Page 55 of Just One Summer with the Grumpy

When I reached my office and opened Ty’s fortune cookie a few minutes later, I couldn’t decide whether to study it or throw it across the room.

You’re on the right path.

Right. That would be more helpful if I knew which path I was actually on.

I spent most of Ty and Veronica’s rehearsal dinner in the kitchens, keeping busy supervising orders. I caught a glimpse of Chase once and our gazes met, but he didn’t approach, likely sensing that I needed some space. I was the first to look away.

When I returned home last that night, I couldn’t sit on the same couch I’d shared with Chase, nor could I eat in the kitchen Chase had stocked with food. Everywhere I looked, there he was.

So I channeled my inner eighteen-year-old, buried my fear, and climbed onto the tin roof.

Soon I lay on my back, arms crossed beneath my head, looking up at the massive black expanse of sky above. The stars glistened, some bright and others more faded, all situated in their respective places. How nice it would be to know where that was—to be acted upon by the forces of gravity and physics in predictable ways, never changing, no choice whatsoever in the matter. No weighing the happiness of others against their own. No guilt. Only obedience to laws as ancient as the universe.

Those stars had to be wiser than me. They’d been around far longer than I could comprehend. If they spoke, I had to listen. I had to trust that everything would work out the way it should.

Didn’t I?

I’d spend most of my life following whatever direction from the universe I could find. Yet after all this time, I still hadn’t found the happiness I sought. Maybe Mom was right about fate and destiny. I’d looked everywhere for answers except inside myself.

The problem was, I didn’t have the answers, either. I’d seen a side of Chase that few others got to see, but how much of that was the truth? If I ignored the warning signs, would I regret rejecting what could be a warning from fate?

Only one thing could be done. I would ask Chase about those accusations the next time I saw him, no matter what. If he so much as blinked wrong, I’d know they were true and end it right then.

But Ty…could I even say I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him? Our differences hadn’t gone away. He had two dozen guests in town for his wedding tomorrow, mostly family and friends excited to celebrate with him. Could I live with destroying their happiness to secure my own?

Could I be that person, no matter what the stars said?

There were voices down below.

I crawled to the edge of the roof and looked down to find Agwe and Ty at my front door.

“Thanks, man,” Ty said, holding out a fistful of money.

Agwe stared at him, unblinking. “I do not need to be tipped, thank you. Daphne is my friend. So is Chase. Whatever your business here, may it be honorable for my friends.”

Ty cleared his throat. “Sure, whatever. You take care now.”

Agwe lingered a moment longer before disappearing into the trees.

Ty knocked on the door. I waited a few seconds before whispering. “You’re going to need a ladder.”

He looked upward and grinned. “Did I ever tell you that you’re twelve at heart?”

“Twelve is on the generous side. Did you need something? How’s Veronica?”

“Pouting at the moment, although that’s pretty normal. Actually, I came to talk to you. You look mighty comfy up there, so looks like I’ll have to overcome my fear of heights pretty quick.”

I gripped the side of the tin roof, careful not to cut myself on the sharp edge. “If you can make it up here without breaking your neck, you’ve earned one conversation.”

He looked around at the trees, all too far from the roof for assistance. “How did you get up there, anyway?”

“No hints.”

“I suppose calling ‘Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair’ won’t work this time, huh?”

“Nope.”

He sighed. “You really won’t come down?”

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