Southern Roots by Lise Gold

Author:Lise Gold [Gold, Lise]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, series
Publisher: Lise Gold Books
Published: 2019-03-07T05:00:00+00:00

28

Presley, Louisiana, USA

“How do you feel?” Kristine asked when Hannah put one of the letters back in the box and closed it. It was dark now, and her eyes were getting tired from reading under the dim porch light. There were still two boxes to go, and she hadn’t even finished the first one after reading for five hours straight, but she couldn’t handle any more today.

Hannah was silent for a moment before she cleared her throat. She hadn’t cried. It didn’t feel right to cry for someone she hadn’t known, but she did feel emotionally drained.

“You know, it’s a big thing when you can’t remember ever being loved, growing up,” she said. “And then, suddenly, you realize there was always someone out there who was thinking of you and loved you.” She shook her head. “I feel like I’ve wasted so much time and energy, being angry.”

Kristine put an arm around her and pulled her in. “I can’t imagine how hard this must be for you.”

“It is. It’s much easier to be angry.” Hannah sighed. “Sympathy was the last thing I expected to feel for her, but I do now. The fact that she wrote me letters throughout the years, even before I was born, it’s… well… I’d be lying if I said it left me cold. These letters make all the difference. They change how I feel about her, but also how I feel about myself in some weird way. I’ve never had anything to identify with and now I do, because now I know where I came from, who made me, and that’s a little confusing. Does that make sense?”

“Of course. It’s a lot to take in,” Kristine said in a soft voice.

“And the man in the pictures,” Hannah continued, “he’s my father.”

“He is?” Kristine fell silent for a moment. “Wow! I don’t know what to say, Hannah. That’s… well, that’s huge.”

“Yeah. They met in London. He’s American and his father worked for the American Embassy, but he eventually moved back with his parents while Hannah remained in the UK. I just knew it was him when I found that first wedding photo, but it didn’t make sense, so I tried not to think of it and yet I couldn’t stop thinking of it.” Hannah swallowed hard. “There’s an engraved compass in the jewelry box, upstairs in the bathroom. Hannah kept it with the wedding band I told you about. Ben gave it to her before he moved back to the US, I read about it in one of her letters.” She stood up. “I want to show it to you.”

Kristine waited while Hannah went up to the bathroom and came back with the compass and the wedding band.

“It’s beautiful,” she said, reading the inscription on the back.

“Yeah, it’s sweet, isn’t it? She must have really loved him if she kept it all these years, even after her divorce.”

Kristine put her arm back around Hannah’s shoulders, her heart breaking a little when she noticed how fragile she looked.

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