Stars Over Alaska (Wild River #4) - Jennifer Snow Page 0,17
her tight, and make sure she had something to grab ahold of while her world came crashing down.
* * *
BEAMS OF SUNLIGHT shone through the stained glass windows of the church the day of the funeral. Levi stood tall, straight, unwavering as the priest talked about Dawson in the past tense.
He refused to give in to the desire to run out of the church and away from the pain and sadness threatening to engulf him. He had to be strong for Leslie. She needed a rock, something she could use to get her own bearings... He’d be that for her.
And his best friend deserved his respect, honoring the life he’d led, the sacrifices he’d made and the man he hadn’t gotten a chance to be, the future he hadn’t lived.
“The community and the department honor Dawson as the hero he was. He selflessly put his life on the line to protect others...and on that day paid the ultimate sacrifice for a lifetime of serving others. We salute him and we ask God to take him into his...”
The words echoing all around him in the silent church seemed far away and Levi shook off a wave of dizziness as he prepared to carry his best friend’s casket to its final resting place.
Leslie gripped the pew in front of her. Her pale knuckles losing any remaining color as she held tight. Levi’s hand covered hers and he shivered at how icy it was.
She hadn’t eaten or spoken much in days. Mostly sat in a trance as Dawson’s family made all the preparations around her. Not that she was in the mindset to deal with these decisions, but it angered Levi that no one asked her for her opinion on anything. No one acknowledged that she’d been about to be Dawson’s wife.
But maybe in the end, this would be easier on her.
The cold way his family had always treated her had simply continued...
It was one of the things that had always bothered him—their lack of respect and love for Leslie. He never understood it. The family had opened their hearts and home to him so willingly and he owed them so much...but he hated the way they’d never accepted Leslie. Had always treated her like she wasn’t good enough for their son.
* * *
THE CEREMONY ENDED with a final prayer and moment of silence and Levi knew there was not enough time to compose himself and prepare for what came next.
Along with Dawson’s cousins and two members of the police force, he carried the coffin out of the church and down the path toward the burial site. Tears burned his throat and he couldn’t feel his legs, just the heavy weight of the coffin pressing against his left shoulder and all the regret of a life that ended far too soon.
As the coffin lowered into the ground, his buddy’s last words to him played on his mind.
Take care of my girl until I see her again.
* * *
SHE WAS NUMB. Which was the best way to be... Leslie knew the reprieve from the ache in her chest and pain in her stomach was temporary. She knew the stages of grief, having gone through them too many times already. They would all appear eventually, but right now all she knew was that she had to get away. Escape the constant reminder of the future that had been stolen and distance herself from all the kind, caring sympathy that made her want to throw up.
She wasn’t sure how she felt—angry, sad, disappointed, heartbroken... Nothing seemed powerful enough to capture the emotions running through her.
As she walked through the station, head down, avoiding gazes, blocking out the sound of sympathetic wishes as she passed her fellow state troopers, desperate to look anywhere but at the open cubicle desk where Dawson’s unfilled paperwork was still piled high in his in tray, she focused only on what she was there to do.
If she thought about it too long, she might change her mind.
Entering her boss’s office, she placed her gun and badge on his desk and walked out before she could fall apart.
CHAPTER SIX
Present day
LEVI WAS HALFWAY back to the station when he pulled his truck to the side of the road. He’d nearly turned around a dozen times already, but for what?
Leslie hadn’t exactly seemed thrilled to see him. She’d barely spoken to him beyond what was necessary and she’d struggled to look him in the eye. Granted, the circumstances could hardly get worse, so he was