Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 65444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 262(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 262(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
“You two will figure it out,” he says gently, and my head turns toward him. “I have faith that somehow we are led to the exact place in our lives that we are meant to be, and I have no doubt you and Zach are meant to be right here, so now it’s up to you two to figure out how to make it work.”
“I’m scared,” I admit. “I didn’t have the best marriage, and we’re not the same people we were years ago. We both have baggage.”
“You just have to figure out how to share the load with each other. There will be times when you need to carry it all around, and times when he does too. That’s the point of relationships. Give and take. Making sure the other person is content.”
“Joe sure has made you smart.” I smile, and he grins back then takes a long drag from his cigarette.
“Your granddad would be happy. He always wanted you two back together,” he says, surprising me.
“You know, he never talked about Zach or the kids with me.”
“I get why he didn’t, but that doesn’t change the fact he knew, like he knew your grandmother was the one for him, that Zach is the one for you.”
“He loved Grandma,” I point out quietly. He never had another relationship that I know of after she passed away. He never moved on after her death.
“Yep, and that man sitting at my table loves you too. Never doubt that.”
“I don’t—”
“Trust me on this.”
“He married Tina. He got her pregnant and married her.”
“He did. I’m not saying he didn’t mess up, but I know the man he was then, and I know the man he is now. He was doing right by her and those kids. I would have done the same thing.”
“I can’t talk about this,” I say, and he shakes his head then reaches over, taking my hand.
“You need to talk about it. That’s the thing that will end you two if you don’t, and you can’t let it. He’s a good man and a good father. He loves his kids down to his bones. You need to find a way to make peace with what took place after you left. I’m not saying you need to like it, but life happens, and it’s not always perfect. Sometimes, the road to happiness is full of trials and tribulations. You just have to figure out how to make it past the hard parts so you can find your piece of happiness.”
“Why her? Of all people, why her?” I ask the question I’ve asked myself time and time again.
“Don’t know. That’s something you’ll have to ask him.” He shrugs, letting my hand go, putting out his cigarette, only to take another out of the pack on the table and light it up. “What I do know is the light I see in his eyes is one I haven’t seen for a long time.”
“Like I said, we’re going slow.”
“And like I said, find a way to talk to him. Get the answers you need and make peace with them. You don’t have to like what he tells you, but you don’t want to look back ten, twenty years from now, wishing you would have taken the chance on opening yourself up.”
Leaning back, I close my eyes briefly. “I think part of me is still in love with him,” I admit, wondering how that’s even possible after so long and so much history.
“Love never dies. Sometimes, it transforms into something else altogether, but it never goes away.”
“I made mistakes of my own. I know I made him feel like Samuel’s adoption was all on him, like he forced me to go through with it, when he didn’t.”
“One more thing for you two to talk about.”
“Yeah,” I agree, knowing he’s right. We do need to talk about it. I may not want to, but if we are ever going to find a way to make it work, we will need to at some point.
Hearing laughter coming from the house, I look in and see Aubrey doubled over laughing in her chair with Denver, who is sitting next to her, watching her with a soft look on his face.
“Oh shit.”
“Oh shit what?” I ask, turning to look at Paul, and he shakes his head.
“Girl’s pretty. Has no idea how pretty she is, and I think Den just realized it for himself.”
Looking back inside, I see Den hasn’t taken his eyes off her, and then I look at Zach to see if he noticed, and sure enough, his narrowed eyes are pointed at Den in a way that says he’s about to get out of his chair and commit murder.
“I better go in before your son ends up dead,” I mutter, and he chuckles. He snuffs out his cigarette and opens the door, letting me in before him. “What’s so funny?” All eyes swing to me, and Maisey grins while Joe shakes her head, smiling.