Tony heaved a tremendous sigh. “Vinny was the quintessential soldier. For honor and country. And friendship. He loved you, Heath. You were like a brother to him.”
Heath blinked back tears. “And he was like a brother to me as well. He gave his life for mine. I still can’t wrap my head around it. No one is more deserving of the Medal of Honor than Vinny. His career was all about countless acts of sacrifice.”
“You’re right,” Missy said, lips quivering with emotion. “He always said being a soldier was an honor and a privilege and that he was over in Afghanistan to save lives. And that’s just what he did.”
Heath nodded. He began to dig around in his shirt pocket. Viola let out a gasp as he pulled out Vinny’s gold cross necklace.
“I’ve been meaning to give this to you, but I wanted to do it in person.” Heath quirked his mouth. “I think a part of me wanted to hold onto it for a little while, but it truly belongs with all of you. I never saw Vinny without it. It was his constant companion.”
Heath reached over and handed it to Vinny’s mother. She took it and pressed it to her lips. Although the necklace had been battered and bruised and dented, it was a miracle it was still in one piece.
“Oh, Heath. This means the world to me,” Viola gushed. She raised the necklace to her lips and kissed it. “I feel like you’ve given me a piece of my son back.”
Heath leaned over and embraced Mrs. Peretti. They didn’t let go for a long time. For Heath it felt as if Vinny’s presence loomed large in this room, in this house, with the ones he’d loved more than anything. Being in their midst made Heath feel as if he was a member of the Peretti family.
After sitting down for a meal with the family and sharing stories about Vinny, Heath and Micah said their emotional, tearful goodbyes. Heath promised to come back soon—and he meant it. This family was forever etched on his heartstrings.
Once they were outside, Micah turned to him and said, “You did good, Heath. What you just gave to Vinny’s family is priceless.”
“I gave back a small portion of what Vinny gave me,” Heath said, his chest tightening with emotion. Grief was the hardest road to walk down. It had peaks and valleys. In some instances, it hit you like a tsunami.
“I’m grateful he was there for you,” Micah said, clapping Heath on the shoulder. “I don’t want to imagine life without you.”
Heath stopped in his tracks. “I think that might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me. I take it all back about Mom dropping you on your head when you were a baby.”
Micah rolled his eyes. “Give me the keys. I’ll drive.”
“Are you going soft on me, Micah?” Heath asked.
Micah locked eyes with him. “I’m sorry if I didn’t fully understand everything until today. No wonder you’ve been struggling. What you witnessed with Vinny was horrific. I’m glad it’s all coming to the surface though. The best way of dealing with it is to acknowledge it.”
“Thanks for coming with me. It really made all the difference having you there,” Heath confessed. Micah had been a steadying presence during their visit with the Peretti family.
“Anytime. That’s what siblings are for, right?” Micah asked with a wink.
“You’re absolutely right,” Heath responded, reaching out to clasp hands with his brother. At this moment he felt thankful for so many things. Healing. The power of friendship. Love. Family. And above all else, faith.
“Sometimes, it’s enough that you love a person more than you ever thought you were capable of loving someone. That in itself is a miracle.”
Bella Vincente
Chapter Eight
For the past two days, Bella hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Heath. It was rather strange since until recently they hadn’t seen each other for months and months. Now he’d gotten back under her skin. Who was she kidding? Perhaps he’d always been there. Heath Donahue was a hard man to get over. Bella couldn’t seem to stop loving him. Or caring about what happened to him. This visit to Savannah was so very important to Heath. And because it mattered to Heath, it was important to Bella as well. As much as she had tried to sever her connection to Heath, it had proved impossible. Now that they were expecting a baby, there was no way those ties would ever be cut. They would be in each other’s lives for the rest of their lives.
He’d called her once from Savannah in order to check up on her and the baby. It had been a sweet and unexpected gesture that had worked its way right into the center of her heart. And from the sounds of it, the trip to Savannah had been worthwhile.
And now, she was headed over to his house—the fixer upper he had bought a few months ago. After parking her car in the pebbled driveway, Bella stood back and admired the small white house with the lime green shutters. She couldn’t help but grin. Lime green was Heath’s favorite color.
Bella knocked at the door, smiling at the sight of the seashell wreath on the door and the brightly-colored Adirondack chairs on the wraparound porch. A placard with the word Donahue had been nailed to the space beside the door. Heath was making his home eye-catching with all these special touches. She rang the bell and waited a few moments for Heath to come to the door. The moment he swung the door open Bella could see the look of peace etched on his face. Clearly, this trip to Savannah had been beneficial for him. With his short-sleeved blue shirt and tan shorts, he looked comfy and relaxed. And very easy on the eyes.
“Hey, Bella. Thanks for coming over. Come on in,” he said, ushering her into his house.
She stepped inside, looking around her at Heath’s décor. There were lots of black and white photos of Donahue family occasions and Pelican Bay vistas. She felt her eyes widening as she spotted a photo of herself and Heath. It had always been one of her favorite photos of the two of them. They were at the annual carnival taking a ride on the carousel.
Bella turned toward Heath. He shot her a sheepish grin. “I’ve always loved that picture of us. I hope you don’t mind that I put it up.”
“Of course not,” she answered in a low voice. “It’s your house. You can put up anything you like.”