Through the walk and for the first five minutes or so that we had been standing there, I remained silent. Zev did, too. There were a million questions running through my mind, but something was pulling at me to keep quiet.
So, I did.
And after a bit more time had passed, Zev finally spoke.
“I hope you can see us here, Liam,” he started as I squeezed his hand just a little tighter. “I brought Tillie with me. I’m sorry I haven’t been by to see you. It’s probably going to be a little while before I can come see you again because I’m moving. I’m moving to Sedona to be with Tillie. We’re happy. I’m happy. For the first time since you died, I’m happy again. And she makes me feel that way.”
Oh, God. I didn’t think I could handle this. It was taking everything I had inside me to hold back not just the tears but the sobs threatening to take over.
“It sucks that you’re gone, and I’m the happiest I’ve ever been,” he went on. “Every time I came to see you before now, I carried guilt with me. But everyone made me see that you wouldn’t want that for me. So, I let it go. And I hope that if you can see us, you are smiling down at us knowing we’re getting through this and the rest of our lives together instead of apart.”
I leaned my weight into Zev’s arm. He let go of my hand, wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and curled me into his body. I tipped my head back to look up at him. His eyes were shining down at me. I smiled at him through the tears in my eyes before turning my attention to Liam’s headstone.
“We love you, Liam. And we miss you so much,” I rasped. Zev’s arms tightened around me.
Another minute of silence passed before Zev ended, “Rest easy, Liam. We’ll be back soon.”
With that, Zev led us out of the cemetery and back to his car. Once we were inside, I looked over at him and found him staring at me.
“What?” I asked.
“Thank you for doing that with me,” he replied.
“I’m happy we did it,” I told him. When he took my hand in his and gave it a squeeze, I added, “And I’m glad you let go of the guilt.”
“Me too,” he admitted. “It took me a while, but I finally started to see things the way I should have from the beginning. Liam loved you. I have no doubt about that. But you and I were meant to be together, Tillie.”
“I love you.”
Zev leaned over the center console, touched his lips to mine, and whispered, “I love you, too.”
I smiled against his lips before kissing him. Then he pulled back and asked, “Should we go surprise my parents?”
Excitement filled me. “Yeah!”
Just over ten minutes later, Zev and I walked up to the front door. I pressed the button to ring the bell. Zev had a key, but we figured it would be a better surprise this way.
A moment later, the door opened. Ron’s eyes went from our faces to our connected hands and back to our faces. He grinned and called out, “Janet! Come here.”
Before she even made it to the front door, Janet shouted back, “I’m coming. I was just finishing up preparing lu—”
Janet stopped dead in her tracks as she took us in. She was visibly stunned for several long seconds.
And then she wasn’t.
She rushed forward and threw her arms around me.
“Oh, Tillie, dear. I’m so happy to see you here,” she cried.
I let go of Zev’s hand so I could return her embrace. “I missed you, too,” I returned.
Janet held on for a bit before she stepped back and urged, “Come in, come in, come in.”
As we stepped inside and closed the door, she looked up at her son and sighed, “I’m so glad you took our advice.”
Zev gave his mom a hug and agreed, “Me too.”
Ron greeted me with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “It’s good to see you, Tillie.”
“You too. It’s been far too long.”
Ron’s eyes left mine and went to Zev’s. “What did I tell you?” he asked.
Zev’s brows pulled together. “What?”
“Last week. Don’t you remember? I told you Tillie would forgive you for being a fool,” he reminded him.
At Ron’s words, I bit my bottom lip to stifle my laughter. Apparently, Zev hadn’t told me everything his parents said to him when he was here last weekend. It didn’t matter, though.
Ron was right.
There were very few things I could ever imagine that Zev could have done that would have prevented me from forgiving him or talking to him. None of us were perfect. Zev realized his mistake, apologized, and asked for my forgiveness. There was no way I wasn’t going to give it to him. Not after all these years. Not after everything we’d been through.
“I’m a lucky man,” Zev noted. “In fact, I’m so lucky that I’m afraid to admit that this is going to be my last lunch with you guys for a little while.”
Confusion and worry washed over their faces.
Thankfully, Zev didn’t let them sit with that too long. He quickly explained, “My mistake was so bad that I ended up pushing Tillie to the point where she moved away from Saguaro.”
Ron’s head jerked back. Janet audibly gasped as her lips parted.
“Tillie’s in Sedona now,” Zev continued. “She has her own storefront and is doing really well there. So, I’m moving out to Sedona to be with her.”
“Oh, Zev, that’s wonderful news,” Janet stressed. “You know we love seeing you here, but I’ll be happier knowing you’re moving on with your life in the way I always hoped for you.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Janet looked back and forth between the two of us. She had stars in her eyes. Ron’s voice broke in and declared, “Lunch is ready. Let’s move out of the foyer and go eat.”
At his declaration, we all moved toward the dining room.
For the next two hours, Zev and I ate lunch and caught up with his parents. I told them all about my new store and the success I’d been having. They listened intently and were overjoyed to hear how well I’d been doing.
The best part of our time with Zev’s parents for me was that I was able to see for myself that they were okay. When I last saw them, they’d both been messes. Even though Zev had told me they were doing much better, I still needed to see it with my own eyes. Any lingering doubts I had were gone. Just as I knew a part of me and Zev would always grieve for Liam, I didn’t think Ron and Janet would ever truly recover from the loss of their son. But it was now clear to me that they were in a much better place. I only hoped that would continue for them.
Two hours after we arrived, Zev announced that we needed to go. Following a round of hugs, goodbyes, and promises on both sides to visit often, Zev and I left.
Once we were in the car, he started it but made no move to go.
“Zev?” I called.
“Yeah?”
“Is everything okay?” I questioned him.
His eyes searched my face before he nodded and replied, “Yeah. I was just thinking that this is it.”
Confused, I asked, “What?”
“The start of our life together,” he answered. “As soon as we leave Saguaro, our new life begins.”
Tears filled my eyes as the realization hit me. Ignoring the lump in my throat, I whispered, “It’s what I’ve dreamt of my whole life.”