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Everything suddenly became clear. This past year, I’d struggled with losing my family. With bills. With my mother’s passing. But, as I listened to Peter go on and on about all the things that were my fault, I realized he’d been just a prop in this family. He hadn’t put in any effort, and then he’d stopped participating entirely. Will and I had grown closer, but Peter had been doing his own thing for a long time. It felt liberating to see that I no longer had to explain anything to Peter or feel bad about the past. I could move on to the next stage of grief:acceptance. “Peter, I’m sorry you’re struggling. I am. But we are done. You need to go.”
Peter paused, then cocked an eyebrow. “Do you want to know why you had all of those break-ins?”
I froze. “What are you talking about?”
He gave me a triumphant smile. “I wanted to scare you. I wanted you to realize that you can’t do all of this on your own. I thought if I showed up today, you would remember how great it was and want to be together again. Not just for me, but for our son. What have you got to say to that?”
Slight panic washed over me; this idiot had crossed a line. I walked backward, keeping my eyes on him. “Let me grab something from the back before I answer that.”
Once I’d safely put a door between him and me, I called Bill and asked him to escort Peter away from the store.
Twenty minutes later, Peter was handcuffed and taken to jail.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Charles
It was getting later, nearing sunset, and I found myself at the lighthouse. I felt bad that I hadn’t returned my grandmother’s calls, but I couldn’t just go back without Melody. I called her.
Grandmother answered on the first ring. “Hello, Charles. What’s wrong? Where have you been?”
“Something came up, and I needed some time to think. I’ll be home later. I’m sorry I’m missing Christmas dinner.”
“Where is Melody? Is she with you?”
I took a deep breath, tamping down the fear that had been festering all day. “She’s not with me. I’ll let you know. I have to go.”
I hung up and returned my gaze to the ocean.
“I’ve been looking for you,” Melody’s voice said, cutting into my thoughts. “Is this where you went after you tried to break up my wedding?”
I turned to see her walking toward me across the beach. “What are you doing here?”
Her face lit up with a smile. She was wearing a Christmas dress and makeup, and her hair was done up in curls. “I mustadmit I didn’t look too far for you; I just had to get ready first. I couldn’t come find you looking the way I did.”
I wanted to wrap her up in my arms, but I hesitated. “And Peter?” I couldn’t imagine that she would come find me to tell me that she had decided to go back to him, and I hated to admit I had a lot of insecurities.
She reached for my hand. “Do you want him to be here?”
“No.”
Her face turned serious. “I wanted to be with you, but an update on Peter; Bill actually came and escorted him to jail.”
“What? Are you serious?”
She laughed and slipped one of her hands behind my neck, pulling me down to her. I didn’t resist. Our lips touched, and I wanted to believe that she was here to be with me. That she was mine.
She kept me close to her, leaving a trail of gentle kisses around my lips. So many emotions washed over me. I pulled her closer and did a deep dive into kissing this woman, letting go of all of today’s desperation. We kissed and kissed.
She finally pulled back and laughed. “You want to know the good thing about me seeing my ex?”
“What?”
She placed both hands on my face. “It gave me clarity. Clarity about what I want. About the relationship I want and the man I want at my side. Clarity about the fact that I love you.”
My heart was about to burst. “You love me?”
“I think I always have.”
