Page 94 of Second Chance with Seth

“Because spending my evenings and weekends with you and River isn’t enough.”

“And you couldn’t think of another way around it? We could have found a compromise, couldn’t we?” I ask, shaking my head.

“We tried that before, if you remember? It didn’t work out.”

“That wasn’t a compromise, Seth. It was an ultimatum.”

“Okay.” He holds up his hand. “But the thing is, I know how much you love the coffee shop, and I know your hours can be crazy. I just wanted to help… to accommodate that.”

“By giving up your job?”

“Yeah. Part of the reason things went wrong before was because I felt you were shutting me out.”

“I know. We talked about it.”

“Exactly. You’d inherited the coffee shop, and it had become your sole focus.”

“Not my sole focus…”

“Okay. Your main focus, and I realize that was probably to distract you from your aunt’s death, but whatever the reason, you wouldn’t let me in and I resented that.”

“I’ve apologized for that, Seth,” I say, shaking my head, wondering what I have to do to get him to understand. “I got it wrong back then. So did you. But it won’t be like that anymore. That’s what we said, wasn’t it?”

“It was. But this isn’t about the past, and what we did back then. It’s about us not making the same mistakes in the future. I don’t want either of us to end up resenting the other one for not being around… either me resenting you because you’re downstairs all the time, or you resenting me because I’m in Concord, working for Aiden, when I should be here helping with River.” He reaches across the table for my hand, and I stare at him for a moment, wondering what to do. Taking his hand feels like I’m accepting his decision, and I’m not. I can’t. But not taking it feels petty. I meet him halfway and place my hand next to his, letting our fingers touch. He nods his head, like he’s accepting my limitation, and then says, “You shouldn’t have to feel like you need to ask me to care for our daughter, and I shouldn’t have to feel like I need to ask for a moment of your time. We should be a team, devoting ourselves to what matters.”

“And what’s that?”

“Us, of course. The three of us and our family. I get that you can’t give up this place. It’s in your blood and you belong here, just like everyone else downstairs. You all belong here, and I’d never ask you to choose or expect you to walk away.”

“How can you say that? You gave me an ultimatum… you or the coffee shop.”

“I know, but I didn’t mean to. I’ve already told you, that came out wrong, and I was too angry to take it back.”

“Angry with me?”

“Yes.”

“Are you angry now?”

“No. I just wanna get it right now.” He glances down at the plate of food in front of him. “Are we gonna eat this before it gets stone cold?”

I suck in a breath. “I guess.”

He picks up his fork and I copy him, focusing on my food for a moment, taking a couple of mouthfuls, although I startle when I feel his hand move, covering mine. “I can’t lose you again,” he says. “And that means I have to be here.”

“I get that,” I say, swallowing down my mouthful. “What I don’t get is why being here or moving here means you have to give up your job? Like I said, we managed before.”

“Even if we did, that’sallwe did. We managed. I want more than that for us. Things are gonna be different this time, Everly. Hell, they already are.”

“How?”

“I’m a father, and I wanna make sure I’m around for River… and for you.”

“I appreciate that, but how on earth are we supposed to get by?”

He smiles, nodding to my plate, as he picks up his fork. “Eat something.” I do as he suggests, unwilling to waste a perfectly good meal, even though I’m still not very hungry, and I look up at him as he says, “So it’s our finances you’re worried about, not the reasons behind my decision?”

“I’ll admit, I still don’t understand why you’ve done this, but yeah… obviously, I’m concerned about money. I mean, I do okay at the coffee shop, but…”

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