CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
Jamie – One Month Later
When Grandad told me all those years ago that if I wrote with my heart I’d never go astray, he had no idea how on the nose he would be.
For many years my heart led me down a path of epic adventure and I loved every minute of it.
In coming to Scotland though, I had no clue the turn my writing would take would be toward an epic love story… His love story, no less.
It’s been two and a half months since I first found the letters, and I now have a solid first draft of With Love, From Skye.
With the way my agent’s been hounding me for updates, despite my still being on the sabbatical we agreed on, I’ve decided to go ahead and send him the first ten chapters.
I warned him it’s nothing like what I’ve written before and that if he’s not willing to represent it to publishers, I’ll publish it myself.
I’ve never believed in a story more than I do this one and I’m determined to see it on shelves around the world—a testament to the love of two people, the struggles they overcome, and the way a simple life can be the most epic adventure of all.
With the whoosh of that email sending, I stand up and stretch. I woke up early this morning to get that sent off so I could focus on the much more important parts of today.
I’m dressed in a pair of grey exercise pants, a green athletic tee, and my hiking boots.
Grabbing my rain jacket, I head for the front of the inn and find Avi and Nox talking with my grandparents.
Gran is standing behind the desk while Grandad sits in the chair that we brought in so he can sit with her anytime she’s up here—or when I’m up here.
His stamina has declined over the past month, but the brightness that comes with his laugh never fades.
“You two ready?” I ask, looking them over from their own hiking boots up to the rain jackets they carry. Avi’s fitted leggings make me want to haul her back to my room, but there’s no time for that… At least not at the moment.
“Aye, let’s go,” Nox says, excitement for our adventure scrawled all over his face.
Avi ruffles his hair and says, “I’m ready too.”
He rolls his eyes before meticulously pushing his fingers through it so it sits just the way he had it.
“Alright then.”
I press a kiss to the top of Gran’s head and squeeze Grandad’s shoulder. He gives me a wink, and the sparkle in his eyes that says he’s got a secret is there in full force. But this time, I’m in on it.
We pile into the Land Rover and I reach across the front seat to lace my fingers through Avi’s. Today is going to be a good fucking day.
Honestly, every day feels like a good one lately.
At first, I wasn’t sure how I’d fit into the dynamic between Avi and Nox, and I wasn’t looking to force my way in and change everything. But I couldn’t deny that I wanted to be a part of it.
As soon as I wrapped my head around the concept of Nox as my son, I wanted to know everything about him. Avi filled me in on so much of those younger years in the weeks before he arrived, but I haven’t wasted a day of the last month connecting with him.
It worked out that since Avi had to work and I could wake up early or stay up late to write—the two times I’m most productive anyway—I’ve spent most of my days hanging out with my son.
Sometimes it was just sitting on the roof at the inn—something Avi allows so long as I’m up there with him.
Others we’d ride bikes into town or down to the loch or go on a hike.
When Grandad needed to get away from the inn for a bit, we’d take a drive and he’d tell all sorts of stories about me at Nox’s age.
With each passing day, we feel a little more connected—a little more like family. I hope that today will only solidify that further. Because there’s nothing I want more than this. Avi. Nox. Skye. I had no idea coming here would lead to this, but I’m incredibly grateful that it did.
For the first half of the drive, Avi pulls out Journals of Elsewhere and reads it aloud.
It’s bizarre to hear my words in her voice, to watch Nox’s reactions as the story unfolds, but I love it too.
Sharing this piece of myself with them. We’re already nearly done with this one and Nox says he wants to jump straight into Expedition to Elsewhere once we are.
As the road gets windy the farther north we drive, Avi has to put the book away. We fill the remaining time talking about the upcoming school year for Nox, which starts in two weeks; his teacher assignments; and the small group of local boys he’s met over the past few weeks.
The constant chatter has kept me from having the chance to feel nervous. But pulling into the car park at the base of Old Man of Storr, the first hint of anxious excitement hits my stomach.
It’s been eleven years since I was here—very nearly to the day, which is crazy to think about. As is the way with most natural landmarks, it hasn’t changed, but it feels completely different somehow.
Nox jumps out of the car and finds the sign that talks about the hike and the mountain, while Avi and I sit for a moment in silence looking up at the large spire before we look at each other.
There’s something wistful in her eyes, a remembrance of that day so long ago when we gave ourselves to each other and had no idea that it would change both of our lives the way it did.
“I love you,” I whisper, picking up her hand that’s clutched in mine and pressing a kiss to her palm.
“I love you too.”
An hour and a half later, we stand at the top of Photographer’s Knoll, taking in the vast views of the sea and mountains, all greens and greys and blues. It’s a stunning sight to behold, and one that reminds me just how majestic this country is; my homeland, my home.
Nox is an excellent hiker for his age. Something he picked up from all his time hiking with Callum.
He sprinted a couple sections and was scrambling over rocks as well or better than any mountain goat I’ve ever seen.
He has so much energy and I wish sometimes I could siphon a little bit of it off for myself.
He’s standing with Avi when I walk up and wrap my arms around her waist. “At least it’s not raining today,” I say into her ear, and she settles more fully into me, letting me take her weight as she leans her head against my shoulder.
“Well, now that you’ve put it out there, it probably will,” she says with a sarcastic bite, and I chuckle against her.
“Probably.” I kiss her hair and she sighs, crossing her arms over mine where they rest around her.
I glance down at Nox and he raises an eyebrow in question, then nods toward his mum.
I chuckle again. Ten-year-olds are so impatient.
But we are here for a reason, so with one more kiss to Avi’s hair, I unwind myself from her and take a step back, and then another.
Enough space for her to miss my presence and turn around.
But instead of us coming eye to eye, she finds me on one knee. The damp earth is already seeping into my pants, but I couldn’t care less because I’d do anything to keep the look of delighted shock on her face.
Nox looks almost as excited as she does, bouncing from foot to foot with a wide grin on his face.
“Avonlea Lorna Stewart.” I reach up and grab her hand and she grips me so tightly I’m afraid she’ll cut off the circulation. “I’ve loved you for most of my life, and now that I have you, I never want to let you go. Will you marry me?”
Her eyes fill with tears and she squeezes them shut on a laugh. A joyful laugh, like the ones she used to gift me when we were young, one that is accompanied by a smile that takes my breath away.
When she opens her eyes, they’re filled with so much love, and with a soft nod, she says, “Yes.” Then she falls to her knees in front of me and throws her arms around my neck to kiss me senseless.
“Oh, come on,” Lennox mutters under his breath.
Avi and I separate, both of us laughing as we look up at our son. He offers an unapologetic shrug, but he’s smiling too.
“Were you in on this?” she asks, standing and pulling him into a hug.
He just shrugs again, like he hasn’t been keeping this under wraps for two weeks. I asked him for permission to marry his mum the same day I called her dad to ask for his. Lennox tried to play it cool with a casual “Aye, I guess that’d be cool.” Whereas Callum and Fiona both cried.
“You’re forgetting the best part…” I say, holding out a ring box and swiveling it side to side.
“I thought you were the best part,” she quips, reaching for the box, but I pull it out of her reach.
“So, you don’t want this then…?” I joke, and she jumps for it, colliding with my body. I wrap my free arm around her and pull her close.
“I want you,” she whispers, “but I also want to see what’s in that box.”
I kiss her forehead and lower it just enough so she can snatch it from my fingers.
The click of the lid is accompanied by a short gasp before her eyes fly to mine. This was one of the other things Nox helped me with: picking out the ring. And I’m going to guess I got it right.
The center stone is a large oval. The soft bluish-green tint makes it stand out against the gold filigree that surrounds it, accented with small diamonds and pearls.
“Jamie, this is—”
“Perfect, right, Mum?” Nox says, and her soft look of love shifts to him.
“Perfect,” she says with watery eyes and a quivering lip.
Pulling the ring from the box, I slip it onto her finger. Then I lift her hand like I did in the car, but this time I place my kiss right over her ring—the one that says she’s mine.
“So, when’s the wedding?” Nox asks.
“That’s a great question, bud,” Avi says, looking at me. I swallow hard. “Soon, I think.”
There’s an understanding in her eyes, a hint of sadness.
“Soon,” I echo, and wonder if we’ve learned to communicate the way my grandparents do, without words. There’s no reason to wait, but there is a very big reason to do it sooner than later.
For Angus, because there’s no way either of us wants to do this without him, and time is not on our side.
On the car ride home, I pull up Rory’s contact and punch the call button. It rings a few times before she answers, a little breathless.
“Jamie!” Her enthusiasm fills the car.
“Hey, Roars,” I say, and she chuckles.
“Gah, you’re worse than my brother these days. Can’t you just call me Rory like a normal person?”
“Nope, I like to bug you too much.”
“Whatever,” she says.
“I’m calling because I have a wedding for you to add to your calendar.”
Rory and Breck run an elopements business where she’s the photographer and he acts as the officiant. I used to fill the officiant role back when I was in Tahoe, before Breck came into the picture, but they’re the perfect team.
“Okay, I’ll have to check the schedule. Whose wedding is it?” she asks, completely oblivious, which only makes this more fun.
I squeeze Avi’s hand and she beams. “Mine.”