He didn’t move, still looking at the photo of Jenn with Jake on his desk. They’d known each other since high school. They’d built a good life together, shared so much. She was so beautiful, so loving but lately, little by little, she’d become distant and he didn’t know why. He closed his eyes. He was too tired to think about anything. He had to get up early to get to the job site. He left the text unanswered, turned off his phone then connected it to the charging cable in the kitchen.

Wearily, Greg hauled himself upstairs.

He passed Jake’s room and by the hall light, glimpsed his posters for the Bills and Sabres, the pictures of the three of them at Six Flags in Darien, at Bills Stadium in Orchard Park.

He smiled.

Greg took a quick hot shower, checked his hands, no splinters to pull out tonight. He brushed his teeth, got into his sweats and a T-shirt then got into their king-sized bed.

The green numbers on his bedside clock showed 9:37 p.m. His alarm was set for 4:35 a.m.

He usually went to bed before Jenn, especially on book club nights. Sometimes he woke when he heard her come home, most times he didn’t.

In less than five minutes, Greg sank into a deep sleep. He began dreaming before surfacing through a foggy stage of near wakefulness, glancing at the clock.

1:21 a.m.

No, get back to sleep. I need sleep.

In his sleepy state he turned over to Jenn.

But she wasn’t there.

Copyright © 2022 by Highway Nine, Inc.

Her Last Goodbye—available now for preorder, wherever books are sold!