Page 47 of Ashes of Us

She stepped back from the microphone, unable to say anything else without completely breaking down into tears.

The realization that this was the end, that Jasper was gone, and she wouldn't see him again struck her hard, and she wasn't expecting it.

Picking up a rose from a large vase, she laid it on the casket, feeling hot tears slide down her cheeks, and moved back to her seat next to Cecil, who took her hand and patted it awkwardly as everyone else followed her lead, standing up to form a line as they picked up a rose and waited to lay it on the casket, often saying a few words or kissing it before they walked away to their cars.

Amy was last, and Danica felt a brief moment of pity for her when her knees seemed to give out, and Geri and Frannie had to grip her elbows to keep her from falling to the ground.

When she left without so much as looking in Danica's and Cecil's direction, Cecil, who seemed to intuitively know Danica wasn't ready to leave, squeezed her hand and murmured that he was going to get a ride with Heather to the restaurant and he would talk to her soon.

Danica gave him a hug but stayed seated by the grave.

The rain had picked up, and she was finding it strangely soothing to hear it hitting the tent and the nearby pond as she sat there.

She hadn't lied in her speech; she hadn't even written anything down, deciding to speak from the heart, but there was a part of her that felt disingenuous about what she said.

“You okay?” Danica jumped as Alex sat beside her and looked up at him reproachfully.

“Sorry. I was waiting to make sure you got home okay.

You've been sitting here alone for twenty minutes, and as much as I didn't want to interrupt, there's a rather grumpy-looking person in a backhoe who is waiting for you to leave.” He gestured with his chin to the left, and Danica saw he was right; she had been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't even heard the backhoe approach.

“I don't think I'm okay at all.” She admitted, wiping her cheeks and sniffing. Alex reached into his pocket and handed her some tissues, which she accepted with a small thank you.

“Emilia gave them to me before she left,” he shrugged, like he didn't want her to think too much of the gesture. “So let me guess. You don't want to go home, because you'll be alone, but you don't want to go to the restaurant with everyone else, because there will be too many people, right?”

Danica nodded, huffing out a sad laugh as he voiced her thoughts on the situation. “Yeah, pretty much.”

“Then you need to come with us.” He stood up and held out his hand to her.

“Us?” She raised her eyebrow but let him help her to her feet. “Who's us?” He pointed with his other hand over to where she could see Xavier and Maverick waiting by the cars. “What's going on?”

“Just don't argue and come with us.” He said cryptically as he led the way back to the cars. When they got there, Xavier held out his hand.

“Give me your keys.” He said simply, Danica frowned but passed them over. he hugged her and went to her car. “Emilia will meet us there,” he called over his shoulder as he unlocked the door.

“Where is 'there'?” Danica asked, furrowing her brow. Alex just shook his head as he opened the passenger side door to his Jeep for her. Maverick gave her a quick hug and murmured that she needed to trust them.

“I have a quick stop to make, but I'll be there as soon as possible.” He grinned. “Don't look so worried. It's good, I promise.”

Danica got aboard the Jeep and buckled her seatbelt, shifting slightly so she could look at Alex. “What's going on? Since when are you all buddy-buddy with Emilia, Xavier and Maverick?”

“Maverick and I have been in touch since I hired him, and Emilia introduced herself at the memorial at your house.” He started the Jeep and pulled around the Impala, which started and began to follow them.

“I've been noticing that you struggle with being alone, but also can't reach out and ask for help, something Emilia confirmed when I mentioned it.”

“Okay, and why were you mentioning it?” Danica rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on, but not from annoyance, more from exhaustion and the ups and downs of the emotions she'd been going through all morning.

“Because I wanted her opinion on an idea I had.” He said evasively. “I reached out to her and Maverick on Monday, and we've been working on it together all week.”

“Working together?” Danica shook her head. She couldn't imagine a more different group of people working together, and she was a little flustered and annoyed that they were talking behind her back like that. “Please tell me what you guys have been up to.”

Alex huffed out a sigh and shook his head. “I found you place to stay until you figure out the house situation. Emilia and Xavier have been setting things up, and Maverick has been working on his own thing that he wants to surprise you with, and I promised not to say anything about it.”

Danica froze, unsure if she was hearing him correctly. “You found me a place to stay?” He nodded. “And you what? Paid the deposit and first month's rent already without showing it to me? What if I don't like it?”

“Dani, relax.” He smiled at her quickly.

“My next-door neighbours are an older couple who recently packed up and moved to Arizona to be closer to their daughter, who just had a baby. They used to keep an eye on my condo while I was away and asked if I would mind finding someone interested in renting theirs.”

“I can't afford to rent a multimillion-dollar condo, Alex.” Danica could feel her stomach twist unpleasantly. “And I don't want you to pay for it either.”

“Ah, but see that's the thing. Because I vouched for you with them, you only have to cover the condo fees, which you can absolutely afford.” He smiled at her.

“I'm willing to bet they're less than your mortgage because they are based on what you want access to.

As long as you don't mind only having the basic amenities, and don't care about using the gym, pool or other recreation areas, it's like a thousand a month.” Danica had to admit that it was less than what she was paying for the mortgage, and since that was paid off, her monthly bills weren't doubling.

“Plus, they're okay with a month-to-month agreement, so you only have to give them thirty days' notice to move out.”

“And Emilia and Xavier have been setting things up?” Danica mumbled, realizing she couldn't refute Alex's argument because she didn't want to go back to the house anymore, and if Emilia had agreed it was a good idea, she knew it was probably the best thing she could do.

Alex smiled when he realized she wasn't pushing back anymore.

“Yeah, it was empty, so they found a few pieces of furniture to get you through until you figure out what you want to bring from your place,” he explained cheerfully.

“Unfortunately, you only get one parking space and a guest space, so you're gonna have to figure out what to do with one of your cars for the time being.”

“What? You're not going to let me use your guest space?” Danica asked dryly. She was mostly joking but given how much he'd gone out of his way to do this for her, she had half expected him to say she could use his spare.

“Yeah, I would except that's where I park my motorcycle.” He chuckled. “You can leave it in the underground parking at the hotel, I guess, but as you know, we can't guarantee its safety there.”

“You have a motorcycle?” Danica stared at him in surprise. He was the last person she would have pegged as a biker. “Since when?”

“Since I turned sixteen.” He glanced at her and smirked. “I'm not much of a car guy, but I love a motorcycle.”

“Who are you?” Danica was trying her hardest to reconcile the image of the no-nonsense businessman with the image of a carefree biker and couldn't do it. Alex let out one of his deep belly laughs and shook his head.

“I think I'm going to keep that to myself. At least for now.”