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“And what?”
Cornell’s eyes met hers. “Renovations. To make it more us.”
Ali swallowed. “What if you get a job offer in the spring?”
“I’m meeting with Evan and the board of directors next week.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Ali exclaimed, leveraging herself by his knees. “Head coach?”
“It’s crazy, right? I walked into that place a year ago thinking I’d stay a season. And here I am thinking about staying for—”
“Years.”
“At least two, maybe three,” Cornell told her. “I know it wasn’t what we were thinking about. But I can’t accept if you aren’t okay with it.” Beneath the sudsy water, he reached for Ali’s hand. “I know you’re thinking about leaving Hopperville. And—”
“Don’t,” Ali interrupted.
“What?”
Ali smiled. “Try and stop me from being happy for you.”
The corner of Cornell’s mouth ticked up. “So, you’re fine if your boyfriend stays a lame Juco coach? Because I’m not sure choosing to wrangle a bunch of overgrown smart asses is very brag worthy. It’s a lot like herding cats.”
Oh, I’ll brag alright. Because I can’t believe that somehow you give me another reason to love you more than I already do.
Even though Ali’s heart was set on leaving, that didn’t mean it was a door easily closed. It didn’t mean she hadn’t thought about the people—the kids—she would be leaving behind. And knowing that Cornell wouldn’t just be there, but be an authoritative figure, a mentor, brought some kind of cushioning to the door closing instead of allowing it to slam shut.
Cornell taking the head coach position made Ali’s decision to look for work elsewhere seem like the right one.
“Anyway,” Cornell said. “The house is just an idea.”
But it was more than an idea for Ali. It was a sliver of déjà vu, a peek of her just a few short years ago, when she was with a different man, talking about a different house. Only back then, that man talked about the townhouse like an investment—Matt had highlighted its perfect square footage, its prime location in Dallas. Ali walked around taking the space in, trying to see the future, while Matt tried to see if it might be a good business deal. When they split, it sold for the exact amount they paid for it. Nothing went as planned for either of them.
And I’m so happy it didn’t. Because he talked real estate investments, and you are talking about a family, she thought, looking at Cornell, amazed.
And Ali had sat for the past two months wondering if they would ever get back to that point. But Cornell tilting his head at her in wonder, like nothing had ever happened, made Ali realize that they never left that point. “It’s just a fumble, Ali.” Cornell had told her as she held Julian’s sweet baby, looking down at his dreaming, fluttering eyelids, afraid to let herself wonder if their own baby might get Cornell’s gently sloped nose, his long legs.
He had told her just before they successfully transferred sleeping Andre to his car seat that he hoped their baby had her heart. But Ali knew that if they had a child and that little one got just a sliver of Cornell’s, the world could only be a better place.
“What?” Cornell asked, squeezing her hand. His fingertips began to prune in the hot water, tickling her palm.
Ali sighed. “Just thinking.”
I’m thinking about how this moment, right here, is everything I’ve ever dreamed about and more. You dreaming with me.Ali’s mind flashed throughout the past year—all the good, fun moments between them, the sad, harder ones, the dark.
“Do you think we’re soulmates?” Ali asked, rubbing her damp leg with the length of the robe.
“Yes,” he answered immediately and without hesitation, with all the confidence in the world.
“How do you know?”
There was silence, and Ali could hear Cornell close a door. “Because I’d choose the worst fucking day I’ve ever had with you over the best day I’ve had without you a million times over.”
It wasn’t that Ali would choose to go through what she did. But for the first time, Ali associated a feeling of gratitude around the attack. She was grateful that it happened when Cornell was there to hold her hand through the hard bits and still encourage her to keep her head in the clouds, to keep chasing the dream. Because even though the ground was dark and scary, with Cornell, Ali could see the sky was bright and limitless.
I don’t need a ring. I don’t need a house. Those things don’t make it forever. He does.
“We don’t have to think about it—” Cornell’s mouth closed when Ali clamored into his lap, pulling him forward so she could wrap her legs around his waist. They both ignored the water that spilled over the sides and onto the floor.
