Page 73 of Since the Day We Wished

“That’s nice of you to offer, but you’ve done enough for me throughout the years. I’ll think about it though.”

“Well, I’d do anything for you, sweetheart. You are my favorite granddaughter.”

Emma burst into laughter, shooting her hand up to cover her mouth. “I’m your only granddaughter. But I guess that does have its perks.”

After dinner was finished and they cleaned up, Emma decided it was time for her and Riley to hit the road. As they walked to the door, Liam pulled her aside, his eyes brimming with concern. “Emma, Luke is the love of your life. And if you truly love him, you should be happy with him. Everything else will work itself out. Don’t let the fear of the unknown hold you back.”

Emma felt a lump form in her throat as she looked at Liam, her heart heavy with emotion. “I don’t know, Grandpa. I do still love him, but it just feels impossible.”

Liam placed a comforting hand on Emma’s shoulder, his eyes full of understanding. “I know it’s scary, Emma. But love is always a risk. It takes courage to put yourself out there, to take that leap of faith. But I truly believe that if you and Luke are meant to be together, everything else will fall into place.”

Emma took a deep breath, a sense of calm washing over her. “Thank you, Grandpa. You always know what to say.”

She hugged Liam and kissed him on the cheek, promising to visit again soon. Liam opened the door for Emma and Riley and lingered there, waving goodbye until their car disappeared into the misty afternoon gloom.

As Emma drove away, Liam’s words echoed in her mind. Yes, being with Luke was all she wanted, but at what cost? The thought of causing pain to others, especially his son, made her stomach churn with guilt. Emma remembered how she had felt growing up without a father and didn’t want to stand in the way of Jeremiah and Luke’s relationship. She knew firsthand the pain that came with a broken family, and her conscious wouldn’t allow her to be the cause of any more heartache.

For a moment, Emma considered the possibility of following her heart and trusting that everything else would work itself out. But the voice of reason in her mind kept reminding her that she couldn’t be so impulsive. Lives were at stake and no matter how much she wanted to be with Luke, she had to do what was best for Jeremiah. And so, with a heavy heart, she decided to stay the course and find a way to live without Luke in her life, even though it felt like losing a part of herself. It wouldn’t be easy, but she was determined to do what was right no matter how difficult it might be.

Chapter 36

Luke

Two weeks later

Since the breakup, Luke focused on putting the pieces of his life back together. As much as he missed Emma, he had to push those thoughts aside and find a way to fix things with Jeremiah. That was the primary reason they had moved to Hadley Cove in the first place.

Luke and his son had hardly spoken since the incident at school, but not by his choice. Whenever he tried to get a conversation started, he was met with opposition. Jeremiah kept his bedroom door locked all day and night, only going downstairs to the kitchen to eat when Luke was working or after he’d gone to bed.But once Principal Kennedy called and said Jeremiah would be suspended for a month, Luke knew it was time to sit down and talk.

One evening, Luke caught him on his way back from the bathroom.

“Can we talk, Jeremiah? Can we sit down like two adults and have a rational conversation?” Luke asked in a calm tone. “I’m not going to yell or shout or punish you further. I just want to talk.”

Luke listened to Jeremiah fumble through excuses as to why they couldn’t talk, but eventually, he gave in.

“Fine. I’ll eat dinner downstairs tonight.”

“Thank you,” Luke said. “I appreciate your openness.”

That evening, Luke made Jeremiah’s favorite meal, French onion soup with sourdough rolls. He came downstairs as Luke was ladling the soup into two bowls.

“Are you hungry?” Luke asked. “I accidentally made enough to feed a small army.”

Jeremiah took a seat at the counter on one of the stools. “Yeah.”

Luke pushed a bowl and a plate with two rolls over to him and grabbed a stool, sitting down on the other side of the counter. They ate in silence for a few minutes before Luke began. This was a moment Luke had waited for over the past month. He had to choose his words carefully and not let emotions take over.

“So, now that we’ve had time to ourselves and time to reflect, I’d like to tell you the truth about me and Emma.”

Jeremiah frowned. “But–”

“With no interruptions,” Luke said, sitting up straight. He took a sip of his water and took a deep breath, then released it. “Now, I’m going to begin by telling you I loved your mother more than anything. Even after she was gone, I could hardly imagine the thought of loving anyone else.”

Jeremiah picked up his spoon, aimlessly stirring his soup with it.

“But then Emma came along. We wanted to tell you earlier, but I didn’t know how. I’m so sorry that you had to find out that way. I hope you can forgive me one day for keeping that from you. But you don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

Luke cleared his throat, trying to tamper down the bubble of emotion rising in his chest. “We broke up. I went to her house to see if she was alright after the incident, and she ended things.”

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