He’s fully onboard with making Everlend the same place it was to us. A home of hope and second chances for those in need of both.
It’s going to take a little time, and we want to spend a bit with just the three of us because we missed out on so much. But we will be having a grand re-opening July sixteenth next year. Your birthday.
Your life deserves to be celebrated, we couldn’t think of a more perfect gift.
I love you here, there and everywhere in between.
XoXo,
Willow Darling
A tear falls, splattering on the page, smudging my last name.
“Willow, are you in here?” I hear Piers before I see him.
“Yes. I’m here,” I call back as he steps into my new studio space that he and Drew created for me.
“You ready for that walk?” He stands in the doorway, looking sinfully handsome. Dark stubble covering his jaw since he hasn’t shaved since before the gala.
Staring at him, I start to get lost in thought. Thinking about the way that stubble feels on my skin, between my—
“If you keep looking at me like that, you might not be able to take that walk,” he growls and steps closer, offering his hand.
“Oh.” My mouth forms a perfect O.
“Yeah, oh.” His raspy voice warms my blood.
Standing, I fold the letter and place it in the drawer.
Tomorrow I’ll go to her grave and read it to her. Tomorrow afternoon, I’ll visit James, tell him I forgive him.
Tomorrow morning, Piers goes to work, and Scarlett will be there, new boundaries in place.
Tomorrow we start to heal.
But tonight, I walk towards Piers and for once only think about the present.
No history, no plans, just us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
WILLOW
“Willow, walk to the garden with me?” Even in the darkness, I see the intensity shining in his emerald eyes. He doesn’t realize it, but his question is riddled with more questions. Questions that I’m not sure I know the answer to.
Nodding, I walk alongside him, holding my breath as he leads me down the stone path to the garden. To the willow trees beside the water. To our place. And I know that there will be no more running. No more hiding.
When we reach the steps, he holds out his palm for me to take. Ever the gentleman. On instinct, I reach for him before drawing back. Confusion clouds his features at my hesitation as I study him. Standing on the edge between holding back and losing myself in him.
Wendy would be pleased that he grew into such a fine man. She is responsible for that, after all. I think of the elvish boy who befriended me in this garden. The roguish young man who kissed away my tears on these very steps. The patient man who made love to me under the stars, making my first time unforgettable.
I smell the sweet fragrances of the cabbage roses and hear the chirp of the crickets. If I close my eyes, I can see us playing hide and seek within these stones and hedges. I remember planning adventures, sharing dreams and making promises.
That was before. Before secrets invaded these hallowed stone walls, and lies choked out the innocence and beauty of the blooms. Before there was no one left to kiss away the tears. Before enough tears flowed to carry me an ocean away.
For so long, this place was tainted in my mind. The picture I painted in my memories became blurred from the anger and the sadness that I held onto like a lifeline. But seeing it tonight, in the moonlight...this small corner of the estate that was once the center of our universe...it’s as if I’m seeing for the first time, free from the weight of our secrets.
I feel the magic once more. I’m pulled towards him, the way the moon pulls the ocean. But like the tide, my heart goes back and forth. I want him more than ever, yet I’m still afraid.
The memories, both good and bad, come flooding back. Every day that we spend at Everlend, my walls crumble just a little more.
And just now, he looks at me like he did all those years ago. With patience, respect and love written plainly on his face and the remains of what hold me back crumble to the ground. And so, I do what I did all those years ago; I place my shaky palm in his steady grasp. I trust him.
He takes my hand, and in that moment, it’s more than skin touching skin, deeper than a simple gesture. It’s a whisper of a promise exchanged with our finger tips. I know that this time there will be no letting go as he wraps my hand tightly in his and leads me the rest of the way down the stone steps.
He’s had my body, he owns my heart, and it’s time for my mind to come to terms with the truth.
When we reach the bottom, I look around, my breath catching as I see hundreds of twinkling lights hanging in the trees, and lanterns of flickering candles light our path down to the massive willow tree, the one with our initials carved into rugged bark.
“Oh, Piers.” I turn to look at him, trying to find the right words. Before I can speak, he pulls me into his arms, and it feels like I’m finally home...in every sense of the word.
His lips find mine, and my mind stops searching for the right thing to say and focuses on the way his mouth feels, soft and gentle. His tongue sweeps across the seam of my lips, tangling with my own as my head angles upward. I focus on his taste, peppermint and whiskey. His steady hands hold me in place as the kiss deepens, and my mouth parts in submission to him, telling him what my voice cannot. I focus on the smell of his cologne, a dark, masculine ocean scent that I’ve come to recognize as him. I focus on the sound of his moan, and it heightens my own longing, our bodies pressing closer together, arms holding tighter, afraid this moment may slip through our fingers.
Breathless, our mouths break apart, and I struggle to fill my lungs with air as he draws in ragged breaths. Our foreheads touching, lips mere inches apart and eyes locked on one another.
“Willow,” he rasps out as his hands move to cradle my face. “I need you. I can’t live without you. I tried and I failed, miserably. I won’t do it again, ever.”
Tears prick the corners of my eyes as he continues, “All I ever wanted was a family. When we were younger, you were looking for an adventure and I, Willow, I just wanted to belong. To have a friend, a family, a home. And, we’ve had many adventures...I had friends, Wendy, the boys, but with you it was more. So much more. You were my family, and when you left—”
A sob tears through me at hearing the words I knew. Words I feared. My head falls forward before his hands bring it back up, and he kisses away my doubt once more before releasing my face.
“Willow, what I’m trying to say is that you loved me when I was nothing. You believed in me and trusted me, and now I’m asking for you to trust me once more,” he pleads, not knowing he already holds my heart in his hands.
He drops to one knee, and through my tears, I see the brave boy I loved. I see the broken young man I fell in love with and the strong, stubborn man that I’ve always loved. I see the father of my child, and I know without a doubt I’m meant to be with him, regardless of time and distance; it’s always been him.
“All I have is yours. I lay it at your feet. Just say you’ll share my life? That you’ll share yours, no more secrets, no more running? We will raise our son together, as a family?” His voice falters a bit on the last word as his eyes remain locked on mine.
I know that no matter where I go...as long as my heart beats, it will belong to him. It always has. It always will.
“Piers.” I reach for him, relieved he feels the same but heartbroken over the time we wasted. His arms find my waist, holding me tight, and his head lays against my stomach. “I know we can’t undo the past, I wish—”
“Shhhh.” He stands, drawing me close. “We can’t undo the past. We both made mistakes, but that doesn’t define our future, Willow. We write our own destiny. You and Drew are mine. Say you’ll let me be yours?”
I cling to him, my hands holding onto his body while my heart holds on to his words. “Yes,” I whisper against his chest.
Strong hands
gently lift my chin, deep green eyes searching my own as I nod, tears falling. “Yes. Yes, I’ll be yours. I always have been. Your friend, your family, and now your wife.”
“You promise?” he asks as he picks me up and spins me around. Every star in every sky couldn’t compare to the lightness I feel in my heart in this moment.
“Forever and always,” I remind him, pressing my thumb to his when we stop spinning.
Smiling down at our joined hands, he takes something out of his pocket and slips it onto my finger. “Forever and always,” he vows.
“Oh, Piers!” I look at the ring on my finger. An emerald cut stone, set in a gold band adorned with tiny emeralds. I’m speechless as it catches the lights twinkling around us. “It’s—”
“The diamond I picked out, the band was Wendy’s, or parts of it were,” he explains, holding my hand in his as fresh tears start to fall.
“The emerald from Peter? But how?” My voice quivers as I study one of Aunt Wendy’s most prized possessions, something I thought had been destroyed a long time ago.
“James smashed the stone, but he didn’t destroy it.” His profound explanation applies to more than just precious gems it would seem. “She saved the pieces, and when she was sick, gave them to me. She knew Willow. Somehow, Wendy knew we would find our way back. She wanted you to have them.”
“So I took the broken pieces, fragments of a shattered past, and had something beautiful and meaningful created from them.” My breath catches at his choice of words.
“That sounds like Wendy; even from the grave, she is still orchestrating everything.” Smiling, I lean into his embrace, tears lingering. “I’m so thankful to have a piece of her with me. With us. It couldn’t be more perfect. Thank you.”
My lips find his, and it’s like everything clicks into place; the stars are aligned, and now is our moment. It’s finally our time. I was looking for an adventure, and it seems, good and bad, I found more than I dreamed possible. But the greatest adventures are still to come.
The Beginning
EPILOGUE
PIERS
The groomsmen have already walked out to take their places, and now that I’m alone, I remove the letter from my jacket pocket and read it one last time.
Piers,
I trust that you will get this, because Wendy is someone who I trust with my life and in turn, I’ve entrusted her with yours. I’m sorry that this is goodbye. I don’t know when you’ll be reading this? Maybe when you’re sixteen and learning to drive, or going away to college, or possibly on your wedding day, marrying the girl of your dreams.
I hope I’m around to see all those things, but in case I’m not, know that I’ll be there in spirit. I’m going back out to sea, and I don’t know when I’ll be back. It can be a dangerous place, but it will afford me a way to build a better for life for you, for us.
I’ve always been an adventurer at heart. I think that’s part of the reason why Wendy fell in love with me. You see, she was kept locked up tight, like a caged bird or a butterfly. They need to be free or they lose the ability to fly. I wanted to be the one who freed her, but it was she who freed me. Showed me about happiness and love. She shined light into my dark existence.
We fell in love long before I met your mother. James, Wendy and I were the best of friends. I used to hang out on the dock where James’ grandfather’s shipyard was. Wendy’s father’s office was nearby, and we often played together there. At night, they went home to sleep in warm beds in sprawling estates. And I slept wherever I could find a safe place. For a long time, they didn’t realize I was a homeless orphan, but one morning, Wendy found me sleeping in the alley behind the shipyard. She asked if I was lost. She had no idea. I was embarrassed, and we quarreled.
All this time I knew I wasn’t good enough for her, and now she would know it too. I loved her and was dangerously close to falling in love with her. Things were already tense because James was in love with her too. And their families were old friends, of the wealthy kind. I would have to make my way to prove myself.
I decided to get a job on one of the boats. The night before I was to ship off, I went out and had a few drinks with James and then a few more. He helped me get the job. He said Wendy would come around. One thing led to another, and I woke up in the bed of a lovely young woman named Lucy, your mother.
The next day, I shipped out. When I came back, your mum was nearly ready to give birth to you, so I did the right thing and married her. Well, I thought it was the right thing. Turns out, I was wrong. Wendy couldn’t look at me. She waited for me, but it was too late. I wasn’t many things, but I was a man of honor. So I married Lucille and broke Wendy’s heart. Her and James were married within the year, and you were born.
I loved you from the first time you looked up at me with those big green eyes. Most babies are born with blue eyes, and they turn later, but not you Piers Andrew Nichols. You came out, screaming your way into the world, with two big emeralds shining above your chubby little cheeks. I never doubted you were mine, but seeing my eyes as I held you, it shifted something inside me. It was like looking in the mirror. I messed up and made a lot of mistakes, but you were my second chance, my hope.
I tried to be the best Dad I could, but your Mum never could get past the love I had for Wendy. So one day, I returned home from a two week stint at sea to find Wendy at our flat, watching you. Your mum had called her and took off suddenly, leaving you with her. It was not your fault. It was mine. And for that I’m sorry.
Wendy took care of you when your mother couldn’t. In my eyes, she’s always been your mother. You were just a toddler, and in the short time you spent with her, you formed a bond. It was heartbreaking because I loved you both, and you loved each other, but we couldn’t be a family, not in the traditional sense.
Wendy confided in me that she couldn’t have children, and so she offered to look out for you when I had to be away at sea. James wasn’t thrilled about the idea, but he’s an honorable man. He also made a lot of mistakes. Love makes you do that sometimes. He agreed you could stay with them at the new estate Wendy’s father had purchased. It was to be a home for wayward children, for lost boys like me. Everlend, sounds like something from a fairytale. And that’s what I wish for you son, a life of fairytales and a happy ending.
I hope you never have to read this, but in case you do, I know she will give it to you when you’re ready. I’m writing because this next haul will be the longest I’ve ever been on. I want you to have something to remember me by, even if it’s only words. I wish I could give you the world, but all I have is my love.
Your Loving father,
Peter
I blink back tears as the music starts. I knew my father loved me, but to hear it in his own words, to know I wasn’t really an orphan, fills a void I’ve been carrying for a long time.
Stepping out to take my place, I watch as my happy ending walks her way slowly to me, covered in ivory lace that hugs her body and on the arm of our dashing son. My whole world walks down that aisle, coming to me through a bed of roses.
The last line of my dad’s letter sticks with me – all I have is my love. I wish I could see him, if only to tell him it’s more than enough.
My beautiful bride holds my gaze. Tears threaten to fall, and just like always, she knows what I need. She throws me a wink, and I shoot her a smile.
I believe in fairytales, because of her.
§
WILLOW
I hear the sounds of strings playing as I carefully unfold the heavy linen paper from the gold embossed envelope Anna just handed me moments before. The one that was sealed with Wendy’s signature emerald wax and addressed to me in her elegant script.
My dearest Willow,
What I would give to be standing next to you in this moment. If I close my eyes, I can imagine how your lovely auburn hair will be falling in waves of curls down your back, glowing almost golden in the sunlight.
I know you’re going to be outdoors. How, you might a
sk? Because I know if you’re reading this, then you and Piers have found your way back together, and all is right in the world. You’re about to walk down a rose filled pathway to join him under the willow tree, your tree. The same tree with your initials carved into it. The same sacred place that you vowed to be best friends with a blood oath. (Yes, I saw when you thought no one was watching. It’s how I snapped that photo.) I also know, based on what you told me, you shared your first kiss there, lost your innocence there and conceived your firstborn there. I can’t think of a more perfect place in all the world than your secret garden. By now you know the garden isn’t the only thing that kept secrets.
I know there were things I withheld from you both, and like the garden, I had a few secrets. Though you were my blood and the daughter I never had, I tried to treat all my kids at Everlend the same, and that included keeping all the secrets. The ones that were not mine to tell.
Since you’re a wonderful mother, I know you can understand this. I loved being there for you when Drew was born. I wish I could have seen him grow up. But I’m thankful for the time I got with you and Piers as children and young adults, and I’d say Drew will be the perfect blend of the two of you. I wish the blessing of many more children for you both. And when you do have more, you’ll see how you don’t...how you can’t...love one more than another.
It’s how I know I’m leaving the Estate in good hands because it’s as special to you both as it is to me. And there was never any real chance of it going to charity. I knew, being the smart businessman Piers is, that he would figure out the loophole that wouldn’t require you to move back and jointly inherit it. But just in case you needed more time to be reminded why you belonged together, it was my little insurance policy. I wasn’t taking any chances with your second chance, which in a way was also my second chance at a happy ending.
Happy Ever Never (Written in the Stars Book 1) Page 18
