Chapter 23 Melanie
MELANIE
It’s been two weeks since Josh and I took things to the next level and I’m still pinching myself.
I don’t know how I got so lucky but suddenly it makes sense to me why no one else chose me before.
It’s not that I wasn’t worth choosing—it’s that on some level, I was waiting for this.
For him. Every missed connection, every failed relationship, every empty swipe on an app feels less like rejection now and more like the universe biding its time.
Because somehow, against every odd, I had to find Josh again.
We’ve fallen into an easy rhythm where I work, he writes music, and we come together in the evenings to rehearse until our eyes grow heavy and our fingers hurt. Then we fall into bed, making slow, passionate love before drifting to sleep in each other’s arms.
Neither of us has dared to bring up what comes next.
We’re living each day as if the concert is the end goal, but I’d be lying if I said I don’t want more, even if it means following Josh wherever he goes next.
My whole life, I’ve never been a risk-taker.
Content with the status quo and scared to make a move, somewhere along the line, I got stuck.
Josh told me weeks ago he hasn’t really been living all these years—neither have I.
So, each night as I fall asleep in his arms, I send up a silent prayer that maybe this is our second chance. Maybe, we’ll choose each other.
I’m daydreaming on the couch after a long day shift when Josh walks in the front door with a bag of takeout from Fin’s.
“Got dinner,” he says, dropping it on the coffee table and plopping down next to me. He plants a kiss on the side of my head. “You toast?” He cocks his head at me. “You look really spent.”
“It was a long, busy day shift. You know, July fourth weekend and all.” I shrug and rest my head on his shoulder, and he slips an arm around me, tugging me close. “I’m thinking it might be time for a change.”
“Oh yeah?” Josh quirks an eyebrow at me. “What kind of change?”
I chew on my lip, looking up at him from the crook of his arm. I’m trying to read his mind—if he’d like my change to include him. “I’m not sure. I am just tired of the restaurant business.”
Josh lets out a low whistle but his face remains impassive. “I can’t say I blame you there. I spent ten years in it in Nashville before I got my deal. It’s grueling work.”
“It is. And Andrew is good to me, but you got me thinking. I realize I haven’t really been living either.” I close my eyes, tucking further into his shoulder as Josh strokes my lower back.
He kisses the top of my head. “Well, let’s figure out how we can start living together.”
I sigh. “I don’t even know where to start.”
“Let’s start with this dinner before our nachos get soggy.” Josh grins, lifting out of my embrace and pushing up from the couch. He takes everything out of the bag, placing it in the center of my small table, while I fill us glasses of ice water.
Josh must’ve been extra hungry when he placed the order because he got coconut shrimp, loaded tater tots, nachos, calamari, and wings. We make our plates and start munching in silence. Josh seems energized, and I need some of his excitement to wear off on me.
“You too tired to rehearse tonight?” he asks, frowning at me.
I shake my head. “No, I’ll manage. It’s important. Besides, with the holiday, we’ll probably miss practicing tomorrow.”
“Yeah. And…” Josh hesitates. “I picked up a regular gig. Maybe on nights you’re off you can join me, but the manager at Fin’s asked if I’d consider playing there on Wednesday nights through the end of the summer.
I don’t have much else going on so I figured, why not?
” He lifts a shoulder, tipping his head to the side.
I pause mid chew and meet his eyes. I can’t imagine what it must be like to walk into a restaurant, be recognized, and immediately be gifted a regular gig.
A twinge runs through me, sharp and unexpected.
It isn’t that I begrudge him the spotlight—he’s earned it.
Maybe it’s that Josh and I have been making music together and now he’s found some way to do it without me.
I know it’s not fair to feel that way. He’s not working steady shifts like I am; of course he needs something that’s his.
Still, there’s a quiet ache I can’t shake, the uneasy sense of being left behind while he’s already moving forward.
When I don’t say anything, he adds, “I thought it would help promote the concert.”
I offer him a tight smile. “You’re right. It probably will.” I take a long sip of my water before saying anything else.
Josh watches me carefully. “You’re all right with it, aren’t you?”
Guilt pricks the back of my neck, and I smile apologetically. “Yes. I’m sorry. I’m just tired.”
“You sure that’s all it is?” He reaches for my hand.
“I guess I’m just feeling a little lost in my own life, is all.” I press my lips together. “It’s not you.”
“You’ll figure it out, babe. I’ll help you.” He offers me a reassuring smile before plucking a piece of calamari off his plate, dunking it in the Thai chili sauce, closing his eyes, and moaning while he chews. “Man, I have missed good seafood.”
This gets a snicker out of me. “It’s pretty great,” I agree.
“So, tomorrow, what’s the plan?”
I get together with my group of friends for a barbecue on the Fourth, and we all catch the fireworks from the beach. I haven’t even opened the group text to find out what the plans are yet, but I guess we’ll go.
“Probably a party at someone’s house and fireworks on the beach, like every year.” I shrug.
“And…at the risk of sounding seventeen again, are we a couple at this public outing?” Josh’s eyes have a teasing glint to them.
I huff a light laugh and reach for his hand. “Sure.”
“Good.” Josh seems satisfied by that answer, and it should make me happy. He wants to be with me. I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and appreciate the here and now.
“I am going to see my dad in the morning first,” I tell him, getting up to throw my plate away.
“Do you want me to come?” Josh asks, and if I’m not mistaken, there’s a twinge of hopefulness laced in there.
“Oh…uh, not this time,” I say, wincing. “We haven’t caught up in a while, and I really need to fill him in.”
“All right,” he says. “I’ll just stay here and grind some more.” He offers me a crooked smile, but I can’t help feeling the weight of guilt pressing against my chest.
“You’ll be okay?” I ask, hopefully.
“I’ll manage.” He leans in for a kiss and I almost change my mind, but I really do need to talk to my dad.
“Okay,” I say, pulling back and brushing some hair off his forehead. “I won’t be long.”
* * *
July fourth falls on a Friday this year which means the town is abuzz with tourists.
It takes me fifteen minutes to get over to my dad’s house on the north side of town and by the time I get there, I’m mildly aggravated.
I am so happy not to have to work tonight—Andrew is taking tonight, and I have tomorrow night.
My dad’s house is away from downtown, and even though there are still tourists around, it’s much quieter. I pull in his driveway and grab the library books I picked up for him before trekking up his front steps.
“Dad, I’m here,” I call, pulling open his screen door.
“In here!” he calls back from the kitchen.
I move down the short hallway to find him standing at the peninsula, stirring a pitcher of lemonade.
A plate of cheese and crackers sits in the center of the round kitchen table.
I smile. My parents didn’t get along for most of my life, but they didn’t divorce until after I graduated high school.
My dad is so much happier now and every time I see him, even though I never lived a day of my life in this house, he makes his little bungalow feel like coming home.
“Hi, Daddy,” I say, walking around the counter and wrapping him in a backward hug. I plant a kiss on his cheek. “I picked up your library books for you, so you don’t have to go downtown. It’s a zoo.” I plop down at the table.
“Thank you, love.” My dad pours two glasses of lemonade over ice and sets one in front of me, taking the chair next to me.
“So, tell me, what’s new? You’ve been too busy for your dear old dad. You look tired.” My dad pats my hand and my heart swells. My old man.
I sigh, twirling a finger around a lock of golden red hair. “I have been busy. I’ve been working like crazy…”
“Just work?” My dad arches his eyebrows, like he doesn’t quite believe me. “Anyone new in your life?”
I bark out a laugh. Of course he’s cutting right to the chase. “You got me.” I hesitate for a moment. “Do you remember Josh? Cara’s brother?”
“Of course,” my dad smiles wistfully. “How could I forget? You two looked at each other like you thought the other hung the moon. Is he back in town?”
I sip my lemonade with a nod. “He is. He’s a country artist now.”
“No shit.” My dad scratches his chin. “In Nashville?”
“I guess kind of all over? Anyway, he came back here to write an acoustic album. He’s been staying with me.” I grimace, afraid that even at forty-one years old, my dad will frown at my shacking up with someone. He doesn’t bat an eye.
“Ah, I see.” He reaches for the plate of cheese and crackers and carefully makes himself a stack. “And…you two are friends?”
My cheeks prickle with heat. “Not exactly.” I let out a shaky breath. “There’s a lot of history between us.”
“I remember.” My dad nods. Frank Glick has always been supportive of his little girl.
I didn’t make the best decisions when I was younger and I drove my mother crazy, but my father has never been anything but accepting of me.
He knows everything that happened between Josh and me…
before and after the accident. “And, have you talked to him about things?”
I push my lips together, knowing exactly what things my father is referring to. I shake my head. “No, that’s ancient history. Telling him now wouldn’t do anything except stir up emotions he doesn’t need to deal with. I dealt with them for both of us.”
My dad pats my hand and stares at me for a long time, his gaze making me squirm. Finally, he says, “I just wish you two had the chance to grieve together. You lost more than just Cara.”
I blink back the sting of tears and sniffle. “I know, Dad. But it’s just too painful.”
My father nods. “Okay. Well, just think about it. If I were him, I’d want to know.” He drains the last of his lemonade.
“You really guzzled that down,” I quip as he pours himself another glass. “You need to watch your blood sugar.”
My dad rolls his eyes, waving his hand. “Yeah, yeah.”
“Dad, I’m serious.” My father is a pre-diabetic and if I don’t look out for him, no one will. Probably another reason I never got the courage to leave Cape May and go after my own dreams—my dad would be all alone.
“Okay, sweetheart.” My dad drinks half of his glass and gets up to dump the rest in the sink. “Are you okay?” He squints at me from his position across the room.
“I told you yes,” I say, growing irritated for no reason.
“Okay, well, I’m your dad. It’s my job to check on you.” My dad sits down again and scoots his chair closer to mine.
I sigh, knowing he isn’t going to give this up. “I guess…seeing Josh again makes me think I failed at life. I let my musical aspirations go. I work at a bar. I have no husband, no life, nothing going for me at all.”
My dad scoffs. “Hey now, stop talking about my daughter that way.” He cracks a grin, and I involuntarily match it.
“Melanie Rose, you are so much more than your job. You are kind, loving, loyal. You’re everybody’s best friend.
Don’t be so critical of yourself. You’re still young!
It’s never too late to go after a dream. ”
I smirk. “Of course, you can say that because it’s not your dream.”
“My dream is to see you happy.” My dad’s voice cracks. “If Josh inspires you to pursue your music again, you absolutely should.”
At this, I cave and fill my dad in on the music Josh and I have been writing together.
I tell him about the concert for Cara. I tell him how I have never felt so alive in my life.
That Josh has awakened a dormant dream inside me that I had completely forgotten about.
And that I’ve fallen completely in love with the man he’s become. By the time I’m finished, I’m crying.
My dad reaches and swipes at the tear rolling down my cheek. “Melanie,” he says slowly. “This all sounds wonderful. Why are you so upset?”
I sniffle, wiping my eyes with a napkin. “Because what happens next? This is fun and I’m having a great time, but at the end of the summer, Josh will leave, and I’ll still be here. Doing what? Tending bar.” It tastes bitter coming out of my mouth.
My dad’s face falls. “Melanie, I’m not saying you shouldn’t think about the future and what will make you happy, because eventually you should. But are you happy right now? Getting to know him again and making music?”
I nod, hugging myself for comfort. “Yes, of course I am.”
“Then focus on the now. Enjoy it now. Or it will pass you by and you will miss it. Be where your feet are.” My dad gets out of his chair and wraps his arms around me, offering comfort in the way only a parent can.
“Be where your feet are,” I repeat.
“Yes.”
I sigh, leaning into his embrace. “I’ll try.”