39. Ava
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Ava
Cleared
“You’re good to go,” Chris said.
My physical therapist had officially become one of my favorite people in Willow Brook. He made me work my ass off, though, and somehow, I still liked him. When he lifted his hand in a high five, I slapped my palm against his.
“So I can put weight on it. Like, right now?” I asked.
“You need to be careful,” he said quickly. “I still recommend you use your crutches or a cane.”
“I don’t want to use a cane,” I protested. “That makes me feel old.”
He rolled his eyes and snorted. “It’s obvious you are not old. It’s just an option,” he said. “You’re going to need to take it easy for a few more months, and you’ll keep doing your exercises.”
“You’ll do them with me?” I asked hopefully, mostly because I liked hanging out with him.
“You don’t need me anymore,” he replied with a grin.
I sighed dramatically. “But I like you.”
“You’re going to see me around town.” He gave me a pointed look. “I heard the rumor.”
“Which rumor?”
“You’re taking the job at the ski resort.”
I waggled my brows dramatically. “I am!”
“When do you officially start?”
“I officially start after I get moved here. It’s not going to take long. I’m actually going to work some remotely along the way.”
“Have you given notice at your other job?” he asked.
“Just this morning.” I internally winced. I had not heard a word from my ex or his affair partner since I sent in my formal resignation.
“I bet that felt good.”
Chris knew the whole messy story. I shrugged. “Yes, but I wish I hadn’t been such a dumbass and married him to begin with.”
“You’re not a dumbass,” he said firmly. “We all make mistakes.”
“Do we, though?” I shot back. “I would love to be one of those people who made mistakes without major public humiliation attached.”
Chris tipped his head to the side. “Life works itself out.” He rested his hips against the counter. “I’m happily married now.”
“Your husband is totally cute, by the way.” Chris actually blushed. “How old are you?”
“Thirty-five.”
“Ah. So what did you screw up before you found him?”
He hesitated only a second. “I went for the wrong guys, including one who was abusive.”
My stomach dropped. “What do you mean?”
“He pushed me so hard once that I fell and broke my arm. Before that, he slapped me more often than I even want to remember.” He said it calmly, almost clinically. “It wasn’t until I broke my arm that I got up the nerve to leave. I’m still embarrassed that’s what it took.”
“Oh, Chris.” I pressed a palm to my chest. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m fine,” he said quickly. “It hurt. But that’s actually what got me into physical therapy. I had to rehab my shoulder from the fall because I twisted it when I fell. I enjoyed it, so I became a physical therapist. After that, I went on to nursing school, and here I am.”
“I’m so glad you’re doing well now,” I said softly.
“My point is that we all screw up. In our cases, we were not the bad guys in the equation. But sometimes people make really dumb decisions.” He gave me a wry smile.
“I had a friend in college. Before pot was legal, he needed money. Seemed like a good idea at the time to make some quick money by selling it. He got in trouble and learned his lesson. He’s still a good guy.
He just made a not-so-smart choice at the time. We all get to learn.”
I took a deep breath. “I hope this is a good move for me.” I wished I could be one of those bold people who charged into change, but I was wound up with anxiety over it all.
“You’re moving forward. Literally.” He gestured toward my ankle.
I’d healed that and was moving forward in more ways than one.
He gave me a small nod. “You’re doing better than okay, and this is all for the best.” He tilted his head to the side, a sly smile curling his lips. “So… you and Tanner?”
“Well, uh, he’s out at a fire,” I said carefully. “I’m not moving here for him.” I wondered whether saying that aloud might convince me.
“Oh, of course not, but you like him. A lot.” Chris’s gaze was warm and teasing.
I snorted. “I like him.”
“I can tell.”
“I do,” I admitted. “But I don’t know what’s going to happen. If I move here for him, that’s a messy choice if it doesn’t go well.”
“True.” He glanced at his watch. “I need to get going for my next appointment. No driving for another week, though.”
“I know. You already told me that.”
He grinned and pulled me into a quick hug. “Don’t be a stranger.”
After he left, I lifted my foot in the air and examined it. I still had a lighter brace on my ankle. Not the bulky boot anymore, just something supportive. I wiggled my toes.
“Growly,” I announced proudly, “I can put weight on my foot.”
He blinked at me, sleepily unimpressed. That night, I was meeting my friends at Fireweed Winery to celebrate my new job and my terrifying, exhilarating, not-totally-mapped-out future.
As the day rolled on, I busied myself organizing things. I had not heard a word from my boss after giving notice, which was unsettling. I booked my flight, called my parents, and so on.
“You can’t be serious,” my mom said.
Even though we’d had more than one conversation about this, I knew she’d been clinging to the hope I’d change my mind. “I’m serious, Mom. No matter what, you’ll be fine financially. My new job pays better.”
“But we’re going to miss you.”
“And I’ll miss you,” I said, steeling myself emotionally. “But I need this. I need a fresh start. I never really gave myself the chance to think about other options before. Now I have that chance. You and Dad can fly up to see me. I’ll use my credit card points and get your tickets.”
She was quiet for a moment that stretched. “Okay,” she said finally.
“I love you, Mom.”
This was my life, and for once, I was choosing myself.
“Look at you!” Holly exclaimed, clapping her hands lightly as I stepped down the last step.
“You don’t have to cheer. I’m just walking.”
“I know. But you made it through the worst of this, so now you just have to not screw it up.”
“Trust me. I will not screw this up.”
“Good.” She insisted on helping me into her car.
As we drove, she pointed out landmarks, naming mountain peaks and so on. “This is going to become familiar to you.”
I stared out the window in awe. I had fallen in love with Alaska on my divorce trip, my lick-my-wounds, hide-from-humiliation trip. The beauty here stunned me, and it was about to become my home.
A little while later, we were seated at a large round table with Holly, Josie, Tish, Casey, Luna, and Tori, the server who’d been so kind to me and my friends on my first trip.
“I still fill in for shifts,” Tori explained. “But I’m moving up.”
“What do you mean moving up?”
“I’m taking a job helping with event management.”
“That’s so exciting!” I squealed.
She grinned. “I actually love waiting tables. I love meeting people, and the tips are great. It’s high stress when it’s busy, but when you’re done, you’re done. But I’m ready for something new.”
Stella slipped in beside Casey, followed by Madison, Maisie, Amelia, and Lucy. “This is a big group,” I said, looking around the table.
“Isn’t it?” Holly said. “We don’t always all make it, but we try. One of the bonuses of living in a small town,” she added.
“What do you mean?”
“Good friends,” she replied succinctly.
I looked around the table, absorbing the laughter, the easy warmth, and the women who had folded me into their world without hesitation. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t feel like I was bracing for something.
Maybe that was what home really meant.