68 Alone

Jane.

EIGHT MONTHS LATER.

I focused on my work. People at the office congratulated me on my marriage to Philip O'Connor. They asked me how the three of us managed even though I was married to the older brother. It was a weird explanation, so I didn't bother and let them assume what they liked. Every night, I would go home and sleep on an empty bed. Amrah did not spend much time with Nikolai, so she did not miss him like I did James and Philip. I would often cry myself to sleep and wonder when they would return. I stopped checking time and counting the dates so I did not sink into depression more than I had already.

Somehow I began to suspect they might not return. When Philip said one year, I thought he was joking, but now that I was almost due, I feared they would be gone for over a year. Alexi had told me that the longer they were in their world, the longer it would take for them to return, and I cursed my heart for falling too deeply in love with them.

Martha told me the most in