Percy wasn’t completely wrong about how dangerous the situation with Hook had been, but with the pirate returned to the pages where he belonged, the threat of danger was doused. After experiencing Hook, Stella didn’t want to bring out characters who would cause her or anyone else harm—if she ever used the ink pad again.
She frowned at Percy and said simply, “No.”
Percy puffed up and his cheeks reddened, and she thought,This is it. This is the moment Percy implodes.His polo shirt had come untucked on one side, and his curls had gone rogue from all the times he’d shoved his hands into his hair in frustration and disbelief.
“No?” He looked and sounded so much like their father that for a moment Stella backpedaled in her mind. Was he right? Was she out of her depth? Was it time for her to give up on the idea that she and Jack could actually handle the rest of the weekend, including the festival? That all her forward momentum with the words and the library was just a fantasy and not a life she could possibly live every day?
“No,” Stella repeated, more to herself. She refused to go back to the life she had before she burned the journal, before she found the magic hidden in the library, before she kissed Jack Mathis.
“I get it, Percy. You want me to be safe and you’re trying to protect me. I get how shocking all of this must be for you. Believe me, I do. But I’m not sending anyone back early. Not Darcy, not Crusoe, and definitely not Jack.” She slid her gaze to Jack’s quickly before returning it to Percy.
Jack walked to stand near Stella. His closeness strengthened her resolve.
“Do you even know what that would mean for them?” Stella continued. “Or for me? I’d have tokillthem. I’m guessing you don’t want that job either. So unless you have something supportive to say, you should go home.”
Percy stared at her. Then he walked away from the desk toward the back door. Halfway there, he turned to look at her. “You’re making a mistake. Be sensible. Take the job in Miami. Start over. You can leave all of this behind. Don’t you want to get your life together?”
Stella found Jack’s hand and entwined their fingers. “That’s what I’m finally doing. Getting my life together.”
Percy shook his head and pushed open the back door, then disappeared into the darkness. Stella exhaled and leaned her head against Jack’s arm.
“That was a disaster,” she said.
Ariel shrugged. “He’ll come around.”
Stella looked at her best friend. “What makes you think that? He’s furious with me.”
Ariel shook her head, and her dangly star earrings twirled at her neck. “He’s not furious. He’s worried, and that won’t last. Not once he sees you’re happy, because really that’s what he wants. Your happiness.”
“And he thinks my happiness is in Miami?” Stella asked. “It’s like he thinks he can find my happiness somewhere for me.”
“He does,” Ariel said. “Most people do. They think they can find your happiness for you. But if you’re not satisfied in Blue Sky Valley, then you aren’t going to magically find contentment in Miami.” Pillowy white words puffed out from the fabric of her shirt.Inner peace. Self-love. Resurrection.
For the first time Stella spoke someone else’s words out loud to them. “Inner peace, self-love, and resurrection. If I don’t find those in myself, I won’t find them anywhere else.”
Ariel smiled. “Exactly! It’s like you read my mind.”
“I did in a way,” Stella admitted. “Those words just came out of you.”
Ariel looked down at her body as though she might see them herself. “Wow.”
Stella hugged Ariel. “Thank you for being here tonight. I’m sorry about the whole Hook-falling-from-the-balcony bit.”
“That was terrifying and horrific,” Ariel admitted, “but more like watching a movie that I can turn off now. Don’t worry about Percy. Give him some time.” She yawned. “Time for me to skedaddle. I want to be refreshed for the festival.”
“You and me both,” Stella said. She walked Ariel to the back door and waited for her to climb into her car before waving good night. After Ariel drove out of the parking lot, Stella returned to Jack.
He waited for her at the circulation desk. “You’re staying at Arnie’s, right?”
Stella nodded. “Definitely. Percy’s at the house, so I’m not going there.” She reached for his hand. “Walk me home?”
He smiled. “Of course.”
“Then come inside and stay awhile?”
Jack wrapped his arms around her. “You want me to stay with you?”
“I don’t want to be alone tonight,” she admitted. “But that’s not the only reason I want you to stay with me.”
