Page 47 of Passions & Peonies

“But I haven’t spoken to him at all. I sent him that text, and he didn’t respond. We could be talking about this for no reason.”

Sky smacks the table and stands up. Jocelyn and Sophia almost leap from the couch. I think they forgot she was here. “Can you please stop making fucking excuses? You’re scared shitless, and it’s okay to be. But I saw you both, up front and personal. You’ve got the real thing, Lacey. Who cares how crazy it sounds? Not everyone finds their soul mate. You have.”

She grabs her phone and her wallet off the table. “And on that note,” she continues, “I’m going for a wine run. I’ll be back in a little while.”

She walks briskly out the door, slamming it behind her. Somehow, it’s like all the air went with her.

Then Jocelyn motions to the door. “Yeah! What she said!”

For the first time since I left St. Thomas, a real smile grows on my face.

Chapter 23

Will

Three weeks have gone by. Every single day since, I have read Lacey’s text at least once. I stare at the pictures on my phone. I dream about her at night like we were back on the boat again. Together. I miss her just as much as I did the day she left, if not more. I didn’t respond to her text because… well, it would’ve just tortured both of us. We had our perfect night, and I’m not going to ruin the memories of it.

“Anybody up for a cigar?” I know that voice.

My head snaps up, and there’s Sawyer walking toward me across the patio.

“What the hell are you doing here?” We clap each other on the back.

“I needed a change of scenery, and I know I’m always welcome with you two.”

“Wow, I can’t believe you’re here. You look great. A lot better than the last time I saw you.”

“I finally showered and shaved,” he jokes.

“Come inside. You want a beer or something else to drink?”

“I’ll take a beer, but let’s sit outside so we can smoke this cigar I brought. Or I can.”

“Sounds good. I’ll be right back.”

I’m amazed that he’s here. He hasn’t been calling as much anymore. Of course, I’ve been lost in my own head, so I haven’t been the best person to be asking for advice. I take two beers out of the fridge and pop the caps off.

Sawyer’s on the patio gazing out across the water, surrounded by cigar smoke. I only smoke cigars on random occasions. This is not one of them.

He turns toward me. “Deb sure loved it here.”

“Yeah. We had some good times with you two.” I hand him his beer, and we clink our bottles together. “How long can you stay? What about your job?”

He puffs on his cigar and exhales. “I’ve been doing a lot of soul searching. I went back to work, but I couldn’t focus on anything. I got tired of everyone walking on eggshells around me and asking how I was doing. I wanted to scream, ‘I feel like shit! Piss off.’ Finally, I talked to my boss, and we both agreed I should take a leave of absence. It’s only for a month. I need to figure out who I am without Deb.”

“Are you going to stay down here the whole time?”

He shrugs. “No idea. As I said… soul searching.”

“You’re different in a better way.”

“Meh. I have a few good days in between the shitty ones. Don’t let looks fool you. But I had an epiphany. Deb chose to love me her entire life.Me.” He points to his chest. “Do you know how lucky I was to have her in my life? So, maybe instead of crying over her being gone, I should be happy that I had her for as long as I did. We were aware of her heart issues, and we were happy to be together every day. Her life was cut too soon, but we knew it could happen.”

“As you’ve been saying, life and love suck.” I sit on one of the couches.

He shakes his head. “Don’t listen to me. I was in mourning. I still am. For a while, I hated everyone and everything. Deb was the only love I knew, and she was taken away from me. But I have to tell you, I was wrong about some things.”

“Like what?”

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