Chapter 26
Kaiah yawned and rubbed her eyes while she sat in a booth at Pancake Palace the next morning. After only managing to sleep
for a couple of hours, she finally got up around eight and took George out for a walk, then gave him breakfast from the food
she’d had delivered. After George was settled, she called an Uber to take her to Coral Cove Car Care to pick up Daisy. She’d
considered asking Reid, but after the way last night ended, she couldn’t bring herself to face him again.
His words had echoed through her mind nearly all night long.
You and Hayes have a history. Of course he came after you. . . . I’m happy for you two.
She’d tried to make sense of it. Why would Reid ask her to stay and make Coral Cove her home but then reject her?
She’d managed to make a mess of everything, and now she was more confused than ever. She had two killer job offers and Reid
had pushed her away. Was that a sign to take one of the jobs? But would a job take away her longing to be with Reid and Piper?
Kaiah cupped her hand to her mouth to shield another yawn just as Hayes walked into the restaurant. She tried to bury any
thoughts of Reid as Hayes took a seat in the booth across from her.
Hayes beamed at her. His smile had once set her heart aflame, but no longer.
“How’d George do last night?” he asked.
“Fine.” She tried to sound more neutral than she felt. “He slept at my feet like he always did.”
“He missed you.” Contrition filled Hayes’s face, and he took her hand in his. “We both did, Ky. I’m so sorry for hurting you
like I did. I’ll do anything to make it up to you.”
She pulled her hand away and shifted on the bench seat, trying to put some space between them. “Cut it out, Hayes,” she hissed.
“I want to hear more about this job offer.”
Hayes studied her for a moment and then sat up straighter. “Fine. I messed up, and it’s over between us, yada, yada, yada.
But hear me out: I want you to consider this job.” He tapped the tabletop. “You’re a great writer, and I need you on my staff,”
he continued without missing a beat. “I think you’ll like the salary.” He told her the amount, and she tried to mask her shock.
It was more money than she could ever dream of making as a freelancer. “I can ask for more if that’ll help with your decision.”
A middle-aged woman with frizzy gray hair and a pencil balanced behind her ear appeared at the end of the table. “What can
I get y’all?”
“I’ll have the pancake special and a coffee,” Hayes said.
The woman wrote on her notepad and then turned her attention to Kaiah. “And you, sweetie?”
“Uh.” Kaiah’s head was spinning, and food was the furthest thing from her mind. “The same.”
“Great.” The woman scribbled the order, took their menus, and left.
Hayes leaned toward her. “Kaiah, think about it. This is everything you’ve wanted,” he said.
“You’ll have the freedom to write all kinds of stories, anything you want.
And the sky’s the limit. If you want to go to Alaska and write a story about the Indigenous people there, you can.
Or if you want to go to the and write about how people are protecting the rainforest, you can.
We have a tremendous budget, and all you have to do is pitch the articles that mean something to you, anything you want to sink your teeth into. ”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “So what’s the catch?”
“No catch.” He held up his hands. “I’m just offering you a job.”
She studied him with suspicion. “Really? Just a job, huh?”
“Yes. I know it’s over between us. You’ve made that clear, and I respect it. But just consider becoming a staff writer for
me. Please. You’re the best person I know for this position. I mean that.”
She moved her fingers over the cracked vinyl bench while she mulled over everything Hayes was offering her—a career with a
salary that would give her a decent life and the freedom to write stories that mattered.
This was it. This was her dream coming true right in front of her eyes.
But if it was the best choice for her, then why was she hesitating to say yes?
The server set two mugs of coffee on the table along with a small container of creamers and then walked away again.
Hayes stirred creamer into his mug and took a sip. “So what do you say, Ky?”
She glanced out the window, then back at him. “I need time to think about it.”
“How much time?”
She paused, considering. “I don’t know.”
Silence settled in the booth, and she stirred creamer and sweetener into her coffee but couldn’t bring herself to drink it. Nothing was appetizing right now.
“And who’s that Reid guy?”
Kaiah studied her coffee and considered how much to tell Hayes. Even though Reid had rejected her, she still felt compelled
to protect him and Piper. “A friend.”
“How’d you find this place?”
“I was on my way to South Carolina and my car broke down.” She slumped back against the booth. “Reid rents out his apartment,
so I stayed there. I got Daisy back this morning.”
“What took so long? Did the engine blow up or something?”
She shook her head. “The parts were on order from the UK.”
“So you started writing about the place since you were stuck here. That’s why you wrote about the festival and the lighthouse,
right?”
“Something like that,” she muttered before sipping her coffee.
The server brought their food, and she picked at hers while Hayes wolfed down his pancakes and talked on and on about how
wonderful his life and job were in California.
She only half listened. The other half of her brain was pondering if Reid had really meant what he said. That it was over,
and that it had been “fun.” Those words had gutted her.
Surely Reid was as heartbroken as she was.
“Kaiah? Did you hear what I said?”
Her eyes cut over to Hayes’s, and she found him watching her. “I’m sorry, what?”
“I said that you really need to consider the offer,” he said.
“I told my boss about you, and he’s impressed with your work.
If you want it, then I’ll get you a plane ticket.
We can find a service to bring your car for you.
” He paused. “This is a great career move, Kaiah, and you deserve it. You’ve paid your dues.
Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.”
She moved her fingers over her mug.
He took a drink and then nodded. “How much time do you need to think about this? I have to be back in California on Monday.”
“Give me until the end of the day.”
He smiled. “That’ll work. I hope you’ll say yes.”
“I almost called you in the middle of the night,” Becca told Reid while they sat on her deck and drank sweet tea. “I woke
up and had this awful feeling. It almost reminded me of when . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she focused her eyes toward
the backyard.
Reid sipped his drink. After his restless night, he had dropped Piper off at school and then gone straight to his sister’s
house. He was grateful Cash was working so that he could talk to her in private. He’d craved relief from his foul mood and
broken heart, and just being with his twin gave him comfort.
“I’m so stupid, Becks,” he admitted. “I actually believed she might stay. And when I saw her ex in the driveway, I realized
how naive I’ve been.”
“You’re not naive, Reid. I thought she’d stay too.” She shook her head. “I saw how you two look at each other. Even Cash noticed
it, and he doesn’t notice anything.” She tapped his arm. “Don’t give up hope, Reid. She’s not gone yet.”
“But why would she stay here? This is a small town. She’s used to the city and exciting adventures. What can I possibly offer
her?” He set the glass down on the table and covered his face with his hands. “I’ve known her a grand total of three weeks.
What am I thinking?”
“Love knows no timeline, bro.”
“Love?” He gave her a humorless laugh. “Please.”
She gave him a look of disbelief. “You can’t lie to me. I can feel it.” She touched her chest. “You care about her—a lot.”
“Yes, but love her? No.”
Yes, I do. I’m crazy about her, and I thought she was crazy about me.
He rubbed his eyes. “Let’s talk about something else. Have you gotten a final number for how much money we raised?”
“No, but Misty Rodriguez is supposed to call me with the total later today. I know we already exceeded our goal, but I can’t
wait to hear by how much.” She gave him a sad smile. “Thanks to Kaiah.”
His nostrils flared. Even the sound of her name was a stab to his soul.
She tapped his shoulder. “Chin up, Reid. She’ll decide to stay.”
“I doubt it.”
“Don’t be such a pessimist.”
“I’m not. I’m a realist. And it’s best if things go back to normal and it’s just Piper and me again.”
Becca shook her head. “You two have already been alone for too long. It’s time to open your heart and home to someone who
can make you happy. Both you and Piper.”
If only it was as easy as his twin made it sound.
Kaiah left the restaurant and drove aimlessly around Coral Cove. She parked in front of the Roast Shack and let her head fall
back against the headrest.
She stared at the front window of the coffee shop and thought back to the first time she saw Reid.
She’d immediately been drawn to him, and when he’d handed her the vanilla latte, there was something about him—something so authentic and mesmerizing.
When she’d gotten to know him, she realized her first impression of him was accurate.
He was kind and loving, funny and smart, and super generous.
He was an incredible father, and for the short time she’d known him, he’d been a wonderful boyfriend.
But when the going got a little tough, Reid had pushed her away.
Since there was no place for her in Coral Cove, maybe she should take the job in California. But then she’d have to work for
Hayes. She couldn’t think of a more awkward working relationship. She’d have to talk to him about her projects, get his approval,
allow him to edit her stories. He’d be up in her business all day every day.
Unlocking her phone, Kaiah opened the email from Anita Williams. She still hadn’t responded to her and wondered if the job
was still available. She could move to Washington, DC, and start a new life there.
Kaiah’s eyes stung, and she squeezed them shut. How could the idea of leaving this place, somewhere she’d only been for three
weeks, hurt her so deeply?
Opening her eyes, she turned toward the lighthouse and felt it beckoning her. She drove the two blocks over, parked, walked
out on the boardwalk, and dropped down onto the sand. She breathed in the familiar scent of salt water as the calming cadence
of the waves crashing into the shore washed over her.
Memories rained down on her—seeing the striped tower when she first limped Daisy into town and then walking to it after running into Reid at the coffee shop.
She remembered touring it with Reid the day she came up with the idea for the festival, holding on to Reid and kissing him for the first time after he surprised her with the white lights, and watching the fireworks with him and Piper the night the festival began.
The lighthouse had become important to her—just like this town and its wonderful people.
It had felt like a beacon that was calling her home, filling her with hope.
Right then she felt her mother’s presence as she stared at the light that had led people safely to shore for more than two
hundred years.
“I could use your advice right now, Mom,” she whispered. “I wish you were here to tell me which path to choose.” She sniffed
as her throat thickened. “I miss you, Mom. I miss you so, so much.”
Her tears spilled from her eyes and flowed hot down her cheeks while she weighed each option—taking the job in California,
taking the job in DC, staying in Coral Cove with Reid and Piper and their wonderful family.
And then, a knowing clicked into place.
She needed to stay in Coral Cove.
She didn’t need a fancy job to be happy. She could write stories that mattered as a freelancer and make Coral Cove her home
base. And she could do it while coming home to two people who meant the world to her.
She belonged there. With Piper. With Reid.
She just had to convince him that she wanted to be part of his world.
Excitement pulsed within her chest as she stood, brushed the sand off her jeans, and faced the lighthouse. “Thank you,” she
whispered. Then she dialed Hayes’s number.
“Yeah?” Hayes said when he answered.
“I can’t go to California with you,” she told him while walking to her car.
“What do you mean?”
She climbed into the driver’s seat. “I said, I’m not going with you.”
“What? Why not?”
“I don’t want your job,” she said. “Go back to California and forget about me.”
“Kaiah, I’ve told you I’m sorry multiple times.” Irritation vibrated in his voice. “Just take the job. Don’t let your stubbornness cloud your judgment. This offer is better than any other job you’re ever going to find.”
“That’s your opinion, Hayes,” she said. “Thanks for the offer, but no thanks. So goodbye forever. Don’t contact me again.
And by the way, I’m blocking your number.”
Kaiah hung up as she started the car, turned off her phone, and slapped on her blinker to exit the highway. As she merged
over into the right lane, the opening chords of Shenandoah’s “Next to You, Next to Me” started to play, and her heart swelled.
She glanced down at the bracelet Reid had given her with the beads that spelled out Coral Cove. She knew it to the bottom of her heart—she belonged in Coral Cove. Now she just had to tell Reid.
A plan came together in her mind, and she couldn’t wait to put it into action.