He’s a great guy, Andy, and he loved you like one of his brothers. He flew here when he came to help, but we’re going to pack up my stuff and put it in the back and drive cross-country. Paul works with his two brothers in a high-tech company in Silicon Valley. They made him a partner. He has a big family, and I can’t wait to be part of it. I want to belong, Andy. I need to belong to someone.
“Which brings me to the real reason I came here today. I came to say goodbye. I won’t be coming back here to . . . to . . . visit. It wouldn’t be fair to Paul. It has to be all or nothing or it won’t work for us. I hope you understand. But . . . I think it’s okay for you and me to have a secret. I know you aren’t going to tell anyone, and I will never, ever admit that one small part of me has been carved out and saved, the part of me that will always love you. So this is goodbye, Andy,” Bella said, as she put her hand over her heart and placed it on the pristine white cross. She looked down at the tiny hummingbird still feasting on the sunflower.
Bella was on her feet and about to walk away when she turned around, and said, “Hey, Andy, it would be nice if you could somehow give me a sign that you’re okay with all of this.” When nothing happened, Bella swiped her hand across her eyes to wipe away the tears. She walked away but turned back once to wave.
“Remember what I said, Andy, our secret, part of me will always love you.”
* * *
Six weeks later, in a small white church in California, the Montrose family, which numbered thirty-five, and what they called the East Coast family, eight Sisters and their menfolk, all clapped when the minister said, “I pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride.”