Tell Me You Love Me ✓

oo1. The Danger of Loving

Motherhood had not been on Greer's wish list. But dying had not been on her sister's either. Equal portions of grief and anger churned in Greer's stomach as she faced the double headstone, holding her niece's hand. Two weeks into her new situation, and she was more overwhelmed than ever.

Once close, she and Ava had drifted apart, only exchanging birthday phone calls. She should have tried harder to stay in touch. If she could change the past, she would. The last time she'd seen Ava had been Christmas two years ago. So when the lawyer read the will and request, Greer sat dumbfounded. She understood why her sister had made such arrangements. A precaution. She never expected to need them. The chances of both parents dying together had to be slim, but the seismic shift it had caused in Greer's world was bigger than The San Andreas fault line.

"Are you ready to go?" She tried not to sound impatient, but a cemetery was the last place she wanted to be.

Her niece pulled petals from the one daisy she'd been holding and dropped them on top of the graves like a flower girl at a wedding. Should a six-year-old cry more? Even at the funeral, she hadn't shed a tear. But nighttime proved a different story. Another concern.

"This is Mama's favorite kind. Sashay daisies."

The reference brought a smile and Greer noted how her niece referred to Ava in the present tense. That answered her question. The child was in denial. "They're called Shasta."

"Oh yeah. Shasta. They look like a fried egg. We have some. When they bloom, we can pick 'em. Want to?"

"Sure."

Emma knelt and ran her fingers across the fresh sod. "I miss Mama and Daddy."

Tears rimmed Greer's eyes, and she bent to offer comfort. "I do, too." She needed to say more, but what? She didn't have a clue how to deal with grief in a person so young. There must be books with instructions. Making a mental note to visit a library or bookstore, she wrapped her arm around the little girl and hugged her close.

Other than the slender nose she'd gotten from her dad, Emma was the spitting image of her mom and Greer. Same green eyes, dark hair, mischievous smile. Greer could pass for her mother, but she wasn't, and the worst part? She didn't know how to be. She'd killed her quota of goldfish and hamsters. What had given Ava the idea Greer would be capable of raising a child? Her sister had probably planned the kid's future by the time she'd brought her home from the hospital, and Greer was sure it didn't include Tarot cards or men with piercings, tattoos, and motorcycles, which had glittered her life lately.

Emma buried her head in her aunt's bosom. "Mama and Daddy aren't really down there, are they?"

A knot formed in Greer's throat. The questions kept getting harder. For a fleeting moment, anger pushed the grief aside while she blamed Ava for dying, which was ridiculous, but she couldn't stop herself. She wondered if her older sister had considered the ramifications of her scatterbrained sibling taking charge.

Who was she kidding? The roster Ava had to choose from offered slim pickings. "No. This is just a beautiful place to come and think about them." Greer hoped the child didn't see through her incompetence.

She took Emma by the hand and led her away from the cemetery. By the time they reached the car, the little girl had already moved onto another subject. "Christian sent me a note at school today."

"Who is he?"

"He sits two seats behind me and sometimes teacher puts his name on the board because he doesn't do his work."

"Oh. What did it say?"

"Do you like me? He had a box to check for yes or no."

"Which did you choose?"