Compass

by Jeanne McDonald

  Tears swam in Melanie’s eyes. “I believe you.”

  “I’m so sorry,” he whispered, cupping the side of Melanie’s face in his hand.

  Melanie pressed her palm over the top of his hand. “I’m sorry, too.”

  “I’m so happy to see you happy again. Dan’s a great guy.”

  Melanie released a soft laugh. “He’s amazing.”

  Alexis rushed her fingers through her hair, confused and perplexed. “Wow! I don’t get it. Your significant others are over there flirting and you two are apologizing to each other.”

  Melanie leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees, looking out toward the crowd. “Do you trust Ryan?”

  “Of course I do!” Alexis squelched.

  Melanie pointed toward him. “Yet there he is, talking to Reagan right now. Dare I say, they’re even flirting.”

  “That’s different.”

  “How so? Dan’s a good man. I trust him just like you do Ryan,” Melanie stated plainly.

  “And I trust Kellie,” Miles added.

  Melanie shifted, pushing her knees against Alexis’. Taking both Alexis and Miles by the hand, she clasped them all together, as a family for the first time in years. “A relationship is built on trust.”

  “I get that, but Mom aren’t you afraid that you’ll get hurt again?” Alexis tried to pull her hand from the trifold, but Melanie held her tight.

  “You can’t let fear steal your chance to love. If you and Ryan part ways, which I don’t ever see happening, but if it happens, don’t let that deter you from loving again. Love is learning. It’s taking chances. It’s making mistakes. But most of all, it’s allowing yourself to trust and be trusted.”

  “But how?”

  Melanie looked to Miles and back to Alexis. “For starters you forgive your parents for being human.”

  Alexis chuckled softly.

  “And then,” Miles included, “you allow yourself to be human. Life is messy. Enjoy it.”

  “Open your eyes,” Ryan’s voice broke through her thoughts.

  All those years she’d spent hating her father for tearing her family apart, but she never looked past the indiscretions to the man who she’d always loved. Since that night, she had a different relationship with her parents. She had a better understanding of who they were and who she was.

  A smile appeared on her lips and her eyelids fluttered open. In front of her was the expansive, pale blue sky filled with white clouds for as far as the eye could see. The sun dominated the heavens, ruling the birds and air. When they’d become airborne, she wasn’t sure, but she knew, somehow, her fear was gone. In its place was nothing but love.

  Ryan rubbed his thumb over hers. She turned her head to find him staring at her. “You okay?” His voice filled with worry. “I thought this might help you get past your fear, flying with me, but if you need me to land…”

  Her eyes scanned the sky, serenity wrapping around her. “This is amazing,” she ruminated. “Is this how you always see things from up here?”

  The tone of her voice relaxed him. Ryan returned his eyes to his instruments. “Oh, yes. It makes you respect the universe for its immense beauty.”

  Skylines speckled the ground. People appeared no bigger than ants. From that distance she felt invincible.

  “Are you sure you’re okay, Lex?”

  Alexis leaned over, pressing her lips to his jaw. “Very much so. I trust you.”

  They were cruising the air, free. Ryan dared a glance at Alexis. Her smile was more magnificent than any sunset he’d ever witnessed. “You trust me,” he repeated. His face bloomed with happiness.

  “Absolutely. I trust that you’ll always be there to catch me if I fall.”

  His smile broadened. “Then let’s go on an adventure.”

  “Every day’s an adventure with you.” All of the noise in the plane faded away. The very world was at their feet. Nothing could touch them. Their love was timeless, and their hearts beat as one. Where they were going, she didn’t know. And while there may be turbulence ahead, as long as they were together, that was all that mattered. She smiled and relaxed back into her seat, tilting her head to take in his handsome face. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  It felt strange being back in this place, where it all started. Alexis stood on the porch of the Fisher residence and stared out at the house that held so many childhood memories for her. A bright red “For Sale” sign sat in the front yard. Shannon had told her the family who purchased the home from her parents had recently moved to Charlotte, leaving the house vacated. Sadness weighed her heart at the thought of no one living there.

  A light September breeze ruffled her hair. It felt good against her heated skin. Summer was almost gone, but it still clutched the small North Carolina town in its grips. From inside the house, she could hear the joyous laughter of family and friends. Everyone had convened to watch Ryan run his first marathon since the accident. She was so proud of him when he crossed that finish line. He’d completed his therapy, trained hard, and while he still had a ways to go to qualify for an IronMan, he’d done amazing.

  Her eyes drifted heavenward. The sun started to set and the sky filled with stars that couldn’t be seen in Dallas or New York City. There was a clarity about small town life that she’d lost living in big cities for so long. Out there she felt different, like a piece of herself she’d lost had been found.

  Drawn to her childhood abode, Alexis stepped off the porch. The front door was no longer blue, as it had been when she lived there, but painted white. The trim was still the same, peeling a little, but unchanged. Time was frozen with that little house. It was where she grew up. Where she learned about life and love. It was where her family was still whole. While they were unified now, it was different.

  She missed Cora, but loved Henry. He was growing up so fast. Many times she found herself watching him play his cello and thinking about how much Cora would’ve adored him. They would’ve been the best of friends. She was certain of that. And her animosity toward Kellie had subsided. The more she thought about what her parents had said, the more she realized how blinded she’d been by her own hurt. Besides, Kellie wasn’t all bad. If not for her, Henry wouldn’t exist.

  The warm asphalt of the street heated her bare feet as she meandered across it. She stepped on the plush grass of the front yard she and Ryan had spent so much time in as children. It wasn’t as full and green as she remembered, but that didn’t take away from the memories she held dear to her heart. In her mind, she could almost see the lanky boy that was now the man she loved, racing around in the grass, pretending to fly his favorite plane. She would lie in the grass and watch him, while telling him of her own plans. So many hopes and dreams were made in that yard. If the lawn could talk, it would share secrets she’d long forgotten.

  Her next steps led her to the concrete drive. A huge grease stain filled the center of the pavement, but next to it were three sets of handprints that were forever embedded in the slab. Ryan and Cora had played along when she wanted to turn the driveway into their own Walk of Fame. Her father had been furious with her for leaving those imprints after he’d spent so much money to repave the driveway. She chuckled at the memory of Ryan trying to convince her dad it was his idea. Even Cora tried to cover for her. Her smile faltered at the sweet memory of her little sister before she got sick.

  Alexis let out a tender sigh and walked up the driveway. Above the garage was her old bedroom. Gone was the ladder Ryan had used to sneak in. The tree that had guarded her window was cut down. Now it was a shell of the place where she’d spent her nights dreaming big, talking to Ryan, and growing up.

  Alexis sashayed up the steps of the porch. Their old porch swing had long since been taken down, but she could still see the hooks protruding from the gable. The wood flooring was worn and splintered. Age had set in on the little abode.

  She brushed her fingertips over the soft wood of the bannister. Just to touch this space ignited something inside he
r. So much was changing around her and being there, in that moment brought back a feeling of innocence.

  It led her to think about the baby bump that was starting to round Mary’s stomach. Mary had cried the day she told Alexis she was pregnant. No one knew it, but she and Shane had been trying for years. They’d given up hope and had stopped trying. That’s when their little miracle was conceived.

  “Lex?” Ryan’s voice was decadently smooth as he pierced her thoughts.

  She rested her hands on the porch rails and leaned forward. “Hey, you.”

  A tall, well built man lumbered across the street. That same boyish grin, which won her young girl’s heart, beamed back at her. “What you doing?”

  Alexis swayed from side to side, allowing the bannister to hold her weight. “Just taking a walk down memory lane.”

  Ryan stepped up onto the porch. “Can I join you?”

  Alexis sidestepped to give him room beside her. Ryan leaned forward and rested his elbows on the wooden rail. “There’s no one else I’d want to take this journey with, Captain.”

  “Silly woman,” he muttered under his breath.

  She loved the expression he got whenever she addressed him by his new title. His promotion wasn’t unexpected. He’d more than earned the flight hours he needed, but his humility about the advancement was endearing, and in Alexis’ opinion, quite sexy.

  “Captain Ryan Fisher. It has a sexy ring to it,” she teased.

  Ryan rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes drifted down. “Oh, stop. You act like it’s some sort of big deal.”

  “It is a big deal! You deserve it.”

  Ryan cut his eyes to her and grinned. He leaned over and planted a quick peck to her cheek. “So, tell me. Where’s memory lane taking us?” Ryan reached for her hand, linking their fingers together.

  “You remember Pinky?” she chuckled.

  “That damn gerbil of yours?” he groaned. “I hated that rat.”

  “It wasn’t a rat!” she gasped.

  “Lex, it was an oversized rat and I was its favorite snack.”

  Alexis dropped her chin, laughing. “But you were so sweet when he died. You buried him right there for me. Remember?” She lifted their joined hands and pointed to the specific spot in the yard.

  “I do. You kissed my cheek that day because I made him a coffin. I didn’t want to wash my face for a week. Mom was ready to kill me,” he chortled with a wink.

  “I don’t remember that, but I’m not surprised. You were the sweetest boy in the world.”

  Ryan twisted his torso slightly. “And now?”

  Alexis turned to meet him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing a tender kiss to his lips. “And now you’re the man I love with all my heart.”

  “Mhm. I like the sound of that.” He rested his forehead to hers, staring deep into her eyes. She toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck.

  “Maybe we should head back over there,” she mewled. She dropped her arms and turned back to view the house across the street. “You did leave Declan alone with your parents, after all. That’s a method for disaster.”

  “Pops, Declan, Louis, and Reagan are all talking sports, and Jenna was trading recipes with Mom. I think everyone’s safe for the moment.”

  Alexis nodded, thinking about Reagan and her new boyfriend, Louis Salazar. Ryan had gone all fan-boyish when he met the professional baseball player, until he realized Louis’ relationship with Reagan. That’s when the big brother, twenty-question routine went into action. Reagan was ready to beat Ryan to death by the time he was done with his interrogation. She even begged Alexis to call him off, but all Alexis could do was laugh.

  Ryan rested his elbows on the bannister, locking his hands in front of him. “You know, it’s funny,” he said, his brow furrowed in thought, “they say you can’t go home again. But I think they’re wrong.”

  “Why’s that?” Alexis placed her hands on the rail, crossing her legs at her ankles.

  Ryan shrugged. “Because we never really leave home. It’s always with us. Everything that happened between these two houses,” he motioned his hand back and forth, “is a part of who we are. It’s for that very reason why we can take walks down memory lane.”

  Alexis chuckled. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

  Ryan reached behind his back and popped a box of Cracker Jack from his back pocket. “What do you say to a little dessert?”

  Her face bloomed with nostalgia. “Absolutely.”

  Ryan ripped the box open and poured some of its contents into the palm of her open hand. She tossed a piece of caramel corn into her mouth, crunching it between her teeth. “You remember the last time we were on this porch, doing this same thing?” she inquired as Ryan threw several pieces into his mouth.

  He quickly chewed his mouthful of popcorn and swallowed. “Yeah. I remember almost kissing you that day.”

  “I remember that, too,” came her sheepish reply. “I wanted you to so badly.”

  Ryan held the box out toward her, silently offering more candied popcorn. She reached into the box grabbing a few kernels and peanuts. “If I’d only known then what I know now.” He shook the box, rattling the popcorn inside.

  “I don’t think I would’ve been able to leave if you had kissed me,” she admitted.

  “Now, I really wish I would’ve,” he paused and looked into the box, “Then again...maybe...you know what, no I don’t.” He pulled a peanut from the box and tossed it in the air, catching it in his mouth. He grinned with mischievous pride. “I like where we are,” he noted. “I love who we are. And if things had been different, I don’t think we’d be here right now.”

  He dumped more popcorn in his mouth, catching the toy packet between his fingertips. He handed it over to Alexis, who flipped the red and white packet in her hand. “You think we’ll find another compass in here?” Her eyes twinkled at the memory.

  Ryan chewed through his mouthful and swallowed hard. “We don’t need another one. Our love is our compass now. It’s what brought us here to this moment.”

  Alexis leaned over and placed a kiss on his cheek. The heat of his skin still sent her heart into wild palpitations. Would she ever get used to that feeling? She hoped not.

  Alexis lifted the packet, her brows raised. “May I?”

  Ryan glanced into the box, confirming it was empty. “Go for it.”

  She ripped the top of the waxy package open and dumped the contents in her hand. At first the object didn’t register. The early evening light sparkled against the purest stone she’d ever seen. In her palm was a beautiful platinum band, with a perfect square cut diamond in the center, which was encrusted by smaller diamonds creating a boxed in effect. It twinkled with such magnificence in her hand that it set a prism of light shimmering against the wooden rail.

  She blinked rapidly trying to reason out what was going on. It had to be some kind of joke. She’d heard it before, the ring in the Cracker Jack box, but that was an urban myth. Turning her head to get Ryan’s opinion, she was surprised to find him down on one knee.

  Her free hand flew to her mouth at the sight before her. “Ryan?” she rasped.

  He took the ring from her palm and smiled. “In this yard, so many years ago, I shared my dreams of flying with you. Since then, I’ve spent my life exploring this world, traveling the globe in search of happiness. But the irony is, what made me happy wasn’t over an ocean or cruising the heavens. My happiness was and has always been in my own backyard. I love you so very much. You’re my very world and I’m asking you now if you will do the honor of becoming my wife?”

  Her face scrunched in a tear filled smile.

  “Alexis Melody York, will you marry me?”

  “Yes,” her answer came out as a whisper. “A million times yes.” He slipped the ring on her finger and gently kissed it, as if to seal the bond between them. “It’s beautiful.”

  “As are you, my darling. As are you.” Ryan lifted to his feet and pulled her into his arms. When thei
r lips met, the world ignited around them. Fireworks exploded. The heavens sang a tune of two hearts beating as one.

  From across the street, they heard a loud wolf-whistle. Ryan and Alexis pulled apart to find everyone standing on the Fisher’s porch watching them. “You’re officially whipped! Find the ball and chain. They’re gettin’ hitched!” Declan yelled.

  Jenna jabbed her elbow into Declan’s stomach. “Don’t ruin their moment,” she chastised him.

  “But, but, baby,” he whined.

  Jenna placed her hands on her hips, giving Declan a stern look.

  Ryan burst into laughter. “I think you’re the whipped one, my friend!” he yelled out.

  Declan grinned, placing a kiss to Jenna’s lips.

  Reagan gave them two thumbs up. Louis stood behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist in a loving embrace. In the back stood Ryan’s parents. Both smiling with pride.

  Alexis buried her face into Ryan’s chest. Heat burned through her cheeks, but he could only hold her and laugh. “They were in on this, weren’t they?” she queried.

  “It started out with me visiting your mother and Jenna in New York to buy the ring,” he admitted. “Everything else blew up from there.”

  She cocked her head, catching a glimpse of everyone still watching them.

  “You’re not upset, are you?”

  Alexis tilted her face, lifting her hand to Ryan’s cheek. “I couldn’t be happier than I am at this very moment.”

  A crooked smile curved Ryan’s lips. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear, allowing his hand to linger on her neck. Then, he pressed his lips to hers, forgetting about the audience watching them. When their kiss broke, Alexis closed her eyes and rested her head on Ryan’s firm chest. She listened to the sound of his heart beating, the rustling of the wind in the trees, and the crickets singing their nightly love song. She breathed in the scent that was especially Ryan mixed with the aromas of the summer. A new memory, one she would cherish until her dying breath, forever embedded itself in her heart. “I love you.”