Page 114 of The Scars I Bare
“Turns out, these unbelievable arch bridges date back as far as 1300 BC, and people still use them. So, I asked her how they worked. She explained that they would actually build the bridge or arch from each side, and it would only be strong or fortified when it was connected. When the two sides connected and became one. Do you see where I’m going here?”
His brow lifted. “Not really. But I am kind of out of it. Keep going, Maybe I’ll catch on.”
“That was an incredibly stupid thing you did last night,” I said.
“Incredibly brave, you mean?”
“You could have been killed, Dean. You could have been snuffed out of existence just like that, and you didn’t even ask me how I felt about it. You didn’t even turn to me before you ran out the door. I mean, did it even occur to you before you leaped into that boat to, I don’t know, consult me? I thought we were a team. Or at least, headed that way. Hence, the crazy bridge talk.”
“Is that where you were going with that?” He grinned.
“Yeah, because after the arch is formed, it can bear all sorts of stress and stuff. Two sides becoming one. Like a team.”
He looked down at me, that same grin plastered on his face.
“Oh, shut up!” I threw my hands up, and he managed to grab on, holding it close to his chest. “It made sense in my head.”
“You’d just dumped me, Cora,” he reminded me. “I figured, consultations between us were kind of on hold. At least until I could prove to you that I was willing to make an effort when it came to Lizzie’s father. I had to fight for us by first fighting for him.”
“But, by doing so, you nearly killed yourself in the process.”
“I’m still here,” he said. “Still here. Still dumped.”
I bit my lip. “Right. That. Can we forget that part? Maybe strike it from the record?”
“I’d like nothing more,” he said. “But, first, I need to say something. Or rather, a few things. I was wrong to judge you in this situation with Blake.”
I opened my mouth to stop him, but he continued, “I know it’s been a rough situation for you, and I’ve only made it harder during the last week. I realized that last night when you said I was forcing you to choose between me and Lizzie. I never want to make you feel like you have to choose like that again because, of course, it should be Lizzie. Every time. I wouldn’t expect anything less.
“Since you came back into my life, I spent so much time being angry over what Blake had done to you; it was hard for me to see him as anything other than what I’d made him out to be in my head. He might not deserve my respect, but I haven’t earned the right to cast him out of Lizzie’s life.”
“You might not, but I have,” I said, causing his eyes to widen with surprise.
“What?”
“I’m going to file for full custody of Lizzie,” I said. “And Blake is going to, as you said, have to earn his place in Lizzie’s life. His return in our lives this week reminded me of a woman I didn’t like very much. One who made excuses for a man who didn’t deserve them. And one who allowed others to fight her battles for her.”
“But what about Lizzie?”
I squeezed his hand in mine. “I still believe Lizzie needs her father. But not like this. Not one who rolls in like a giant thundercloud, bringing nothing but destruction in his wake.”
“He made a mistake.”
I smiled. “He’s made a lot of mistakes,” I said. “And it turns out, he made even more while I wasn’t around. The reason he could be here all week? He didn’t shuffle his work schedule around. He doesn’t have one. He was fired from his own family’s law firm. His father told him to go dry out somewhere and come back when he wasn’t an embarrassment to them anymore.”
“Ouch. So, what is he going to do?”
“Well, for starters, he’s going to give me full custody—you know, after he gets out of jail. And then he’s going to enroll himself in rehab. I don’t even care if it’s one of those ultra-rich ones on the West Coast where they do yoga all day and drink fancy cucumber water. Whatever gets him sober. Some anger management wouldn’t hurt either. And then we’ll see.”
“And us?” he asked hesitantly.
I smiled, rising from my chair to curl up next to him on the bed, much like Lizzie had done just moments earlier. “Well, I was thinking we could work on getting you out of this hospital. Again.”
“And then?”
“And then I was hoping you might take me on a romantic tour of the island.”
He kissed my head and ran his hand through my hair. “I thought I already did that.”
