Page 161 of Love Notes & Lifelines
“Maybe he thinks the court will go easy on him because he did?”
“What was he thinking?” His hands clench at his sides, and I can tell this information upsets him. He can deny it all he wants, but he feels the sting of his betrayal because he trusted Caleb.
“We should get this to Mr. Park, right?” This snaps him out of his fog, and he nods. “Yeah, Cally’s video should be enough, but this will give us a win in the corporate suit too.”
We enter the courtroom and hand my phone over to Teddy’s dad. Beck does most of the talking, and my gaze wanders around the room, landing on Danica more than once.
Hurt people hurt people.
It’s a truth I understand, but refuse to participate in. At some point, you have to take responsibility for your own actions. Myissues are my own, just as Danica’s are hers, and Caleb’s only belong to Caleb.
Perhaps that’s what sets me apart from them. I’m aware enough to know this, and I’m strong enough to act on it.
So in my head, I reframe a new mantra. One that will carry me and the girls for a long time to come.
Hurt people can only hurt you if you allow it—and I won’t allow it.
I’ll fight every day to know my worth, to make sure our girls know theirs, and if someone doesn’t see our value, we’ll know it’s okay to walk away from what hurts us.
Never again will I allow someone else’s opinion of me to shape who I am or who I can become.
Beck squeezes my hand, and I follow him to our seats. But this time, when the gavel cracks down, I’m here, in the present, ready to take on our future.
A future filled with love notes and lifelines.
EPILOGUE
Beck
One year later
“Are you ready?”
There’s something about Stella’s voice that settles me, especially now. I turn from the windows to find her propped against the doorframe of the library.
It no longer holds a hospital bed, or the scent of death. Now it’s a place for new beginnings and life. We spend more time in this room than anywhere else.
After Stella’s mom passed away, I wanted to burn this room to the ground, but Stella had other plans. She’s always been able to change my perspective—it’s a gift I’m grateful for. When I wanted to set fire to the entire house, she convinced me to give it a facelift and add new memories to the ones that already live in its walls. That included opening the third floor to the stars again. Now it’s Emmy’s favorite place to paint.
Memories and experiences brought us here. I don’t want to erase what we’ve been through. I want to celebrate that we’ve made it.
So we did. We cleared the room, painted the walls, bought new furniture, and decorated it with memories of our lives. Photos of my parents, Cally and Davis, Laura, Tabby and Leo, Elijah and Samira all fill the space. And at the center of it all is a photo of the four of us—me, Stella, Emmy, and Ruby. Though Ruby does appear to be giving us the finger in it, it’s my favorite—even with Dang-it Daisie jumping in midair beside us.
It was taken right after I was awarded full and permanent custody of the girls.
Today, we’ll make them both of ours—officially.
“You look beautiful,” I say.
She’s wearing the same dress she wore to our rehearsal dinner because she insists on creating new memories in it. And today she will. Today she’ll become my wife and the girls’ mother in a single ceremony, and I’ve never been happier or more fulfilled than I am in this moment.
She crosses the room with the fabric of her dress flowing around her legs. “Are you okay?”
“Of course I am. I’m excited and happy. Are you?”
It’s been one year since the night I almost lost everything. One year since our rehearsal dinner went sideways and everything changed, but I’ve spent every single day of that year falling more madly in love with her.
There’s a certain amount of fear that comes with loving someone this much, but the love overrides the fear every time I’m on the receiving end of her affection, and she gives it freely.
