Chapter 40 Stone
Stone
Everything is good. No—it’s perfect. So perfect it feels borrowed.
It’s questionable if I ever dreamed of this sort of life, but if I didn’t, I want it—all of it, every last drop it has to offer.
The resort construction sings. We’re back on schedule, and building is going as well as it can be. Almost too well, and that’s rare in construction. You usually hit many problems on the way to finishing a project—at least I think so. No, I know so, somehow.
But not here in Mystic Meadows. Here, walls rise with gusto.
For as fast as everything moves forward, something feels off. This feeling that something’s going to drop simmers in my stomach.
“It’s really shaping up,” Isaac says as he comes over to critique my work.
I’ve been laying out stones in the garden I’m building for Coco. I rise, brush off my hands, and say, “You like it?”
“Yeah. The way you’ve got the path winding, it’s going to be beautiful.”
Beautiful. Just like her. “Thanks.”
“What are we talking about?” Ron asks, wiping sweat from his forehead.
“How good this garden’s going to be when it’s done,” Isaac tells him.
“Oh yeah. It’s gonna be breathtaking.”
“Thank you. That means a lot.” I step back to admire the work. The path serpentines, and local flora will flank it on both sides, bringing nature into the space seamlessly.
I’m putting everything I’ve got into it.
My thoughts are interrupted by a sedan rumbling onto the site. My shoulders lift, and I excuse myself from Ron and Isaac to head over to meet Coco.
She kills the engine and gets out, lifting a brown sack. “I brought you some lunch.”
I pull her into a bear hug and growl with happiness. “Perfect.”
Around us, machines lumber and pneumatic tools hiss and pop.
I take her hand. “Come eat with me.”
Her face turns red and she quickly looks around. “I’m not that hungry. Besides, should we eat where all the guys can see?”
“Did you bring enough to share?”
She swats at me. “No.”
“They’re about to take lunch soon anyway. Come on. I had a couple of picnic tables put in so the guys can take breaks.”
“Picnic tables?”
“Yeah. It’s the least I could do.”
We sit at a table and Coco slides into the seat across from me. She picks at her fingers nervously.
“Something wrong?”
“No, no.” Her gaze swivels around. “Nothing’s wrong. It’s just—”
“Just what?” I open the container and whistle with pleasure. Barbecue, corn bread, sauce. The leftovers are warm. She even heated them for me. This woman makes my body ache in the best way.
“Well, it’s just . . . there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Sounds serious.”
She gulps. “It is.”
I stop eating and study her. Her eyes are dark with worry, and her forehead is creased. “You can tell me anything. I hope you know that.”
A smile ghosts across her lips. My shoulders tighten. Have I done something wrong?
“Thank you for helping me,” she says. “With my magic. With my power. It didn’t show up until the ley lines strengthened, so I didn’t know about it.”
“That must’ve been frightening.”
“It was an experience,” she confirms.
“But it’s still pretty awesome. I mean, I can see ley lines, but I don’t have cool powers.” I frown. “Why can I see ley lines?”
“Oh, well . . .” Her gazes drifts off and she clears her throat. “I . . . um . . .”
“Do I have magic?”
“I don’t think so.” She takes one of the napkins and twists it with her fingers.
“But even though you don’t, I’m so appreciative that you can see ley lines.
” Her gaze lifts to the resort in the backdrop.
“It’s made all the difference in this building, and it’ll continue to make a difference in this town.
I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done.
” She looks over my shoulder and squints. “What’s that?”
“What?”
“That area over there.”
I say nonchalantly, “It’s the garden I’m building for you.”
Her eyes widen. “For me?”
“Yeah. Remember when I told Rhett about it? I wasn’t joking. You want a tour?”
“Okay.”
I take her over and guide her through the layout, explaining what sort of stones will go where and what plants will be brought in.
She’s silent the entire time I talk, looking at me with a mixture of awe and disbelief.
Well, she should believe it.
I love her.
Love her.
And I want to show her how much.
After we’ve walked through the whole thing, I say, “What do you think?”
She balls up a hand and presses it to her heart. When she speaks, it’s in a whisper. “It’s going to be gorgeous. Thank you.”
“Nothing,” I tell her, pushing hair from her face, “could be more gorgeous than you. Look. I know what you want to tell me.”
A shadow slides across her face. “You do?”
“Yes. You think because of what’s happened, because I don’t remember, that I’m not sure of anything.
Coco, I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life.
When I try to think of the past, it’s not only that I come up blank, it’s that I sense the moodiness I used to have, the anger, and I don’t want any part of it.
I’m not running toward you to fill a void.
That’s not why I re-proposed. I asked you because I am me.
For what may be the first time in my life, I am who I’m supposed to be, and I feel it in every pore and cell of my body. ”
She looks at me with tenderness. “You really think that?”
“I do. Every ounce of me feels this.”
That’s it! That earlier feeling I couldn’t name? This is the answer. Her. Us. Right here.
Because even if I never get my past back, I’ve found my future, and it’s Coco.
Oh my God. It’s Coco.
I mean, I know that, but when the realization hits me, it becomes obvious. Why should I wait to marry her when this is the right thing to do? For me. For us. It’s what’s supposed to happen. She’s already said yes. The hard part is over.
I want to get married. To her. Right now. I can’t wait one more minute.
But I also don’t want her to know this. I want it to be a surprise.
I jerk my head toward the site. “I need to get back. Are you hungry? Do you want to finish my lunch?”
She shakes her head. “No, but, Stone—I know you feel this way, but there’s still something I’ve got to tell you.”
I give her my full attention and wait. “Shoot.”
She opens her mouth, shuts it. Something wars in her eyes—maybe it’s just the effects of the whiplash my speech gave her.
Then she admits, “Just that I’m so grateful for you. For all of this.”
Love fills every nook and cranny inside me. “Coco, you own me. Every part of me, and all I want to do is be with you.”
I love her. This isn’t some high. I’ve loved this woman since the first moment I saw her. She’s grounded me.
“I’ve got to get back to work, but I have a surprise for you tonight.”
Her eyebrows lift. “Surprise? Stone, I—”
I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “Don’t try to get it out of me. Tonight. Just wait. You’re gonna love it.”
Her eyes dim a little and she nods. “Okay.”
“Don’t look so worried.”
“I’m not. I’m fine. A surprise?” she murmurs.
I brush a kiss to her cheek. “Yeah. It’s gonna be fun.”
And it’s also going to change your life. That, you can count on.