Page 30 of Reuniting with Lucy

Lucy opened the envelope he’d handed her to find a “coupon” for a weekend away to an undisclosed location. “Starting now,” it read. This must have been why he’d asked her to pack an overnight bag and clear her weekend schedule.

After all the hullabaloo at her folks, they said their goodbyes and left.

“Where are we going?” she asked from the passenger seat of his pickup.

“Somewhere to celebrate.”

“What? My parents don’t throw a good enough party for you?” she teased.

“Do you ever get tired of doing and sharing everything with Lizzie?” he asked, taking his eyes off the road for a second to look at her.

“Huh. I never really thought about it,” she said. “We’re just always together. Doing something without Lizzie would be like doing it without an arm. I’m fine with it.” And she was—most of the time.

“Well,” he said. “I’m doing something special, just for you.”

“Oh, okay. That does sound nice,” she said with a smile. He offered her his free hand, and she reached over to take it, letting it warm her skin.

They drove to the Outer Banks, which she recognized immediately, even in the dark. Her family had vacationed here on numerous occasions.

The address in his GPS took them to an out-of-the-way home on stilts. By the moonlight, she could see a boardwalk that extended out into the sea.

He parked, entered the code to open the door, grabbed their bags, and led the way in. The house was small—meant to be a vacation home, no doubt—but modern and decorated with a nautical theme. A wall of windows faced the ocean.

It was late, and she was exhausted. When he asked if she wanted anything to eat or drink, she said no, kissed him tenderly, and took him to the bedroom. Laying in his arms, warm and safe, she thought about how fortunate she was that he’d come back into her life. She drifted off, thinking about how even the timing had worked out perfectly. Imagine if she’d already been married.

At six the next morning, an alarm blasted her out of a deep sleep. She was annoyed and desperate to stay in bed, but Jack insisted she get up and put on the hoodie and coat he’d laid out for her.

“I thought you were an early riser,” he said. “That you loved mornings.”

“Normally, I am,” she said around a jaw-cracking yawn. “But lately, I’ve been so tired. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Well, I promise this will be worth it. You can take a nap when we get back.”

He grabbed two thick, cozy blankets and a thermos, and they trudged out to the end of their private pier. At the end was a covered deck with two Adirondack chairs facing east. Jack wrapped her in a blanket, pulled two mugs out of his pocket, and poured them each a cup of coffee from the thermos. He settled into the chair next to her just as the sun broke the horizon.

The orange sliver of sun slowly crawled out of the ocean, and the effect was breathtaking.

“You were right,” Lucy said. “Totally worth it. This is what I imagine the sunrise view from my dream home is like. And I picture sitting in chairs exactly like these to enjoy it every day.”

“You have a dream home?” he asked.

“Yeah. It’s near my parents’ house. I’ll show it to you sometime. Wow,” she said. “You’ve set the bar pretty high. Now I have to pull out all the stops for your birthday next week, huh?”

“Please don’t,” he said. “Actually, I found out earlier today that my parents are coming to town for my birthday. Are you up for meeting them?”

“Ooh, big step,” she said, smiling. “Sure, I can do that.”

“Good, because I already told them you’d be there.”

She huffed out a laugh, then they settled into the quiet, holding hands and watching the sun climb confidently into the sky.

“Penny for your thoughts,” he said, stroking her fingers with his.

She wasn’t sure he really wanted to know. She was thinking about how badly she’d fallen for him and how she was, quite possibly, in love with him. It seemed too early in the relationship for that though, so she fudged the facts a little.

“I was thinking how nice this is. How nice you are,” she said. “I really like you, Jack. I might even be falling for you.”

He stared mutely.

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