Page 48 of Chasing the Horizon

From where he sat, Alex had overheard the whole thing. “Wow,” he said.

“I guess there’s no such thing as bad press?” Valerie shrugged. She felt raw and strange.

Alex got up and opened a bottle of water. “What are you going to do?”

“I need to call Catherine,” she said.

It wasn’t the answer to anything, she knew. But it was a distraction and an easy way to get through her day. She could focus on someone else’s problems and pretend they were her entire universe. She could stop thinking about her father.

Thank goodness.

Before the night was through, Valerie found herself back at Catherine’s brownstone, eating another slice of baby shower cake and watching the snow. Catherine looked as though she’d spent all night and day crying, but she had news.

“Max called today,” she said. “He wants to talk.”

Valerie’s ears rang with surprise. “Really? Talk about what?”

Catherine shrugged. Her eyes were filled with light. “Listen, I don’t necessarily want him back. But I don’t want this baby to go without a father, either. I want us to be able to co-parent, to love our baby, to give our baby all he needs.” Her voice broke.

Valerie touched her friend’s hand. “It’s the very least you deserve. What do you think changed his mind? Like, why do you think he called?”

“Honestly, I have no idea,” Catherine said. “He said he had a really weird night. Who knows what that means? I don’t even know where he’s staying or who he’s ever with or whatever. Maybe he’s still with Mandy. I don’t know. I’m pretty sure he’s out at all hours of the night, living that wild and wealthy life he wasn’t able to before we met. You know, because he was broke and I paid for everything until he got the job he has now?” Catherine blinked several times as though her heart broke again in reminding herself of this.

“Would you take him back?” Valerie asked.

Catherine hesitated again.

“You wouldn’t take him back, right?” Valerie said.

Catherine looked down at the floor. “Honestly? I don’t know. I hope I don’t. But he’s the only man I’ve ever loved. How can I fight against that?”

Valerie couldn’t help but think that everyone was a victim of their own emotions, that love was impossible to hide from, and that if it didn’t lift you up, it was bound to destroy you.

When Catherine went to the kitchen to call her mother and let her know she was all right, Valerie got online to check out her father’s viral video, which Addison and Brett capitalized on like crazy. So many people had shared it with captions like: finally a boomer says something i can relate to, and preach! and i just love that he’s being so honest, so much love for him and his family, i hope they can come together again.

Julia texted then as though she could sense Valerie was thinking about the book.

JULIA: You’ll never believe the number of pre-orders we got just today! I’m floored. When you get back to Nantucket, we have to celebrate! If Victor is up for it, of course.

Chapter Nineteen

June 2025

It was two days after the car accident that Valerie and Alex’s baby was cleared to go home without his mother. Esme and Victor were both there for discharge, inching behind Alex as he pushed the stroller out of the hospital and into the beautiful purple sunset, introducing his son to the glorious world. Victor’s eyes were heavy with tears. He didn’t even know his mother yet. He didn’t even know what he was missing.

Because Valerie was still in a coma, Alex had decided not to name the baby yet. He wanted to wait till she woke up. “She’d kill me if I named him without her,” Alex said now, trying to put a smile on his face, one that illustrated how hopeful he was for the future. “I mean, I was always joking with her about what I wanted to name him. I always said, like, Francis Ford Coppola or Alfred Hitchcock or Quentin Tarantino.”

Esme tried to laugh, even though it was clear she didn’t like the joke.

Victor didn’t even bother to smile.

For a little while, they walked along the water, watching the sailboats as they whizzed toward the open Nantucket Sound. The baby was covered from sunlight and sleeping soundly. Every time Victor got a glimpse of his perfect face, he had to bite his tongue to keep from sobbing. He couldn’t believe the baby had left the accident unscathed.

More than that, he still couldn’t believe who’d caused the accident.

It felt like a nightmare.

They’d first learned of the person in the other vehicle the morning after the baby’s birth. It was a horrible coincidence and not one Victor or Esme knew how to handle. They’d hardly talked about it. The other driver had also been to the hospital, albeit briefly, with a broken arm. The accident had been ruled just that: an accident, without fault. It turns out there had been something wrong with the stoplight, and based on evidence and people at the scene, both cars had been slightly speeding, their drivers hurrying home to the people they loved.

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