Page 147 of Sing it, Sam

Chapter Fifty-Two

Sitting on Ben’s balcony, I stare out to the street where cars stream in both directions. “I don’t know how you can live here, Ben. It’s so hectic.”

“Yeah, well, now I can’t see myself staying here.” He scratches the back of his neck. “I’m gonna try and break the lease agreement.”

“Where will you go?”Please don’t let it be farther away.

“Truthfully, I was toying with the idea of moving back out west. Sam was my focus for so long, and I was really only working in the city because it paid more. I kinda like the idea of working on a property again.”

Air whooshes from my lungs. “No more cranes, then?”

He snorts a breath out his nose. “Can’t say I’ll miss them.” Ben eases back farther into his chair. “What about you? Have you sorted out when you’re going back to work?”

I nod. “Yeah, next week. It’s time.”

“You have a heap of support there, Jane. You’ll be fine. And I can’t wait to hear about what happens next with the book.”

I stare down at the completed manuscript on my lap.

Sing it, Sam

By Jane E. Rhynehart

Ben bumps his fist gently against my shoulder. “Hey,” he grunts.

I look over at him. His cheeks are flushed and he’s flashing his white teeth. It’s the first smile I’ve seen grace his lips in weeks.Several weeks.

“You did it, Jane,” he says, his voice filled with pride.

“Yeah,” I whisper as I run my fingers over the letters S, A, and M on the paper.

I wanna share my book with Sam. So, so much. I can imagine sitting and reading it to him, just like I did with the John Grisham novel.

A tear streaks down one side of my face, soon followed by more. I reach into my pocket and pull out a tissue to mop up the salty trails.

“I’m sorry. I just miss him so much. This grieving crap really sucks,” I say and choke on a sob.

Ben reaches over and grips my hand, his eyes glassy. “We’re gonna be okay, Jane.”

My shoulders drop as I force out a breath. “But how do you know?”

He wraps his strong arms around me, his warmth and strength filling me with courage. After a beat, he leans back and grips my shoulders. “Because we have each other, we have hope, and … ” Ben shakes his head.

A smile tickles at my lips. “And what?”

Ben’s penetrating blue eyes lock on my face. “And we have opposites boy watching over us.”

I laugh.

It’s small at first, more of an attempt to be polite, but soon Ben laughs, and as his smile grows, mine does too.

This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done—and I don’t know what’s next from here.

But that’s the thing about life—it’s not one big love story. I never want to forget—but I want to move forward.

All I can do is hope eventually it will hurt a little less.

All I can do is trust that in my small town, one day, I’ll find big love.