Page 62 of The Story of Us
He swallowed around the sudden thickness in his throat. He’d said it—he’d told her how he felt, had been achingly honest. He just hoped he hadn’t waited until it was too late.
“See, I don’t know what’s real and what’s just you doing what you need to do to get the job so you can walk away.” Her voice trembled, and her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “Again.”
Sawyer shook his head. They’d already been through this, hadn’t they? “I didn’t walk away.Weagreed.”
He couldn’t help but think she was searching for reasons to push him away so they wouldn’t have to deal with the fallout from the town council vote tomorrow. She was giving up, throwing in the towel, before they’d even had a chance.
“No.” She pointed at him, and her hand trembled. “You made that decision for both of us.”
He felt sick. “I never saw it like that.”
“You know what? Past isn’t prologue. It’spast. Just like True Love will be soon.” She gestured toward their surroundings—her beloved books, the pink tree, the handwritten Valentines tied to its branches with smooth satin ribbons. The thought of Waterford without True Love was almost inconceivable. But he’d been the one to make that call, and now he’d have to pay for that decision. “And maybe that’s where we should stay, too.”
No.
The price was too high. “Jamie…”
She shook her head and smiled at him, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “No, it’s okay. I’m not even mad. You’re doing what you need to do, and I respect that.”
He just stood there, at a complete loss. He wanted Jamie’s respect, yes. But he also wanted more. So much more.
He wanted to hold her hand and walk around the duck pond again. He wanted to take her on a picnic and let her lie down on the cool grass while he read aloud from one of her favorite novels. He wanted to kiss her in the moonlight in that beautiful courtyard beneath the branches of the old oak tree.
“I’m going to pass on dinner tonight.” She took a deep breath and met his gaze, but it felt like she was looking right through him. “It was good to see you again.”
Was.
They were over.
So this is it, Sawyer thought, glancing down at the envelope in her hand. He’d done what he came to Waterford to do. The town council vote would go forward, and the Ridley project would be approved. He’d won, and in the process, he’d lost the only thing that mattered.
True love.
Chapter Eighteen
Sawyer left the bookshop ina daze, unsure where he should go or what he should do. The Valentine’s dinner was off, and Rick’s house wasn’t exactly an option either. Rick was still walking on air, thrilled to be with Lucy after two years of unrequited love. Sawyer didn’t want to rain on his parade.
So for now…
Well, for now he felt more like brooding and walking in the rain like one of the tormented heroes in the books Jamie loved so much. Heathcliff fromWuthering Heights, or maybe Mr. Darcy fromPride and Prejudice—both world-class brooders.
Sawyer bowed his head against the wind as he made his way down the cobblestone streets of the business district. For once, he had no interest in studying the architectural details of the historic buildings, so he buried his hands in the pockets of his brandy-colored leather jacket and kept his focus on the ground.
But he paused when the fingertips of his right hand made contact with something small and square. It was the envelope he’d taken from the Valentine’s display at True Love Books. He’d forgotten all about it.
He turned it over to inspect the wax seal that held the envelope closed—shimmery gold with the shape of a heart pressed into its center. There was no reason for him to read it. Jamie had shared the entire stack of Mary and Harrison’s correspondence with him a few nights ago in the courtyard behind True Love. He wasn’t sure what had possessed him to pick it up in the first place.
But he felt compelled to read it all of a sudden, as if fate had placed in his pocket for just the right moment. A ridiculous notion, but Sawyer couldn’t resist slipping into a nearby coffee shop where he could sit and read it.
Like all the other storefronts in the business district, the coffee shop was all decked out for Valentine’s Day. Pink and red paper chains hung from the ceiling, and the tabletops were all decorated with fragrant bouquets. Sawyer ordered a plain cup of decaf and chose a seat along the bar facing the window. A vase filled with velvety red and white long-stemmed roses loomed beside him, yet another reminder that he’d botched things with Jamie on the eve of the most romantic day of the year.
You were just doing your job,he told himself.
Sometimes he really hated his inner voice, so he chose to ignore it and instead, unfolded Harrison’s letter and read the words as if he’d never seen them before.
My darling Mary,
Even though we are separated by countless miles and an ocean of worry, I still feel your presence deep in my heart where I have kept you since the moment we met. As long as you continue to believe in me, believe inus, I know we can overcome any obstacle, no matter how great. Because that is the nature of true love—it always finds a way.
