Thalia broke the hug slowly, as if pulling away might shatter what little strength she had left. Her arms fell to her sides, heavy, useless. She was sad beyond words could explain yet somewhere beneath the grief, there was a faint warmth. The warmth that reminded her she wasn’t alone. That her husband was still here, holding her together when she was already falling apart.

Her lips trembled.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Thalia whispered, her voice cracked midway.

George didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he lifted his hands and cupped her cheeks gently, his palms warm against her cold skin. His thumbs brushed away the tears she...