She hesitates, and I can see her weighing whether to decline. Finally, she nods. "Sure. I could use the fresh air."
The drive into Havenwood is quiet. She stares out the window at the familiar streets—the square with its twinkle lights still up, the shops we've walked past a dozen times, the gazebo where the town holds its summer concerts. I wonder if she's memorizing it or saying goodbye.
When I pull up in front of the empty retail space across from The Write Brew, she frowns.
"Why are we here?"
"I want to show you something." I kill the engine and come around to open her door. "Trust me?"
She looks at me for a long moment, and I can see the war in her eyes—trust versus self-preservation. Finally, she takes my hand and lets me lead her to the door.
The "For Lease" sign that's been haunting this window for months is gone. In its place, someone has painted a sign in the window—bright, bold letters that catch the morning light.
Naughty Peach Athletics - Coming Soon
McKenna stops dead. "What...what is this?"
I unlock the door—Noah gave me the key last night—and push it open. Inside, the space has been transformed. Not much, not yet, but enough. There are boxes stacked along one wall, yoga mats rolled and ready. A folding table holds printed business plans, letters from potential clients, a lease agreement with terms that would make anyone's jaw drop.
And standing in the middle of it all, looking way too proud of themselves, are Lauren, Jett, Mrs. Flynn, Jace Riley, and half of Havenwood's small business owners.
"Surprise," Lauren says softly.
McKenna's hand goes to her mouth, eyes already filling with tears as she takes it all in the space, the people, the sign in the window. "I don't...I don't understand."
I step up beside her, close enough that our shoulders touch. "I know you got a job offer. I know you've been looking at apartments in Raleigh. And I know you think you have to choose between having a career and being with me."
She starts to protest, but I press on. "But what if you didn't have to choose? What if you could have both?"
I gesture to the space around us. "And since Noah is the landlord, that part was easy since he’s been holding it for you all this time. The Flynns agreed to be your first corporate clients—team building sessions, wellness programs, the whole thing. Jace wants to sponsor a community fitness class at Riley's. And Jett"—I glance at my sister, who's wiping her own eyes—"Jetthas been calling every mom in a fifty-mile radius to drum up interest."
"We have twenty people ready to sign up for classes," Lauren adds. "And that's just in three days."
McKenna is crying now, full tears streaming down her face as she looks around the room. "You did all this? For me?"
"We did," Jett says, stepping forward. "Because you are family, and family doesn't let family make stupid decisions out of fear."
"I should have asked you to stay weeks ago," I say quietly, taking McKenna's hand. "I should have told you that I want mornings with terrible coffee and evenings on the porch arguing about Christmas decorations. I should have said that I want all of it—the good days and the hard ones, the certainty and the chaos."
She's shaking her head, but I can't tell if it's denial or disbelief.
"I'm asking now. Not because I need you—though I do. But because you deserve to build the life you want. And if you want that life here, in Havenwood, we'll all help you build it."
I take a breath, hoping the next words land right. "Stay. Not for me. For you."
For a long moment, she doesn't say anything. Just stands there crying in the middle of an empty retail space that could be hers, surrounded by people who showed up at eight in the morning on a Friday to prove that she belongs here.
Then she laughs, a broken, watery sound. "I can't believe you did this."
"Is that a good 'can't believe' or a bad one?" Jace asks nervously.
McKenna wipes her eyes, still laughing. "I already turned down the job."
The room goes silent.
"What?" I ask.
"Nathan called on Tuesday. He offered me my position back." She looks at me now, really looks at me, and I can see everything she's been carrying written in her eyes. "I told him no. I turned it down three days ago."
