Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
L una stood at her window, unable to look away as she watched Archer load boxes into his truck outside of Dawson's Inn. She couldn't believe he was leaving. She didn't even get to tell him goodbye, but that was her own fault because she had turned him away when he came over. Her heart felt like it was being squeezed as she watched Julie hug him and then Dawson clap him on the back. He was leaving. He'd made his choice. That was that.
"Maybe he's just moving some things," Janine suggested from behind her. She'd come to their morning yoga session only to find Luna frozen at the window.
"No." Luna's voice was barely above a whisper. "The Oakland Hills deadline passed. He made his decision."
She watched as Archer climbed into his truck. He looked over toward Serenity for a long moment, and Luna stepped away from the window.
"Luna," Janine started.
"I have clients coming," Luna said, sliding on her professional mask once again. "We should cancel yoga this morning. You should be home with Madison anyway. You said she wasn't feeling well."
"Well, I'm not leaving you alone right now."
"I'm fine," Luna said. "This is what I wanted, remember? For him to be free to choose without complications."
"You're not a complication."
The sound of Archer's truck starting cut off Janine's words. Luna fixed her eyes on the desk until the rumble of the engine faded into the distance. He was gone, and she had no one to blame but herself. She didn't even fight for him. She just couldn't. She cared more about his happiness than her own.
She moved through the next few days in a fog, throwing herself into as much work at Serenity as possible. She was almost manic about it, calling up different contractors to fix things that didn't need fixing, adding more classes to her schedule, running into town to put up flyers—anything she could do to keep herself busy. She extended her hours just so she could keep her mind occupied from thinking about Archer leaving.
"You need to rest," Janine said on the third morning. "When was the last time you actually slept?"
"I'm fine," Luna said.
She knew it was a lie. The dark circles under her eyes told a different story.
"You're not fine at all. None of this is fine." Janine crossed her arms. "Do you have a therapist yourself? Have you even let yourself cry this out?"
"There's nothing to cry about, Janine. He made his choice. I'm happy for him. Life goes on."
But life didn't feel like it was going on. Every morning she expected to see his truck in her driveway bringing coffee. Every time the door opened, her heart jumped, thinking maybe he'd come back.
"At least go talk to Julie," Janine said. "Find out how he's?—"
"No." Luna's voice was sharp. "I don't want to know how he's doing. I can't. I need to focus on my business, on my clients. They're the reason I came here in the first place."
But Luna couldn't help thinking about how Archer had helped guide her through a golf swing, his breath warm against her ear, and how natural it had been to dance in his arms at the golf classic. He looked at her like she was the most precious thing in the world, something worth staying for—except she hadn't been.
"You at least need some air," Janine said later that afternoon. "Come watch the sunset with me at the lighthouse."
Luna shook her head. "I have client notes to finish."
"You know those notes can wait. You've been cooped up in here for days, drowning yourself in work. Come on, Luna. Just come with me."
Luna finally looked up, and Janine's face was filled with concern.
"Fine," she conceded, "but just for a little while. I really do have these notes."
The walk to the lighthouse was quiet, the early evening air heavy with salt and jasmine.
"I'm sure those kids miss their golf lessons," Janine said as they started to climb the lighthouse steps.
"I'm sure Oakland Hills will have plenty of young students eager to learn from him."
"Luna—"
"Please," Luna interrupted. "I can't talk about him. Not yet."
They reached the top of the lighthouse as the sun began its descent. Luna moved to the railing, letting the wind whip her long hair around her face.
"I need to check on Madison," Janine said suddenly. "William just texted. She's running a fever again."
Luna nodded, not turning around. "Go on, I'll be fine here."
She heard Janine's footsteps fade down the stairs, leaving her alone with the sunset and her thoughts. She closed her eyes, listening to the endless rhythm of the ocean. Right now, peace felt very far away.
She heard footsteps on the stairs behind her and turned, thinking Janine had come right back, but instead, she met Emma, who took care of the lighthouse and lived on-site. She was very nice and had invited Luna to have lunch one day. Luna was grateful to be meeting new people and to maybe have some distractions in the coming days.
Emma headed back down, and Luna decided to stay a few more minutes until the sun was almost gone before walking home.
Luna closed her eyes again and allowed the sea breeze to blow her hair. This was usually something that calmed her, but right now she couldn't seem to find that peace within herself. All she could think about was watching Archer load up his truck and leave. Had everything meant nothing to him? Did he think that he meant nothing to her? It was all so jumbled up in her brain.
She heard footsteps behind her yet again and thought, Who in the world would be coming up to the lighthouse at this hour when the sun was almost gone? Maybe Emma was coming back because she felt bad for her being alone, but what she really wanted was to be alone.
"I've been looking for you."
Luna's heart felt like it stopped in her chest. She thought she'd imagined his voice for a moment, another trick of grief and exhaustion, but when she turned, Archer was standing there, real and solid.
“Archer. I thought you were in California," she managed to choke out.
"I never left." He took a step closer. "I could never do that."
"But I saw you—your truck, the boxes?—"
"I moved into my own place in town, a cottage near the golf course." His eyes held hers. "I'm staying, Luna. I turned down Oakland Hills days ago."
She gripped the railing behind her. "But why?"
"Because everything I need is here. Everything I want is here.” He took another step closer. "The kids, the community, the chance to continue teaching the game I love in a way that matters. But most of all—you."
She felt tears burning her eyes. "I pushed you away."
"You tried," he said, slightly smiling. "But I learned something from all those breathing exercises you forced me to learn. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is also the most important."
"And what's that?"
"Staying still. Letting yourself feel everything, even when it hurts."
He was close enough now that she could see those little flecks of gold in his eyes.
"I'm done running, Luna. From my injury, from my feelings, and from this thing between us."
Luna felt her carefully constructed walls crumble.
"But I heard you talking to Dawson about Oakland Hills, about making a difference there. And I wasn't going to be the reason you gave that up."
"And you weren't the reason I gave it up," he said. "You were the reason I finally understood what making a difference really means. Those kids on the course, the way they light up when they make a good shot—that's real. You helped me find myself again. I don't need more money. I made plenty as a pro. That job wasn't what I needed."
"Archer—"
"Let me finish." His voice was gentle but urgent.
"I spent my whole life chasing the next big thing, pushing through pain, trying to prove myself to everybody else. And then you taught me how to be still and find joy in small moments. How could I leave that?"
"I was so scared," she whispered, as a tear slipped from her eye and down her cheek. "Of needing you. Of not being enough to make you stay."
"Hey." He reached out, brushing away the tear with his thumb. "You're not just enough. You're everything."
The touch of his hand felt like everything broke loose inside her. All the pain and grief of the last few days crashed over her like a rogue wave threatening to take her down.
"I thought you were gone," she choked out. "I thought I'd lost you without ever telling you?—"
"Telling me what?"
Luna met his eyes.
"That I love you."
The words hung in the air between them.
Archer's hand stilled against her cheek.
"Say that again," he whispered.
"I love you. Even when I was pushing you away, even when I thought I had lost you—I loved you."
He moved closer, his free hand finding her waist.
"I love you, too," he said. "More than any game, any job offer, or any dream I ever had before you."
The last of the sunlight painted the lighthouse in gold. Here, where the land met the sea, more endings became beginnings. This was where they were meant to be.
When Archer finally kissed her, it felt like coming home. His lips were gentle against hers, giving her time to respond, asking rather than demanding. She melted into him, her hand sliding up his chest and curling around his neck. They kissed slowly, like the tide coming in.
Archer's arms tightened around her waist, pulling her closer, and she could feel his heartbeat against her own. And when they finally broke apart, Luna kept her eyes closed for a moment, memorizing the feeling.
Archer rested his forehead against hers.
"Stay with me. No more running. No more pushing away. Just stay."
She opened her eyes.
"I'm not going anywhere," she promised.
The wind picked up, and Luna stayed in Archer's arms, feeling the last tension leave her body as he pressed a soft kiss to her temple.
"By the way, you can thank Janine," he said, "and Emma. This wasn't exactly a spontaneous sunset visit. It might have been a setup."
Luna laughed softly.
"I wondered why Emma disappeared so quickly. I met her, and she was gone just as fast."
"I think the whole town's been conspiring to get us here." Archer's thumb traced circles on her lower back. "Dawson has been insufferable about it."
"You mean because he was right? Because they were all right?"
"About us belonging together? About some things being worth more than career moves or careful plans?"
She reached up to touch his face, tracing the line of his jaw.
"When did you know you wouldn’t take the job?"
"The moment I thought about teaching somewhere without hearing you laugh from the deck on Serenity, or standing on the sidelines without seeing your face light up, I realized I didn't want any future that didn't have you in it."
"And what does that future look like?"
"Mornings on the golf course with the kids, evenings watching the sunset from Serenity's deck, you teaching me about breathing and me teaching you about golf, and then the two of us learning other things together. Though you're actually a pretty good golf student."
"Well, I had an excellent teacher," Luna said.
"We make a good team. The therapist and the golf pro."
"Former pro," Luna corrected. "Current miracle worker with kids who never thought they'd love the game.”
“You see me so clearly—not who I was, but who I am now and who I want to be."
"And that goes both ways," she said. "You saw past my careful plans and professional boundaries and made me want to risk my heart again."
He leaned down to kiss her again. When he pulled back, the last light of the sunset caught his face.
"We should probably head down," she said, "before somebody sends up a search party."
"Or before Janine starts texting the whole town that her plan worked." Luna laughed.
"Too late for that, I'm sure."