his hand and then sat down heavily in one of the other chairs.
“Yes, he does, and I have a copy of everything for you.” He indicated a large yellow envelope sitting on the table. “I’m sorry to meet you under these circumstances and for your loss.” Hudson dipped his chin in what Tess figured was a show of sympathy and it made her mentally flinch. When am I ever going to get used to that ?
“Thank you.” Tess lowered her head, grateful for the opportunity to avoid looking at the other man, or feeling his gaze on her.
“Mrs. Langford, could I please get a refill?” Sexy Guy held his mug up in the air.
“Of course!” Ruth rushed to get more coffee while Harry took a seat beside Tess.
“What are you doing here?” Tess asked. “How did you know I’d be here? How did you know where my parents lived?” Her world felt as if it were spinning out of control. Sweat gathered beneath her arms and her fingers began to tremble the same way they did when she hadn’t eaten all day. Twisting them together, she shoved her hands between her knees. The words like “will” and “lawyer” were suddenly thudding into her brain like spikes.
“Jack left specific instructions for the delivery of his will. He gave me a list of all your relatives’ phone numbers and addresses. I tried returning your call a couple of times earlier, but you didn’t answer. When I didn’t reach you, I tried calling your parents. They invited me over to wait for you. Ruth thought you might show up here.”
Tess’s knees began to bounce up and down as she remembered the ringing of her phone from before. “How come you didn’t call me right after Jack died? It’s been over six months.”
Hudson’s face filled with sorrow and pity, making Tess want to smack him.
“I did not know that Jack had passed.”
Tess snorted. “My husband didn’t pass. He wasn’t taking a test. You can say it, he died.” Immediately, she regretted her words. Every face in the room went stiff with shock and embarrassment from her attack. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “Really, I’m sorry. I just hate that expression.” Tess closed her eyes and took a deep breath, conjuring Jack’s voice in her head. Keep it together, T . He’s here to help you . No need to shoot the messenger .
Harry reached for his daughter and rubbed her shoulder. Ruth reappeared with fresh coffee in the carafe and set it in front of Sexy Man, who busied himself by pouring. Ruth leaned in to kiss the top of Tess’s head.
“Please, don’t be sorry,” Hudson said, his tone kind and warm. “It’s totally okay. I received this letter today notifying me that Jack died.” He pulled a sheet of paper out of his briefcase and handed it to her. It was from EJR Insurance saying that they would be making a payout to Tess Langford Kingston on the insurance policy.
Tess nodded. “They called me yesterday.”
“Well, that makes sense then why I would get a notification too.” Hudson jotted some notes on the pad of paper in front of him. “I take it, then, that you don’t know anything about Jack’s estate planning?”
She shook her head no, but continued to stare at her lap. “I didn’t. It’s been a pretty hard time, Mr. Marks.”
“Please, call me Hudson.” He turned to the table to look at the file open there, flipping through pages before looking at her again. “I can’t begin to imagine how all this has been for you. I wish I had found out sooner. The last thing I want to do is add more to your plate. Jack was worried about all of the assets he came into very suddenly. He wanted things taken care of as soon as possible.” Hudson sighed and ran a hand through his thick, wavy hair. “I would never have believed you’d need the documents so soon.”
“Ya think?” Tess muttered, wringing her hands in her lap. She stared at her fingers, lacing and unlacing them together. She had almost successfully forgotten about Sexy Dude. Almost. “When did he do all
“Yes, he does, and I have a copy of everything for you.” He indicated a large yellow envelope sitting on the table. “I’m sorry to meet you under these circumstances and for your loss.” Hudson dipped his chin in what Tess figured was a show of sympathy and it made her mentally flinch. When am I ever going to get used to that ?
“Thank you.” Tess lowered her head, grateful for the opportunity to avoid looking at the other man, or feeling his gaze on her.
“Mrs. Langford, could I please get a refill?” Sexy Guy held his mug up in the air.
“Of course!” Ruth rushed to get more coffee while Harry took a seat beside Tess.
“What are you doing here?” Tess asked. “How did you know I’d be here? How did you know where my parents lived?” Her world felt as if it were spinning out of control. Sweat gathered beneath her arms and her fingers began to tremble the same way they did when she hadn’t eaten all day. Twisting them together, she shoved her hands between her knees. The words like “will” and “lawyer” were suddenly thudding into her brain like spikes.
“Jack left specific instructions for the delivery of his will. He gave me a list of all your relatives’ phone numbers and addresses. I tried returning your call a couple of times earlier, but you didn’t answer. When I didn’t reach you, I tried calling your parents. They invited me over to wait for you. Ruth thought you might show up here.”
Tess’s knees began to bounce up and down as she remembered the ringing of her phone from before. “How come you didn’t call me right after Jack died? It’s been over six months.”
Hudson’s face filled with sorrow and pity, making Tess want to smack him.
“I did not know that Jack had passed.”
Tess snorted. “My husband didn’t pass. He wasn’t taking a test. You can say it, he died.” Immediately, she regretted her words. Every face in the room went stiff with shock and embarrassment from her attack. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “Really, I’m sorry. I just hate that expression.” Tess closed her eyes and took a deep breath, conjuring Jack’s voice in her head. Keep it together, T . He’s here to help you . No need to shoot the messenger .
Harry reached for his daughter and rubbed her shoulder. Ruth reappeared with fresh coffee in the carafe and set it in front of Sexy Man, who busied himself by pouring. Ruth leaned in to kiss the top of Tess’s head.
“Please, don’t be sorry,” Hudson said, his tone kind and warm. “It’s totally okay. I received this letter today notifying me that Jack died.” He pulled a sheet of paper out of his briefcase and handed it to her. It was from EJR Insurance saying that they would be making a payout to Tess Langford Kingston on the insurance policy.
Tess nodded. “They called me yesterday.”
“Well, that makes sense then why I would get a notification too.” Hudson jotted some notes on the pad of paper in front of him. “I take it, then, that you don’t know anything about Jack’s estate planning?”
She shook her head no, but continued to stare at her lap. “I didn’t. It’s been a pretty hard time, Mr. Marks.”
“Please, call me Hudson.” He turned to the table to look at the file open there, flipping through pages before looking at her again. “I can’t begin to imagine how all this has been for you. I wish I had found out sooner. The last thing I want to do is add more to your plate. Jack was worried about all of the assets he came into very suddenly. He wanted things taken care of as soon as possible.” Hudson sighed and ran a hand through his thick, wavy hair. “I would never have believed you’d need the documents so soon.”
“Ya think?” Tess muttered, wringing her hands in her lap. She stared at her fingers, lacing and unlacing them together. She had almost successfully forgotten about Sexy Dude. Almost. “When did he do all
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