Chapter 37
Edie
She woke before her lovers, her animals, even before the sun. Slipping out of bed, she made her way to her room as silently as possible and pulled on some clean clothes before sneaking down the stairs.
Instead of going straight to the animals like she usually did, she walked down to the lake, toeing off her shoes so she could wade into the chilly water. Eyes closed, she let her head fall back, the breeze caressing her face with the gentle touch of a tender lover.
“I miss you, so fucking much,” she whispered into the wind. “I miss you, and a part of my heart will always be yours. You gave me so much, Ken, and I will always be grateful for the time we had together. But it’s time for me to move on.”
The wind picked up, tugging at the ends of her hair and pressing her clothes against her skin. But instead of the chill she should have gotten from it, all she felt was warmth. Comfort.
Love.
Tears slipped down her cheeks, silent memories of the life she’d shared here with the man who had loved her so quietly and perfectly he’d managed to put the pieces of her shattered heart back together without even trying. And who she’d loved so deeply it had threatened to break her all over again when she’d lost him.
She hadn’t broken, though. Not completely. Because the love they’d shared had made her stronger than she’d been, and so she’d managed to go on without him, even though there were days the pain seemed like more than she could bear.
That was what she’d be taking with her. That strength he’d instilled in her, and the love he’d given so freely she hadn’t even realized how much she’d needed it until he’d been gone.
After a long while, the wind slowed, and she knew she was alone again. Still, she stayed until the sun finally peeked over the horizon and the chill from the water wracked her body with shivers.
She waded back to shore and dried her feet before slipping back into her boots. Every step she took back toward the house felt like a step toward her future and by the time she reached the gravel driveway the weight she’d been carrying with her for the last ten years had all but disappeared.
Once the animals were taken care of, she made her way back up to the large farmhouse with its faded blue shutters and peeling paint. There was always something in a house like this, some project that needed her attention. It was part of what she loved about it so much. She’d come to realize she liked being needed.
Grant was in the kitchen when she stepped through the doorway, pouring himself a cup of coffee. A sleepy sort of smile curved his lips when he looked up and saw her, and her breath caught in her chest.
This beautiful specimen of a man was hers, forever. How had she gotten so lucky twice in one lifetime?
“You were up early,” he said, passing her the cup he’d just poured for himself. “I set an alarm so I could be up to help you with the animals, but you were already gone when I woke up.”
“I had something I needed to do.” Lifting the mug to her lips, she sipped, closing her eyes and savoring that first glorious hit of caffeine. “Thanks for making the coffee.”
“Welcome. What needed doing that got you out of bed before the sun even came up?”
“I’ll tell you, but not just yet. I want to wait for Jesse.”
He wanted to press. It was written all over his face, but he simply nodded and got himself another mug from the cabinet to pour a second cup of coffee. “You look… happy.”
“I am happy.” Stepping forward, she tilted her head back with a smile. “You make me happy, Grant Carter.”
“Good.” Voice thick with emotion, he threaded his hand through her hair, tugging her head back even further and sending a flash of need straight to her core. “You make me happy, too, little pixie. I’m a lucky, lucky man.”
“Mmm. Yes, yes you are.”
When he kissed her, it wasn’t the flash of need and heat she was used to. It was a slow exploration, an almost lazy dance that aroused and soothed both at the same time. And still, by the time they broke apart, every inch of her was on fire with the want of him.
“That was so fucking hot.”
Turning at the sound of their babygirl’s voice, Edie grinned. “Was it?”
Jesse nodded, her eyes bright and eager. “So hot. Do it again.”
“Later.” Though it was almost physically painful to do so, Edie stepped away from Grant and gestured toward the kitchen table. “Sit. I need to talk to both of you.”
“Uh oh.” The lust in Jesse’s gaze faded, leaving worry in its wake. “That sounds ominous.”
“Have to agree with our babygirl,” Grant said as he crossed the kitchen to sit, pulling Jesse onto his lap as if already anticipating the need to console her. “What’s going on, little pixie?”
“I went for a walk this morning. Down to the lake. Needed some time to think.”
They were both watching her now, each of their expressions a mix of confusion and concern. But they didn’t interrupt so she pushed forward. “You both know how much I love it here. The house, the animals. My girls. For a really long time, my whole identity has been wrapped up in who I am here, in Lost River. Who I am to everyone else. And I think maybe it’s time for me to figure out who I am away from here.”
“What are you saying?” Jesse asked, her voice barely a whisper.
“I’m saying… I changed my mind. I don’t want to spend any more time apart from the two of you than I have to. I don”t want our lives split from one coast to another, constantly trying to juggle things to make them work. More than that, though, I think it’s time I let go of Widow McDowell and just be Edie again.” A smile tugged at her lips. “And Mommy. I’m saying I want to come to California with you. I want to travel with you. I want to be with you, both of you, and I want to see who I am when I’m not here.”
An excited squeal pierced her eardrums a moment before Jesse launched herself off Grant’s lap and straight into Edie’s arms. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! You want to come with us? For really real?”
“Yes, baby, for really real,” Edie answered with a watery laugh. “I let you down once because I was too scared to let go. I don’t want to let you down again.”
“Oh, Edie. You could never let me down. We’re different people than we were back then. But I’d be lying if I said I’m not fucking thrilled that you want to come with us.”
“You’re sure about this?” Unlike their babygirl, Grant’s reaction was much more reserved as he rose from his chair. “I don’t want you to do something you’re going to regret just because you think it’s what we want.”
“With all due respect, Sir, I’m not doing it for you.” She grinned up at him, her head resting on Jesse’s shoulder. “I’m doing it for me. Because it’s what I want.”
“What about the animals? The girls?”
“I have some ideas. I won’t be able to pack up and leave at the end of the month, though God knows I’m tempted. But as soon as I can, I’m coming with you.”
“Oh, thank God.” Yanking her from Jesse’s arms, he wrapped her in his own, so tight she couldn’t draw a breath. “We would have made it work, for you, but it would have been so fucking hard. Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me for loving you. Either of you. You’re everything I didn’t know I needed, and I can’t wait to build our lives together.”
“Us too, little pixie. Us, too.”
Grant
After Edie’s announcement, they decided to go into town and celebrate with breakfast. Which was a milestone in and of itself, as it marked the first time Edie had been willing for all three of them to be seen in public together.
God, he was so fucking proud of her. Leaving behind everything she knew and loved wasn’t an easy decision, and he’d already promised himself he and Jesse would do whatever it took to make the transition as painless as possible.
Stepping out of the shower, he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist before moving to the sink and grabbing his toothbrush. The mirror was covered in fog, so he wiped it away with his hand—and froze at the sight that greeted him in his reflection.
Behind him stood another man. Slightly older, though he couldn’t remember if the lines on his face were from an actual age difference or simply time spent out in the sun. There was plenty of salt mixed in with the pepper of his hair, adding to the impression he was much older.
“Hello, Ken.”
How he managed to get the words out, he wasn’t actually sure. It wasn’t fear, exactly, keeping him frozen in place. Though he would have been justified in feeling absolutely fucking terrified at finding the ghost of his girlfriend’s ex-husband staring at him in the mirror.
Ken didn’t speak, just simply stared at him, a sad smile on his lips.
Swallowing hard, Grant licked his own suddenly dry lips, his gaze still locked on the apparition in the mirror. “I’ll take good care of her, I promise. I know it’s hard for you to let her go, but she’s in good hands. I love her, you know. It’s not the same, but I promise I’ll try every day to love her as well as you did.”
A breeze came through the window, sending the damp ends of his hair fluttering. And though the face in the mirror didn’t move, he heard his voice as clear as day.
Thank you.
Grant blinked and the image disappeared. Spinning around, he stared at the spot where Ken should have been if he’d been real.
Empty. No random man standing behind him in the tiny bathroom.
“I’m losing my fucking mind,” he muttered, turning back to the sink. But as he finished brushing his teeth, he looked over at where the breeze had come from just a moment ago.
At the window, which was not only closed, but locked up tight.
Jesse
The stairs creaked under Daddy’s weight and Jesse looked up from the puzzle she and Edie had been putting together while they waited for him to finish his shower. Her welcoming grin died on her lips at the look of pure shock on his pale face.
“Daddy?” Jumping up from where she’d been kneeling by the coffee table, she raced to the bottom of the stairs. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“I’m fine, baby. I’m… just a little rattled.”
Edie joined them, worry clouding her expression. “What’s wrong?”
Running a hand through his still-damp hair, Daddy let out a strangled laugh. “I don’t know. I-I think I just talked to Ken.”
If he’d told them he’d been abducted by aliens, held on a ship for five years for testing, and then somehow dropped back into the exact moment in time he’d been captured, it would have been less of a shock than what had actually just come out of his mouth. “Did you say you talked to Ken? As in, Edie’s husband, Ken?”
“Yeah. Maybe. I don’t know.” His tone was utterly baffled as his gaze darted between them before landing on Edie. “I got out of the shower and when I wiped the fog from the mirror, he was there. Standing behind me. So I told him I’d take care of you and that you were in good hands and that I love you. And I swear to god, I heard him say ‘Thank you’. Then he was gone.”
“That bastard.” Hands planted on her hips, Edie frowned. “I can’t believe he let you see him and all I got was a warm breeze.”
“A breeze?” Jesse wouldn’t have thought it possible, but Daddy’s face paled even further. “You felt a breeze when you… when he…?”
“Yeah. Down by the lake. And sure, it could have just been a normal breeze, but it was different. Warmer than it should have been. Don’t ask me how, but I could just tell it was him, you know?”
“I do, actually.” Daddy swallowed hard. “When we were… talking, a breeze came through the window of the bathroom. Except, when I looked, the window was closed. And locked. So the breeze couldn’t have come through the window but I definitely felt it.”
“Not fair!” Now it was Jesse’s turn to pout. “Why doesn’t Ken wanna talk to me?” Realization dawned, growing into horror. “Oh no! What if he hates me cuz of what I did to Edie?”
Tears blurred her vision as Edie slipped her arms around her waist, pulling her close. “He doesn’t hate you, babygirl.”
“But how do you know?” she cried, maybe a little more dramatically than the situation called for. “He didn’t come to me in a mirror!”
“I know because he’s been pushing us together since you arrived. Hang on.”
Pulling away, Edie jogged up the stairs. When she returned a few moments later, she was holding what looked like a photograph. “Here.”
Jesse took the photo from her hands, emotion clogging her throat as she stared down at the two of them, wet from a dip in the lake and laughing like they didn’t have a care in the world. “I remember this day,” she whispered, running her fingers over the faded picture.
“I found it in my t-shirt drawer not too long after you first showed up. I kept shoving it to the bottom, under all my clothes, but every time I opened the drawer, it was on top again. To be honest, it was a little forward for Ken, and it freaked me out a bit. But… I think it was his way of telling me to give you another chance. That we belonged together. He never hated you, babygirl, because all that man ever wanted was for me to be happy. And you make me so fucking happy I can hardly stand it.”
A sob burst from Jesse’s chest as she threw her arms around Edie. Daddy joined them, wrapping them both up in his arms as she cried the happiest tears she’d ever cried in her life.
Eventually, the tears dried up, and Edie insisted they head into town for breakfast before she got cranky. Jesse let herself be herded out the front door and down the steps.
But when they got to the car and Daddy tried to open the door, a fierce wind whipped up, slamming the door shut. And as it danced around them, warmer than the early April weather should have allowed, she grinned up at the bright blue sky above her and waved goodbye to Ken.
Ten years after Jesse Walker left Lost River, she was finally getting the happily ever after she thought she’d left behind her. And it was worth every second of the wait.