Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“They are happy.” I’m not sure where she’s going with this, but Carol has always been kind to me, so I’m going with it.
“When she got here, she was a mess. She asked us what she should do with her life, and we told her she could do whatever her heart desired. She worked hard. I watched her for two years working two, sometimes three jobs because she never wanted to depend on anyone to take care of her ever again. Then she met Deacon.”
“He changed her mind?”
“His love for her did.”
“It’s clear what she means to him.”
“He looks at her the way Archer looks at you. The way my husband looks at me and the way all my sons look at their wives.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“I’m saying you should chase your dreams, Scarlett. Never let fear hold you back. I’m also saying from a parent’s perspective, they would want you to be happy. Whatever that looks like.”
“I promised her. It was her final days, and I promised her that I would follow my passion.”
Carol nods. “Passions can change, sweetheart.”
“Mom, are you hogging my girl?” Archer asks, stepping up behind me and wrapping me in his arms.
“Oh, just a little girl talk.” Carol places her hands on my cheeks. “We’re heading out soon and taking some grandbabies with us. You be safe, Scarlett, and if your travels ever bring you back to Willow River, you have family here who would love to open our doors for you.” She leans in, kisses my cheek, and walks away.
“What was that about?” Archer asks.
I turn in his arms, resting my hands on his chest. “She was just saying goodbye.” A goodbye that has my mind spinning like a hamster on a wheel. I understand the message. I get what she’s saying, and my heart thunders when I think about changing the course of my life. I have a plan, and I’ve always stuck to the plan. I’ve always kept to myself, and it’s gotten me this far. However, I didn’t do that here. This small town and the people in it wouldn’t allow me to.
“I can’t believe this is our last night together.”
“Maybe I can come back to visit,” I offer. It’s the first time I’ve talked about the future other than the fact that I’m leaving. Archer has told me I can always come home to him, and so have Palmer and his brothers and pretty much the rest of his family. Carol just told me the exact same thing.
I never wanted to think about it. I thought it would hurt worse, but it actually gives my heart hope that maybe, just maybe, one day… things can maybe be different. If he’s still single, I don’t know how long I’ll travel. I just know it was always my plan. I might be a free spirit, but I’m also a woman of my word, and I promised my mother, the woman who chose to love me, two days before she took her final breath, that I would live my life to the fullest. Chasing dreams and never settling.
I made a promise.
I intend to keep it.
No matter how much it hurts to walk away.
“Scarlett!” Jade calls out. “Get over here and dance with us.” She waves me over.
“You should go.”
“Our time is running out.”
“We have all night, baby. They’re your friends. They’re going to miss you almost as much as I am.”
“Almost?”
“Yeah, Firecracker. Almost.” He kisses me, taking his time to taste me fully before tearing his lips from mine and nodding for me to join his sisters-in-law on the makeshift dance floor.
He smacks me on the ass, making someone whistle and call out for us to get a room as I make my way to join the ladies to shake our asses for our men.
“Group hug!” Alyssa calls out.
The ladies gather around me, and we hug each other tightly. I’m in the center of all of them, and my heart is pumping so hard, I’m worried it might cause permanent damage. My throat constricts with tears that are threatening to fall, and I’m not so sure I can keep them at bay.
“We’re going to miss you,” Kennedy says.
“You have to come back to see us,” Ramsey tells me.
“And the babies,” Jade says. “They need their aunt Scarlett to be at their birthday parties.”
“You always have a job here,” Palmer tells me. “A job, a place to stay, and people who love you.”
“We’ll take care of him,” Crosby assures me.
That’s what does it. Pain slices through me, and my tears fall unchecked. I never knew I could have so many people in my corner. So many that I love and who love me back.
“Hey! We want some of that love,” Maverick calls out. The next thing I know, there are ten men joining us. We’re huddled together, and somehow Archer works his way to the center with me. He wraps his arms around me and holds me tightly as his family, my friends, shower us with their love.