I shook my head. Annie had sent the apologies. These were from someone else.
“Do you think they’re from him?” she asked, deftly avoiding the D-word, or mentioning Forever Yours.
Cecily and I had an unspoken agreement never to mention Davis’s name. I’d cried my eyes out over what might have been, on the night Virginia was born. My emotions ran high after leaving the hospital, and Cecily helped me sort the good from the bad. Good: Annie and her baby were both healthy and happy. Bad: I texted Davis the night I left Amherst, wishing him well on his television debut, but he hadn’t responded.
I’d done my best not to think of him, but it wasn’t easy. Thankfully, I stayed so busy visiting with Annie and my new niece, plus making changes at the store, that I fell asleep quickly most nights. I’d also accepted the true identity of Forever Yours would remain a mystery. My best guess was that Paul wrote the letters, then chickened out before our meeting. If I was right, it was for the best, because I didn’t care for him in that way.
Besides, I found the big love I’d gone in search of, right where I started. I had incredible friends, a great job, and a devoted, growingfamily all around me. Not to mention the dog I’d always wanted in my very near future. I stood with an open mind and heart, ready for whatever came next.
But I never imagined receiving this particular bouquet again.
“Open that envelope, or I will,” Cecily said, moving in close, fingers spread wide between us.
I released a shaky breath, suddenly overcome with adrenaline and anticipation. I unearthed the letter, typed this time instead of handwritten, and read aloud.
Dearest Emma,
Please accept these flowers as an unending apology for all the times I’ve fallen short. You deserve better, and you make me want to be better. I want to spend a lifetime thanking you properly. I should’ve been braver and revealed myself to you as planned at the café, because I’m madly, epically, in love with you.
I gasped as I read the signature. “Forever Yours.” Cecily grabbed my arm, vibrating with energy as she read over my shoulder. “Oh my goodness. It’s not over. The flowers. The letter.” She made a small squeaky noise as I struggled to breathe.
Was this real? The letters and flowers from Amherst reached me all the way in Willow Bend?
“What are you going to do?” Cecily asked.
“I don’t know.” The paper rattled in my hand as I turned to pace. I wasn’t sure what I could do.
Behind me, the bell above the door jangled, and I took the moment to compose myself.
“Emma.” Davis’s voice scattered goose bumps across my flesh.
I spun to find him in jeans and a wrinkled T-shirt, an expression of hope on his handsome brow.
Beside him, Cecily covered her mouth with both hands, eyes wide, looking exactly the way I felt.
“I’m sorry I missed you on the day you left town. I was in Chicago.”
My hands fell to my sides, and air rushed from my lungs. Davis was in Willow Bend.
“I got your text,” he said when I didn’t speak. “You didn’t respond to me the night your sister arrived. I thought you’d never speak to me again. I slept with my phone almost every night after that.” His smile turned self-deprecating. “Then you wrote to me when I was on set for the interview, but I didn’t know. I didn’t have my phone all day, and when it was time to go back to the hotel, no one on set could find my phone. They finally found it. I just got it back yesterday.” He scraped a hand through his messy hair. “I tried to get a flight, but I couldn’t, so I panicked and rented a car. I started driving. In hindsight, I’m not sure I saved any time. Waiting on a morning flight might’ve gotten me here sooner, actually.” He barked a laugh. “I wasn’t thinking. I just needed to act. I ordered flowers when the shop opened today, and I dictated a letter.” His gaze darted to the giant bouquet on the counter. “You got them.”
“You drove from Chicago?” I croaked. Tears pricked and stung my eyes. “That’s like fourteen hours.”
“Thirteen and change,” he said. “I took liberties with the speed limit through the night.”
Joy filled my heart to the point of pain as I let the truth of the moment settle in. “The letters? The flowers? Those were from you?”
He nodded, a heady mix of emotion on his handsome face. “I think I started falling in love with you the moment we met,” he said. “Your goofy jokes online gave me reasons to smile long after the moments had passed. Your advice when I struggled with one thing or another gave me strength. Your compassion, your love of history, your family, and books left me in awe.” He dared a small smile, taking one step closer. “Granted, I thought you were your dad for a while.”
I laughed. “I guess I’m lucky he’s taken.”
Davis brushed the backs of his fingers across my cheek. “You were one of my favorite people long before I ever set eyes on you. Getting to know you has changed everything for me.” Sincerity burned in his gorgeous gray eyes. “You inspire me to be brave.”
I wet my lips, willing my body not to move. I wanted to hear every word he had to say and more. “How?”
“I’m selling my house,” he said. “And my portion of the family architectural firm. I’m moving back to Hearthstone Manor, and I’m opening a historic restoration company.”
My jaw dropped. “That’s incredible.”
