Page 84 of Deception & Daylight
She takes the book from her lap and passes it to me, opening it to a page near the back with handwriting I would be able to recognize in my sleep. I spent months memorizing it — memorizingher.
Willow Creek Inn was the first place that ever felt like home. I wrote “Finding Daylight” here. I fell in love here. And I left my heart here. Thank you, Lucy, for so selflessly giving of yourself and gifting the world with your overwhelming kindness. You showed me what it feels like to have a mother figure in my life, and for a fleeting moment in time, I felt like I belonged. I will forever be grateful for the time spent here.
All my love, Maggie Watson (M.W. Hartley)
She fell in love here.
“So you see, Miles. I can’t sit idly by and while you let the best thing that’s ever happened to this family slip through your fingers because you think she doesn’t want you. IknowMaggie Watson. Iwasher. She just needs a reason. Be her reason.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat and pull her into a tight embrace. “You don’t need my forgiveness. But you have it. I never blamed you for dad’s actions and Matty is the only one responsible for his. I am the man I am today in spite of my father, not because of him. Matty took a different path, and I’m sorry for it, but he’ll atone for his sins. As for Mags, I’m afraid I’ve already scared her away.”
A small smile tugs at Ma’s lips, and some of the heaviness of the moment dissipates. She stands, leaving me with a few more parting words. “Maggie isn’t easily cowed. I have faith in you.”
The door closes and my mother’s quiet footsteps echo all the way down the hall, but I don’t move from where I’m still seated, glancing out at the shoreline as memories of my time with Maggie replay in my mind like a highlight reel. The quiet moments are the ones I’ll cling to, grounding me on days when I feel out of control. But she’s out of my reach now, and she’s taken a part of me with her.
Chapter 35
Miles
? Everywhere I go - Wild Rivers
“Get your head out of your ass, Miles.” Luca’s voice snaps me out of my memories, bringing me back to the present and the task at hand. We’re finishing the hardwood install on the main floor of the ranch house, just in time for Ivy to go into full nesting mode. She’s been chomping at the bit to get her grubby little paws on the nursery.
I pull off my ball cap, raking my hands through my hair. Maggie only left this morning, and I’ve checked my phone a dozen times already, hoping she’ll reach out. “Give her some time. She’ll come around.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” I admit. After all but begging her to stay, I made myself scarce, and I regret not doing more to keep her. “She warned me she wasn’t capable of staying, and I fell for her anyway.”
“So what are you gonna do about it?” he asks. “A thousand paper cranes? Fly to Toronto and fall to your knees? Don’t forget to wear some fucking shin guards. But for fuck’s sake, stop sitting here like a wounded puppy.” With a slygrin, he throws my own words back at me, catching me off guard. It wasn’t so long ago I was saying those exact words to Luca when Ivy left Oak Ridge.
“Are you done?” I ask, my tone impassive.
“Not quite. Maggie doesn’t know what it’s like to have someone fight for her — someone who wants to keep her. You have to show her what that’s like. Show her she’s worth it.”
His words hit their mark, and I’m filled with a renewed sense of determination as a plan starts to form in my mind. I’m gonna get my girl back come hell or high water. She belongs here with me — with everyone in Oak Ridge. We’re her fucking family, and it’s about time she realizes it.
“Yeah, I thought so,” Luca says, smirking. “You’ve got that look in your eyes. Just let me know if you need me to do anything.”
I toss him the mallet and he fumbles to catch it. “Yeah. Finish your own fucking flooring. I have a flight to catch.”
With only raw determination and a vague plan in place, I touch down in Toronto the following morning. Sliding into the back passenger seat of an Uber, I head towards my downtown hotel. It’s located only a few doors down from the bookshop where Mags is having her first book signing tomorrow. As I step out of the car, I pass by a massive display in the shop window with a gorgeous photo of my girl holding up a copy of her new book, Finding Daylight.
Memories resurface of the morning we laid in bed, when she told me she wanted the title of her book to reflect the time in her life that brought her out of the darkness. Her eyes were full of contentment for the first time since she came back into my life, and I saw my own happiness reflected there. I never imagined she’d be gone less than a month later.
An older woman smiles as I enter the shop, stopping briefly at the new releases display to pick up a copy of the book. When I approach the counter she asks, “Is this for your wife? Girlfriend maybe?”
“No, ma’am. I’m just a fan.” She hasno ideajust how true that statement is. Nobody could possibly love M.W. Hartley as much as I do.
“That’s lovely, dear. The author will be here tomorrow. You should come back and have it signed.”
Unsure how to respond, I settle for a quick thank you, letting her know I’d be back for the signing. With a kind smile, she hands me the bag and I make my way to the hotel.
Back in my room, I fall onto the plush bed and pull out the book, opening it to the first few pages. All of the air rushes out of me as I read the dedication, my heartbeat pounding out a frantic rhythm against the onslaught of emotions.
To the little town in Kentucky that brought me peace.
To the best friend who never for a second gave up on me.
And to the man who saw me and gave me daylight.
