Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
That was his worst flight ever.
But he was alive, and so was everyone else.
Brad counted that as a win. He looked over at the paramedic who was looking over his minor injuries. For all that had happened, he was thrilled to walk away with some cuts and bruises. It could have been so much worse.
The one thing this unfortunate event had granted him was clarity. He’d been given a second chance, and he wasn’t going to squander it.
The next time he saw Abby, he was going to tell her exactly how he felt about her. He’d just learned firsthand how short life can be, and he didn’t intend to waste any of it.
After being examined by the paramedics on the tarmac, he was then transported back to the terminal.
He would have called Abby or Reed, but his phone was missing.
He couldn’t remember if he’d put it back into his pocket after texting Abby or not.
Either way, it was now lost on the plane.
He had his doubts if he would ever get it back.
Its loss seemed inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.
When he got inside the building, he was guided to a line of passengers. They were taking their personal information and checking them off a list. It was a slow process.
Thankfully, there were chairs nearby. Other than being a bit sore, he was tired. It was like that whole horrific ordeal, from watching the flames shooting out of the engine and being jostled about on the hard landing to skidding off the runway, had sucked all of the energy out of him.
When it was at last his turn at the information table, he gave his personal information. When they asked if he wanted to be rebooked onto another flight, he said no. When they asked for an address where they should send his luggage, he told them Bayberry. He had some unfinished business there.
He also explained that he needed to make a phone call, but his phone was lost on the plane.
One of the airline employees took pity on him and offered their personal phone.
The only problem was that he didn’t know anyone’s number.
Everything was programmed into his phone, so he didn’t have to memorize any phone numbers.
The only number he could think of was his mother’s home number. She still had the same landline that she’d had since he was a kid. But she wasn’t home. She was off on her cruise, and hopefully, she wouldn’t hear about any of this until she got home. He didn’t want anything to ruin her vacation.
He returned the phone and asked if the car rental was still open. Before they answered him, he heard someone calling out his name. Then again, there were a lot of people standing around, maybe one of them was also named Brad.
Still he turned around. And he was glad he did because his gaze met Abby’s. The next thing he knew he was taking long quick strides toward her, and she was running into his arms.
Not so long ago, he thought he would never feel her in his arms again. He pulled her close and lowered his face to the nape of her neck.
In that moment, time stood still, and the noise of passengers reuniting with their families faded into the background.
All he was aware of was that he was holding onto his future.
He still wasn’t exactly sure what the future looked like.
But he did know that Abby would be front and center—if she wanted to be.
He pulled back and looked at her. “You got my message?”
Her brows drew together. “What message?”
He briefly wondered why she hadn’t got the message. But he decided that it worked out for the best because now he could tell her in person.
“So, how did you know to come here?” He searched her eyes.
“Reed and Sadie told me about the accident. It’s all over the local news.” She reached up and touched the side of his face. “You’re cut.”
“It’s not bad. The paramedics said it was minor.”
“Do you need to go to the hospital?”
He shook his head. Other passengers had broken bones and had been transported to the hospital. He’d stayed on the plane to help them until the paramedics reached them.
There was a flight attendant that got slammed around pretty good. Not that he had any medical training, but he’d be willing to guess she had a broken arm plus a few other injuries.
In the end, everyone survived. The pilot was a hero in Brad’s book. Once Brad saw those flames shooting out of the engine, he thought it was game over.
But he didn’t want to share any of that with Abby. She already looked plenty shaken, and he had something more important to tell her. Because he’d made himself a promise that he wasn’t going to waste a moment of this second chance, and he meant it.
He looked into her brown eyes with those gold flecks. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
“Wait. There’s something I need to say first.” She stared right back at him. “I was being a stubborn fool. I should have accepted your apology. I’m so sorry that I didn’t.”
He hadn’t expected her to say that. He thought for sure he had a lot more groveling to do. “But you were right to want more from me.”
“I wasn’t finished,” she said firmly.
He started to grin at her sassiness, but he subdued the reaction. He didn’t want to do anything to ruin this moment. And he was particularly interested in knowing where it was going.
“I love you, Brad. I’m not sure when it started.
It could have been when you were my fake boyfriend, but I was definitely falling hard when we skated at the Ribbon.
” When he opened his mouth to speak, she pressed a finger to his lips.
“I don’t exactly know how this is going to work out.
But I do know from experience that long-distance relationships don’t last. So, I might need some help finding a good location in Chicago for a second Steaming Brew location. ”
This time when his mouth opened, there were no words coming out.
He just stood there for a moment, replaying her words in his mind.
She was willing to sacrifice the hometown that she loved, the life she’d made for herself and the friends that she obviously adored, to move to Chicago where she knew no one—except him.
The gravity of her love struck him. It reached out and filled in the old cracks in his heart like it was super glue. He couldn’t believe he’d almost walked away from this most amazing woman.
He wanted to reach out and pull her to him so he could plant another kiss on her pink lips, but it wasn’t time yet.
“Abby, I was being a fool. And I’m so sorry.
When it came to you meeting my mother, I totally panicked.
I was certain my mother would see the same thing I saw in you—that you are an amazing woman with a huge heart.
I knew if my mother got to know you that she would be your champion and call me out for being a fool.
I was afraid to lay my heart on the line.
I’d seen the steep price my mother paid for loving my father.
She’s never gotten over my father’s death.
And I was afraid of experiencing something that strong.
So, I fought it, but in the end, love won.
Because I am absolutely crazy for you. And I know exactly when I started to fall for you.
It was when you dumped that coffee on me. ”
Abby’s mouth gaped. “I did not.”
He grinned. “Did too.”
She smiled back. “Did not.”
“I think we’ll be having this argument fifty years from now.”
“I think you’re right—”
“At last, you agree with me. You spilled it.”
She groaned. “I agree about us arguing about who spilled it.”
“So, are you two done yet?” Reed and Sadie stepped up to them.
Brad hadn’t even known they were there with Abby. He was glad they were there for Abby when he couldn’t be. It was good to have such amazing friends. Friendships like that didn’t come along often in life. They weren’t to be squandered.
Brad looked over at Reed. “We’re almost done.” He looked back at Abby. He stared deep into her eyes, and he knew he had found something he didn’t know he was missing—his home.
With his heart beating fast, he said, “Abby, I love you. And I want to make this work. I promise it won’t be long distance. At least not for long. Do you trust me?”
As she continued to stare into his eyes, she nodded her head. “I do.”
That’s all he needed to hear. He reached out, scooped her up in his arms and kissed her. It felt like the beginning of forever, but perhaps he was jumping just a little bit ahead.
In the end, Reed had been right—Bayberry was better than his hometown. Abby lived there.
Brad decided that he couldn’t judge Bayberry using a yardstick from his hometown. They were different—the residents were different. But most of all, he was different.
He was no longer that young lanky kid who wanted to prove all of the naysayers right—
that he was trouble. Because he wasn’t trouble then—he had just been a kid struggling to find his path in this world without a father and with a mother who had to work too many hours to keep a roof over their heads. But through it all, his mother had loved him and wanted the best for him.
Now he wanted to take the loving example his mother had set for him and start a family of his own with Abby.