“Shaken up. But otherwise all right. My mother-in-law is with her now, feeding her some soup, and I’m sure as many cookies as she wants.”
“Liam, I’m so sorry—”
“Stop.” His voice is quiet, and he covers my hand with his. “You’ve got nothing to apologize for. I’m the one who screwed up. Letting her believe all this malarkey about mermaids and fairies.”
“That’s not true. You’ve given her hope and faith that there’s more to life than what you can see.”
“All I’ve really done is turn her into someone who doesn’t fit into the world around her. The real one.” He rubs a hand over the back of his neck. “She’s got no friends. No mom. Other than you and her grandparents, she’s got no one, really.”
“She’s got you.”
His eyes fill with tears. He nods but there is a look of pain that crosses his face that is undeniable.
“Liam, you’re the best father I’ve met. Olive doesn’t have to wonder for even a second where her next meal is coming from or whether she’s loved. She gets to go on adventures and see things other people only dream of. You’ve created a beautiful life for her.”
“She needs more than just me. I’m—” His eyes take in the gash on my cheek, and he stops.
“You’re what? Not enough? Because if that’s what you were about to say, it’s bullshit.”
“Okay, thank you.” He smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Yesterday kind of did me in. And you even more so. You don’t need me going on about all of this right now.”
“Why not? I’m not doing anything at the moment.” I hope my light tone will encourage him to talk, but the bravado thing doesn’t work on him. It never has.
He squeezes my hand. “You should be resting.”
* * *
I lie awake for a long time after he leaves. It’s dark outside, and I watch as the moon inches its way across the window. Tears pour down my cheeks as I finally allow myself to process what almost happened. Olive almost died. So did I. Another few minutes in that water and my parents would be arriving here to pack up my house and fly my body home. And Liam. Liam would be all alone in the world.
I sob at the thought of it. Sob for what we’ve already lost. Sob at the depth of my love for Olive and for Liam both. When I finally stop, I am worn out, but somehow stronger. I know what I must do. I need to take the leap again. I need to tell Liam that I’m in love with him. I am fully aware that it’s quite possibly a knee-jerk reaction to a near-death experience, but there is an undeniable truth that when we are closest to death, we see life most clearly.
My heart pounds at the thought of telling him. If he were here right this moment, I know I would do it. I only hope my resolve is as strong tomorrow.
* * *
I wake to the sound of a familiar voice. “Abby. Abby, honey, I’m here.”
“Mom?” I open my eyes and let them adjust to the light. There she is. Her hair has been highlighted, and she looks good, younger in spite of the way her face is pinched with concern right now.
“How did you—?”
“Your friend Liam called us. He went through the numbers on your phone and found ours.” She’s tearing up now, and I find myself doing the same. No matter what we’ve been through, no matter how far apart we’ve drifted, she’s still my mom, who loves me and continues to worry about me, even though I’m grown and gone.
She rushes toward me and hugs me carefully. I get countless kisses on the forehead from her. And we both cry and laugh at ourselves for crying. My laughter makes me wince, which makes her wince as though she feels it too. And in a way, maybe she does. Maybe parents always feel the pain of their children.
“Chad found me the first flight here as soon as we heard. Dad wishes he could have come too, but he had to stay back for work, and to look after Grandma.” She runs a hand over my hair, a familiar, comforting gesture to us both. “I can’t believe you did that. Are you okay, honey?”
“I’m all right. Just sore.” I sniff as she dabs my cheeks with a tissue.
Then she holds it over my nose. “Blow.”
“No, that’s okay, I can—”
“Blow.”
So I do. What the hell? She came all this way.
Chapter Thirty-Two
