Chapter Twenty-Nine
Twenty-Nine
Pam
Everything I trust comes to me exactly when I need it.
“Well, what did you think?” Chai asked as we walked out of our first hot yoga class.
Refusing to take no for an answer, she’d insisted I meet her in Rock Harbor to use the gift card from Alistair.
“If I’m being honest, it was like an hour-long hot flash.” I wiped the sweat off my brow, and she laughed.
“If my dad asks, just tell him you loved it.”
Her dad.
Every time I thought about Alistair, my chest felt tight.
We’d talked a few more times, but he was still being distant. He’d rush off the phone and cut conversations short.
I tried to convince myself that he just had a lot on his mind, but this seemed like it was more than that.
“Don’t worry, I plan to.”
I’d hate to waste such an expensive gift, and maybe hot yoga would grow on me over time.
Chai dug through her bag and pulled out her phone. “Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?”
“A friend asked me to meet her for lunch, but I don’t feel up to it, especially after that class. I’m just going to go home and relax.”
Nancy was dying to hear more details about my trip, but she’d have to wait. I was physically and emotionally exhausted.
“Well,” Chai said, her brows raised as she typed something on her phone, “I hope you can get some rest. I’ll see you in class later this week?”
I nodded. “Wouldn’t miss it. Oh, and if you talk to your dad, will you tell him to call me? He’s been a little quiet. I just want to make sure he’s okay.”
She gave me a soft smile. “I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon. Drive safe, okay?”
“You, too, honey.”
I hopped in my car, but before starting the engine, I checked my phone for any texts or calls I might have missed.
Nothing.
It was still early in the day. Maybe he was sleeping in. Or maybe he went into the office. That wouldn’t bode well for the whole retirement thing.
I wanted him to sell his shares and move here. I wanted to be able to see him without hopping on an airplane and flying halfway across the country.
I wanted to tell him that I was in love with him.
But he had to make this decision on his own.
I didn’t want to be the reason he upended his life. I didn’t want to influence his decision.
The Welcome to Briar Glenn sign came into view, and I pulled onto Main Street. While I loved visiting Colorado—and missed Alistair—I was happy to be home.
There was something special about this little town, and now that I’d traveled outside it, I could finally appreciate it.
I turned onto my street, and right as I was about to pull into my driveway—I saw him.
Alistair Reid was sitting on my steps, his hands in his pockets and his face buried in the scarf I gave him.
My favorite scarf.
When he saw me, he flashed me that signature lopsided grin.
I couldn’t park the car and hop out fast enough.
“What are you doing here?” I sputtered, rushing up the driveway toward him.
He shrugged, like it was such a casual thing that he was here. “Well, since I’m retiring, I thought I’d relocate to Briar Glenn. I was hoping you could help me find a place to stay.”
Chai’s words echoed in my head: I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon.
This was why she had been so insistent about the hot yoga class.
He opened his arms wide and wrapped me in a tight hug as tears welled up in my eyes.
“You accepted Jonathan’s offer?”
“Mm-hmm,” he mumbled against my hair. “The morning after you left, I called him first thing. Pam”—he wrapped his hand around the column of my neck and tilted my face to meet his gaze—“I should have told you this at the airport, but I’m in love with you.
I love every single thing about you. The romance books, the mantras, the little snort you do when you laugh, the love you give to the people around you.
I don’t want to do the long-distance thing.
I want to be here. I don’t want to waste a single second I could be spending with you. ”
I never thought I’d have something like this. Some unexpected, impassioned declaration of love like you saw in movies and read about in romance books. Yet, here I was, having my own When Harry Met Sally moment, standing with the man of my dreams while he professed his love for me.
And I knew he meant it.
“I love you, too.” I ran my fingers through his curls and pressed my lips to his, my body fitting against his like we were two halves of the same whole.
It was one of those cinematic kisses where time stops, the background fades to a blur, and the only thing that matters in that moment is the two of you.
We’d found what our lives had been missing. This was our love story, and it was just the beginning.