He Knew Her Too Well

Derek knew Joy didn't want Rachel to feel replaced if she was still out there. If she knew for sure that her daughter was never coming back, she would be able to adopt or something at least. He knew how much she had loved being a mom. 

He wished more than anything that they could just find Rachel's body so she could try to move on. Despite being terrified that moving on would involve leaving him. 

She wouldn't though…would she? Not unless she fell in love again. That didn't seem likely at this point. 

Derek forced himself to release the breath he was holding. There was no use worrying about something that probably wasn't going to happen. They were both used to the way things were. He should focus on enjoying the moment while she wasn't upset. That had been happening a lot less often lately.