of day, or talking about the latest stock he thinks is a winner. All of those moments get buried with him.
My chest feels like a wild lion ripped it open and clawed out my insides. The pain feels physical more than emotional. What will I do without my father? I lay my cheek on his unmoving chest, tears streaming from my face.
42
Chapter Forty-two
Garrin
“Let me run you a bath.” I draw Isla into my chest.
She’s stayed so strong this past week. She was a mess the night her father died, but the past couple of days through the wake and the funeral, she’s been a rock. Amelia is struggling outwardly, though, and Isla is trying to be there for her as much as she can.
“That’d be nice. Thank you.”
I pull away but grip her shoulders, leaning my forehead down to hers. “I know it hurts. And it always will to some degree, but it will get easier with time.”
She doesn’t smile, but at least she isn’t frowning. “I know. You’re proof of that.”
I close my eyes and kiss her forehead. The pain when my mom died is not something that ever left me. It just became a part of me and I learned to carry it around with me.
“You go get undressed and I’ll get the bath going.”
She nods and we walk to the master bath together. I pour the bubble bath I asked Margaret to get for me into the running water while Isla undresses in the bedroom. Once the water is at the right level, I turn to find Isla there waiting.
“Here, I’ll help you in.” I reach out and help her slide into the warm water.
“Will you join me?” she asks.
“Of course.” I slip off my suit and leave it there, crumpled on the bathroom floor, and step into the warm water behind her, opening my legs for her to lean back against me.
We sit in silence for a few minutes while I use my palms to run cups full of warm water over her arms.
“You did an excellent job on your eulogy today.” I kiss her shoulder.
Isla is so brave, and that shined through today as she stood there in front of all those people, recounting her life with her dad. If I can be half the man he was to her, I’ll consider it a success.
“Thanks. I tried to just speak from my heart.” She leans her head on my shoulder. “It was nice of all the Classholes to be there.”
I wasn’t surprised to see them there. We may have our differences from time to time, but we show up for each other when it counts.
“Yeah, at least Asher didn’t show up drunk or high.”
She giggles softly. We’ve had a few discussions about the concern some of us guys have that things are getting out of control with Asher. One of us is going to have to strong-arm him into rehab if things don’t improve.
The only sound is the movement of water as Isla moves her foot back and forth, the tip of her toes peeking out of the bubbles.
It feels like the right time to broach a subject I’ve been hesitant to bring up until now. I’m not sure how Isla will take it, and I wanted to get all the arrangements for her father over before I did.
“I want to talk to you about something.” My hands run along her arms.
Her body stiffens on top of me, and she sits up and faces me. “What is it?”
I draw in a deep breath. “Maybe we should postpone the wedding.”
My words are met with silence as she sits there and stares at me for a moment.
“Do you not want to get married anymore?” she asks in a low voice.
I reach out with one hand and cup her face. “Of course I want to get married. But you’re dealing with the death of your father. Maybe now is not the best time.”
She’s shaking her head before I’m done speaking. “No. We’re still going ahead with the wedding.”
“Sunshine, we’re supposed to have our engagement party next week. Isn’t it too much too soon?”
“I’ve already talked to my mom about it. The engagement party is a go.” She slides to the other side of the tub and rests her back against it, her legs on top of mine.
I don’t even understand why we’re having one when there’s less than a month till the wedding, but according to Amelia, that’s what people do, and if we hadn’t insisted on such