Page 51 of Destined For Forever

“Hey!” He held up his hand in greeting.

“About bloody time,” Mack said. “We thought you’d bailed.”

“Sorry, it was a mess at work. I think Pat is getting as much out of me as he can before I finish up.” He clapped a hand down on Mack’s shoulder.

His sister jumped up and gave him a hug. “It wouldn’t be the same without you.”

She’d been hanging around him even more these last few days, almost as if she sensed something was up. The woman had a nose for the tiniest little changes, and he couldn’t ever hide a thing from her, no matter how much he denied anything was wrong. But she wasn’t clueless—Sean changing his job on a whim, without ever having mentioned it to her, was very out of character.

“Happy New Year’s, Zo.” He gave her a squeeze. “I hope you saved me something to eat. I’m starving!”

“These bottomless pits had a go at everything, but I tucked a chicken sandwich and some of Gwen’s chocolate cake in the Esky for you.” She grinned. “Can’t let a man go hungry.”

“You’re the best.”

He was about to reach down and grab his food when he noticed a figure hovering close by. He blinked. Then shook his head. A woman stood with bare feet, sand particles dotting her legs, and a blue dress swirling around her thighs as a breeze pushed past. Long, dark hair tumbled down her shoulders, unrestrained and rippling in the air.

It couldn’t be…

“Hi Sean.” Lily waved her hand in greeting.

He straightened, shock filtering through his system. She was here. Really here.

“Lily.” He went to her, hunger forgotten as his mind whirled. “Is everything okay? Are your folks—”

“They’re fine. Everyone’s fine.” Her hands wrung in front of her. “Can we uh… can we talk?”

“Sure.”

They moved away from the curious stares of Mack and Zoey, and the rest of his friends. Lily headed down toward the water until the sand grew firm beneath their feet and their steps left perfect impressions behind. It felt as though he was having an out-of-body experience—that someone else was in control of his actions.

“What are you doing here?” he asked when they came to a stop.

“I turned down the TV show job.” She sucked in a breath and turned to him. The beach was lit with torches and lanterns.

He frowned. “Why?”

“When I got back to LA, I realised it wasn’t what I wanted, deep down. It felt like something I was supposed to do, another check box on my perfect career list. I was thinking too much about the connections, working with a woman I admire and becoming a more well-rounded writer when really…” She shook her head. “I hadn’t stopped to think about whether it was the kind of work that inspired me. Or if it would even be the kind of environment I would thrive in.”

Water lapped at their feet, and it was soothing and warm. The smell of salt in the air mixed with something sweet and fruity on her skin.

“I kept wanting to pick up my novel instead of working on what I was supposed to, and I pushed that feeling aside because it didn’t slot neatly into the future I’d sketched out for myself.” She bit down on her bottom lip. “Just like I kept thinking about you, even though you weren’t part of the future I’d sketched out, either.”

It was one thing to know she felt that way, but another to hear it out loud. “You came all this way to tell me I’m not good enough for your dreams?”

“No! That’s not what I meant.” She waved her hands as if trying to scrub the words away. “What I mean is… I haven’t been listening to my heart for a long, long time. Every decision I’ve made was about the next rung I could climb, regardless of whether I even wanted what was at the top of the ladder.”

He looked out to the ocean. The moon was approaching fullness and the glow reflected on the waves rolling beneath it.

“Sean, being with you in Forever Falls was the closest I’ve felt to being the real me in a long time. Not the successful export. Not the film industry up-and-comer. Not the girlfriend of Brock Silvers. Just me. Lily Dunn. No fancy titles or anything.”

“Lily Dunn is the best version of you,” he said huskily, brushing a strand of hair behind her ears. Her eyes were glittery and sincere. “You don’t need any labels to be worthy of a fulfilling life.”

“The silliest thing of all was that I knew what I wanted all along.” She reached up and touched his chest. “I wrote what I wanted and watched people bring it to life on a movie screen. I fell in love with a man because he was acting like you.”

Her words forced the air from his lungs. It was like dancing on a ledge, wind whipping his hair and the possibility of certain failure mocking his every step. Could he believe that he—with his humble life and his slow path to finding himself—was a hero in her eyes?

“I know you have little reason to trust me, Sean. Especially after you were honest about your feelings and I pushed you away. You wanted to make things work and I wouldn’t even hear you out.”

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