Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
KANE
Timber takes my hand and leads me out for a walk, leaving Hailey with Amanda back at the house. We don’t talk much as we walk down the familiar path that leads to the pond. It’s quiet, except for the sound of the birds and the breeze rustling through the pines. The longest days of summer have passed, taking with them the endless hours of daylight.
I’ve been grappling with Amanda being back, trying to support her attempt to reconnect with Hailey while managing the strain it’s putting on everyone else. With Timber’s departure date getting closer, I’ve been thinking about how to ask her to stay, hoping we could talk tonight and finally clear the air.
Timber stops by the creek that feeds the pond and faces me. There’s a serious look in her eyes that tells me something’s up before she even speaks.
“Kane, I’ve been called to start my job early,” she says. “I'm leaving next week. ”
The words knock the wind out of me. Panic surges through me, gripping my chest with a vise-like pressure. “What do you mean, you’re leaving? I thought you’d stay.”
“You never asked,” she replies, her voice soft.
Desperation claws at me, making it hard to breathe. “I’m asking now. Stay.”
She shakes her head. The decision is already made. “Everything’s set up. I talked to Eliza, and she’s coming back early to teach. My job is waiting. I need to go.”
I scrub my palm over my face, my mind reeling. “This is because of Amanda, isn’t it?” My voice is sharper than I intend.
"Yes, but not like you think." She kicks at a stone under her foot. "If I stay, Amanda won’t ever get to really know Hailey. Do you remember when you and I talked about how much we’d give to have more time with our moms? Amanda is here, and she’s trying. I can’t get in the way of that. I don’t want to be the reason Amanda isn't close to Hailey."
I shake my head vehemently. “ She’s the reason she doesn’t have a relationship. It’s because she leaves.” Anguish wells up inside me, choking my words. How can Timber not see that Amanda will just leave again, hurting Hailey all over?
She cups my face with her palm, her touch both soothing and tormenting. “I know, but she’s here now. You once told me you wouldn’t take her back for you, but you’d give her another chance for Hailey. So, this is for Hailey. ”
“But Hailey loves you,” I say, my voice breaking. The thought of Hailey losing Timber is unbearable, knowing it will hurt her as much as it’s hurting me.
“I love her too, Kane. I’m not saying goodbye forever. I’m saying goodbye for now. I’ll be back,” she says, her eyes shimmering with tears. “I love you,” she adds.
Her words pierce through my heart, bringing both comfort and pain. I want to believe her, to trust that she’ll come back, but everyone goes. They always leave. How can she do this to me, to Hailey? How can she think getting out of the way is the solution when Amanda is just going to leave again?
I pull her close, holding her tight as if I can keep her from slipping away. “I just...” My voice trails off, overwhelmed by the turmoil inside me. All the women in my life except Eliza leave, one way or another, and it seems Timber is no different. But this time, it’s supposed to be for the right reasons. That thought doesn’t comfort me—it just hollows out the ache even more. “What about us?” I know I should be the bigger person here, but all I feel is abandoned, even if it’s her love for Hailey that’s pushing her away. How do you hold on to someone who believes letting go is for the best?
I think about my daughter, and how she’ll react to Timber leaving. The confusion and hurt she’ll experience The thought makes my stomach ache.
“How am I supposed to do this without you?” I whisper, my voice raw with emotion. “How is Hailey supposed to? ”
Timber’s tears spill over as she holds me. “You’re stronger than you think, Kane. And Hailey will be okay because she has you. She needs you.”
The weight of her words settles heavily on my heart. I know she believes this is the right thing, but the fear of losing her and the uncertainty of the future make it almost impossible to accept. Yet, deep down, I know I have to let her go. For now.
She holds my hands and looks into my eyes. “I need you to hear me. It's important for you to know some things. I came here looking for a place where I could belong, and I found it. I found it with you and Hailey,” she says.
Her raw honesty hits me hard. “Then why is it so easy for you to leave?” I ask.
“It’s not easy,” she answers. “Leaving is the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make. But it’s not about what’s easy. It’s about what’s right—for Hailey, for Amanda, and even for us.”
I shake my head, struggling to reconcile her intentions with the pain of her departure. “How can it be right for us if you’re not here?”
“Because sometimes love means doing what’s best for the other person, even if it tears you apart,” she says. “And right now, Hailey needs to know her mother, to have the opportunity to create something. We’ve both felt the void of not having ours. We know what it’s like to miss that piece of our hearts.”
I look away, the tree line blurred by the mist in my eyes. “And what about my heart?” I ask. “Who fills that void when you’re gone?”
She squeezes my hands, pulling me back to meet her gaze. “This isn’t forever, Kane. I’m not closing the door on us. I’m asking you to hold on to the hope that there’s more to our story than just this goodbye.”
The idea of hope seems distant. Yet, as I stare into her eyes, filled with genuine love and pain, I find myself clinging to it. “And if it’s too hard? If the distance is too much?” I whisper.
“Then you decide. You give up or you fight for us.” She leans into me. “We’ll find a way because that’s what you do when you love someone—you fight. And I do love you, Kane. I’m not walking away from that.”
Her words, so fierce and certain, give me strength. I pull her into an embrace, my broken expectations shifting into something new and hopeful. Maybe this isn’t the end but a step toward a new beginning. As we hold each other, I let myself believe, just for a moment, that this goodbye might one day lead to a joyful reunion.
“I love you too, Timber. So much.”
She smiles through her tears, and I see the resolve in her eyes. “This space … it’s not to divide us. It’s to prove if what we have is made of the tough stuff that lasts.”
I nod, understanding now what she’s saying, even if it doesn’t make the goodbye any easier. “We’ll fight for it,” I say, my voice steady. “We’ll fight for us.”
We turn and walk back to the house, the silence between us now filled with a new understanding. The path seems shorter on the way back, each step a mix of bittersweet acceptance and a fragile hope for the future. I hold her hand tightly, not wanting to let go, even for a second.
Back at the house, we find Amanda and Hailey engaged in a game, the sight of them together offering a small reassurance that this painful decision might just be the right one. Timber squeezes my hand before letting go and joining them, her smile genuine despite the turmoil I know she carries inside.
That night, as the house settles into quiet, Timber and I find ourselves alone in her room. As I look at her, the need to make this moment unforgettable swells within me. I want her to carry this night with her, a solid reminder of what we have, what we’re fighting for.
I pull her close, my hands brushing her skin with deliberate care, as if I'm trying to imprint my touch, my love, into her being. We make love slowly, passionately, each movement filled with a desperate intensity. It's as if I’m imprinting my very being onto her, ensuring that she’ll never forget me, never forget us.
Every kiss, every caress, is a vow. Her fingers dig into my back, conveying the same urgency, the same need to hold on to this moment, to hold on to us.
Our bodies move together in a rhythm that’s both familiar and frantic.
When it's over, we lie tangled in each other’s arms, our breaths mingling in the darkness. I hold her tightly. She rests her head on my chest, her fingers tracing lazy patterns over my skin. Her tears seep into my heart.
“I’ll come back,” she says. “No matter what, Kane. I’ll come back to you.”
I press a kiss to her forehead, emotions heavy and full. “I’ll be here. I’ll be waiting.”
We fall asleep like that, holding each other as if the sheer force of our hug could keep the world at bay. And for that night, it does.