"You okay out there?" he called.
I waved, treading water. "Yeah! Just seeing how long I could hold my breath."
"Want to help drive again on the way back?" he offered. "The water's perfect for learning."
My heart gave a little jump of excitement. "Really? I can drive again?"
"Absolutely," he said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world to trust me with something so valuable. "Come on up when you're ready."
I swam back to the boat, hauling myself up the small ladder at the stern. Aunt Elyse handed me a towel, and I wrapped it around my shoulders, suddenly feeling shy about the thoughts I'd been having underwater.
"Thanks," I mumbled.
"For the towel, or for the day?" she asked, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
"Both, I guess." I hesitated, then added, "For everything, really."
Something in my tone must have caught her attention, because her expression softened. "You never need to thank us for that, Holly. Having you with us... it's not a burden. It's a gift."
A gift. Not an obligation. Not a duty. A gift.
Uncle Drew came over, ruffling my wet hair. "Ready for your second boating lesson, captain?"
I nodded, unable to speak past the sudden lump in my throat.
As we packed up our things and prepared to head back, I watched Aunt Elyse and Uncle Drew move around each other with the easy synchronicity of people who truly knew and loved each other. There was no tension, no walking on eggshells, no undercurrent of resentment that I'd grown so used to detecting in adults.
They were just... happy. Together. And somehow, miraculously, they seemed happier with me there too.
When we were ready to go, Uncle Drew called me over to the driver's seat and began quizzing me on the controls. His hand steady on my shoulder, his voice patient as he listened as I walked him verbally through each step. Aunt Elyse watched from her seat, sunglasses pushed up on her head, her smile encouraging when I glanced back nervously.
As I carefully guided the boat out of the cove under Uncle Drew's supervision, a strange feeling settled over me—strange because of how unfamiliar it was.
Peace. I felt at peace.
Not just temporary relief from chaos, not just the absence of immediate threat. Actual peace. Like maybe, just maybe, this was where I was supposed to be all along.
Like maybe, just maybe, I'd found my way home.
21
ELYSE
The next day was Sunday, my day of rest. I was curled up on the couch with a book I hadn't been able to focus on for the past hour, my mind too full of everything that had happened in the last few weeks. Drew was golfing but was due to arrive home any minute.
When I heard him come through the garage door, I set my book aside and stood, eager to see his face.
"Hey, you," I said as he walked in.
He looked tired but smiled when he saw me. "Hey yourself." He set down his golf bag and wrapped me in a hug that felt like coming home. "Where's Holly?"
"At Jenna's. They're experimenting with some new cupcake flavors for a wedding next month." I pulled back slightly to look at him. "She's turning into quite the little baker. Jenna says she has a natural talent."
Drew nodded, his expression thoughtful as he led me back to the couch. Instead of sitting beside me, he took the chair opposite, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. Something in his posture made my heart skip.
"Everything okay?" I asked, immediately on alert.
"Actually, I've been doing a lot of thinking during my golf round." He raked a hand through his hair, a gesture I knew meant he was working out how to say something important. "About Holly."
