Love and Only Love

Chapter 11

Meryl and Don spent the night in one another's arms, finding the love, safety and comfort they could only receive from one another. Meryl eventually fell asleep, feeling safe in Don's arms. Sleep wasn't as easy to find for Don. He dozed off occasionally, but then his thoughts kept waking him up. He couldn't stop thinking about Kevin Mann, the person who threatened their happiness and lives years ago. He thought of the hell Meryl went through, not only through the stalking, but the trial. He couldn't get the image and sound of her screaming when he walked in on that SOB attacking her. He couldn't get the image of her crying on the witness stand out of his mind. He was reliving the fear all over again. The fear of the unknown. The fear of not being able to protect his family. The fear of his wife and son being in the hands of that psycho and he had no idea where they were or what was happening. Overwhelming fear. Paralyzing fear.

Not only was Don's mind preoccupied with the past and future, it was also preoccupied with the present. It was going to be a hard day as the family officially put Mary at rest. He was worried about his wife and children and how the day would affect them, not to mention the nagging fear that Kevin Mann would show up. He also had a very special responsibility-to eulogize Mary. He had barely started working on his remarks. Meryl had told him to just stand up and speak from his heart, but he couldn't do that. He wasn't like her, he couldn't just stand up and speak off the cuff. This was too important to mess up. He looked down and smiled when he saw Meryl was still asleep. He carefully got out of bed and went to work on his eulogy.

***

Meryl stirred as the sun light began to filter through the curtains. For the first time in weeks she felt rested and satisfied. She reached out for her husband. The smile that appeared on her face when she thought of the amazing night they had, soon disappeared when she realized it was the day of her mother's funeral, remembered about Kevin Mann and realized her husband was no longer sleeping beside her. She looked over at the clock and saw that it was only 6, they didn't have to get going for several hours. She got out of bed, put on her robe, and went in search of her husband.

***

Meryl smiled when she saw her father sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee. "Morning, Daddy." She said as she kissed the top of his head.

"Morning, sweet pea." He smiled sadly.

Meryl sat down across the table from him. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay, Mary Louise, don't you worry about me. Your mother and I had a wonderful life. I just can't believe we're burying her today." He choked.

Meryl couldn't imagine how he felt. Her parents had been married for over 60 years. They shared a bed. They spent everyday together, especially after her father's retirement 30 years earlier. She couldn't imagine living without Don. "I know, Daddy. You made her so happy. You were a team, you always will be."

Harry shook his head. "I'm going to go clean up. Go check on Don."

"Where is he?" Meryl asked looking around as she helped her elderly father stand up.

"He's outside. He's been pretty quiet and deep in thought. He made me coffee this morning but didn't stay inside to talk which is unlike him." Harry observed.

"He's worried about the eulogy." Meryl covered. She, Don, and her brothers had agreed not to tell her father or the kids about the threats. The only people that knew were them, Mary, Maeve, and Larry.

"He'll be fine. He's the perfect one to eulogize your mother. Make sure he knows that." Harry smiled as he walked off.

Meryl sighed. She knew it wasn't just the eulogy that was getting to him. She knew the amount of guilt he still carried around with him after their last round with Kevin Mann was eating at him. She couldn't understand it, but she knew it was there. He had come to her rescue and protected her and Henry at all costs which almost cost him his life. But Kevin still got to her, and that was the crux of the issue. Oh how she wished Don didn't put so much pressure on himself when it came to her and their family, but that was the kind of man he was, and one of the reasons she loved him so much. All she wanted was to get through the day with her husband and children by her side, safe.