They both chuckled, and damn, did it feel good to be able to do that, there with Nathan and Patricia and this man who’d been so close to his brother-in-law.
Grady said, “Probably sounds crazy, but part of me feels like I know you.”
“I’m sorry I can’t say the same,” Deacon replied.
“It’s okay.” They were silent for a minute before Grady said, “He was going to tell you both when he came…that visit. He was going to tell you.”
“Shit.” Deacon swiped at the moisture leaking from his eyes. Nathan had been so close to freeing himself, to opening himself up. If he’d come a day earlier or later…hell, an hour earlier or later, he wouldn’t have been in that pile-up. He would have made it home to Patricia. He would have told her, and she would have loved him, and then Grady and Nathan would have been there with her when she passed. “Life can be so cruel sometimes.”
“Yeah,” Grady replied. “It can be.”
“How long were you together?” Deacon asked.
“We weren’t. Sorry. It took me by surprise that you knew about him, and I forgot that’s what you asked. We were never lovers. We met in basic training. We left the army together, discovered who we were together. He was the first person I ever told about me, and I was that for him. We were more like brothers. He was the most important person in my life. Don’t know that I could have accepted who I am without him.”
“I’m sorry for your loss.” Clearly, he’d loved Nathan, and Deacon felt connected to him in that moment. Like they knew a similar pain, even though Patricia had been someone different to Deacon than who Nathan had been to Grady. But Grady had loved Nathan, even if not romantically, just like Deacon had loved Patricia, and talking to someone who cared so much about the brother Patricia had adored… Deacon found that strangely soothing.
“He was the best man I’ve ever known,” Grady replied. “I’m sorry. I’m sure my coming to Everett stirred up memories for you, and now here I am again, taking up your time when you came to see your wife.”
An unfamiliar jolt shot through him, one that almost felt like panic. Deacon didn’t want this man to go. He wanted to… Hell, he didn’t know. Talk to him? Get to know this person who’d been so important to Nathan? Wanted to spend time with someone who seemed to feel what Deacon felt, even though their situations were different? What was wrong with him?
“Do you want to grab a coffee?” Deacon found himself asking.
Grady frowned, his brows pulling together and his forehead wrinkling up as though he was as surprised by the question as Deacon had been. “Are you sure?”
“I wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t.”
He got a short nod in return. “Okay, then. Let’s do it.”
Chapter 5
Grady
Grady couldn’t believe he was about to go out to coffee with Deacon. He spent the walk back to their vehicles trying to figure out how in the hell that happened. After yesterday, he thought he’d made a mistake coming there, but now they’d…talked. He’d discovered Deacon accepted Nathan, and that Birdie—Patricia—would have too. He was so happy for his friend and wished he could have experienced it. Grady didn’t know how he felt about what came after death—if anything—but he found himself hoping that wherever they were, Nathan and Patricia were together.
They hadn’t parked far away from each other. They stopped when they reached the lot, and Deacon said, “How would you feel about heading over to Chelsea? If we’re around here, we won’t be left alone. Everyone will come up to talk to me under the guise of wanting to say hi while they try and figure out who you are.”
Grady laughed. “The joys of small-town life, huh? Especially when you’ve lived here your whole life and everyone knows you.”
“You can say that again, man. Everett is bigger than Harmony, but it doesn’t always feel like it.”
“I grew up in a similar town, and yeah, Chelsea works for me.”
“We can go to Chelsea Bru’s. It’s a little café.”
Grady agreed. They said their goodbyes, and he typed the name into his phone to get directions. It was a twenty-five-minute drive, and he spent the whole time trying to wrap his brain around spending the morning with Nathan’s brother-in-law. Jesus, he wished his best friend was there with him.
Deacon beat him there. Grady saw him standing out front, and couldn’t help admiring how good he looked in his faded jeans and a long-sleeved charcoal shirt, his crossed arms pulling the fabric tight over his chest.
Something about the way he was standing, though—the way he looked at Grady, then his eyes darting away—said he was a little unsure. He’d been like this when they first started talking, but it had gotten better after a few minutes. Maybe Deacon was wondering why in the hell he’d asked Grady to meet him, just like he was.