Breaking Through the Past (Espen Jetties #3)

Epilogue

STEPHEN

One Month Later

“We’re going to be late,” I called up the stairs.

“Be down in a second,” Jansen replied.

I glanced at my watch again. We couldn’t miss this appointment. Otherwise, we’d have to wait another three weeks before we’d have time again. Fitting in a house closing during hockey season wasn’t the easiest thing to do. The season had only begun two weeks ago, and it seemed like Jansen had already been on the road more than he’d been home.

Over the last two weeks, we’d bounced back and forth between our two places. Not because we didn’t want to stay in the same house while we waited to close, but we both agreed that moving things twice was not ideal. There was no point in taking my clothes to Jansen’s with him having a bunch of road games, and him loading up his own clothes to bring to my house just seemed like extra work. As it was, we had two sets of movers scheduled for the same day, one to each home.

I couldn’t wait.

Having a place that was ours would make it easier for us to see each other. This way when he was playing at home, no matter how late he was at the arena, he’d always slip into bed with me at the end. We wouldn’t have to worry about whose stuff was where. Everything would be in our home.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs grabbed my attention and I looked up to see Jansen bounding down them. Like each time he entered my space, I wondered how I got so lucky to have this man want me above all others. I’d pinched myself enough over the last few months to know that this was well and truly reality.

“Ready?” Jansen asked, grabbing his keys from the table by the door.

He either hadn’t noticed the way I stared at him, or he’d simply gotten used to it. “Yes.”

Jansen stepped out first and I locked the door behind me. As we walked to the car, my phone started to ring in my pocket. I tugged it out and glanced at the screen, worried there might be a delay with the closing. Instead, the name I saw on my screen stopped me in my tracks. Gisela.

It had been over a month since I walked away from the two of them, after letting out years of pent-up anger and hurt. I honestly hadn’t expected to hear from them for a long time, if ever. I’d made my choice to stay with Jansen, the same man Serilda had discarded like an old shirt. The same way she’d treated me, like me and my feelings didn’t matter an ounce to her. Well, no longer was I doing anything for others unless it made me happy. For the first time in my life, I was putting my wants and needs above everyone else. Except for maybe Jansen.

As if I conjured him out of thin air, he appeared at my side. “What’s wrong?”

I tilted the phone in his direction and let him see the screen. His mouth dropped open the moment he recognized the name.

“Are you going to answer it?”

I glanced at the time. Whatever it was that Gisela might want, I didn’t have time to deal with it now. “No.”

“Stephen…” He gave me a look that clearly said he thought I needed to see why she’d called.

“Not right now,” I continued. “I don’t want to miss this closing. The next time you’re home without a game is weeks from now. We’re lucky we got them to agree to the later closing time so you could get to practice.” I took his hand and led him to the car. The call went to voicemail.

I lifted it to my ear as I climbed into the car.

“Stephen, I know we didn’t leave things on a good note the last time we spoke. When you get a chance, I would appreciate it if you could return my call so we can talk.”

There was no malice, no anger in her voice. Not exactly what I expected. “She wants me to call her back.”

We both got in and he started in the direction of the office building we were meeting everyone in. I noticed him glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. Concern was etched in the crease of his brow.

“I promise I’ll call her back once we have the keys to the house in our hands. I need to focus on this right now and not be distracted by whatever Gisela has to say.”

“Okay.” He laced his fingers with mine.

The paperwork took a little over an hour to complete. It was worth it when they handed over the keys. I couldn’t keep the smile from my face when we stepped out into the crisp fall evening.

The perfect night to go to our new home. “Let’s go to the new place, then we’ll order in and take it back to mine,” I said. The movers weren’t due to come for another two days. Two more days until we were settled in.

Jansen gave me a nod and walked to the driver’s side of the car. I knew what was bothering him. The question of whether that call would change our relationship. He had nothing to worry about, nothing either Serilda or Gisela could say would alter the way I felt about him.

“How about I call her now and relieve some of the tension?”

He gave another nod and climbed inside. Before he could start the car, I placed my hand on his, stopping him. “Please know there is nothing anyone could say that would make me change my mind about you. You’re it for me. This is forever.” I lifted his hand to my lips and kissed the back of it.

He smiled, even though I could see the strain behind it. Ignoring the time difference, I dialed Gisela’s number, wondering if she would already be asleep.

“Hello? Stephen?” Her voice was sleepy on the other end.

“It’s me. I got your message, but Jansen and I were signing the paperwork for our new home.”

“That’s good. I’m really happy for you.” Her voice held genuine happiness.

“Thank you.”

Silence filled the other end of the phone line while I waited to hear what she had to say. “I called earlier because I wanted to tell you I’m happy for you and Jansen. Happy you both found someone who loves you like you deserve to be loved.” The shock of her words must have registered on my face because Jansen froze in his seat, watching me.

“Thank you for that. You don’t know what it means to me.”

“Serilda is slowly coming around, but you were right that day. She’s never treated you the same as she treated me. I know I’m partially to blame for that. Even though I never said anything about being in America or told her it was your fault, I also never went out of my way to tell her that it wasn’t. She heard you, and we’ve talked a lot about those early years. It will take time, but I believe she’ll come around.”

“And Jansen?”

“We both know Jansen was a prize to her. Something she didn’t want anymore but didn’t want anyone else to have either, especially her father. I’ve gotten her to agree to therapy to work through these things, and I hope one day you’ll be able to have the relationship with her that I’ve had all these years.”

“Thank you, Gisela.”

“You’re welcome. It’s late here. Do you mind if I call you in the morning so we can talk more?”

“Not at all.” I glanced at Jansen, knowing exactly how we were going to celebrate. “But how about late morning?”

“Of course. Good night, Stephen, please give Jansen my love.”

“I will. Good night.”

I looked over at Jansen, whose smile lit up the dim car. The call was loud enough for him to hear the entire conversation.

“Let’s go home.”

Jansen turned in the direction of our new house. When we pulled up in front, I sat for a moment in awe of the place. Hand in hand, we walked to the door where Jansen used our new key to unlock it.

I led him directly to the balcony overlooking the beach. The sun had already started to set, giving an orange glow to the sky and water below.

I took Jansen in my arms and cupped his face in my hand. “Here, in our new home, is the beginning of our forever.”

“I love you.” His eyes grew misty in the fading light.

“I love you too.”

Our lips met, sharing the moment as the sky grew dark above us. It was more than this place, but the man before me who gave me a feeling of home. A place where I belonged and where I always would.

Our short history together was just beginning. There were many more chapters to write and I looked forward to every single one of them.