As I inched closer, I realized that it wasn’t a photo at all, but a piece composed of tiny, delicate items coming together to make up the composition of my face. I rushed toward the canvas, inspecting the details.?
Small photos of my family members, some dating back to when O’Malley’s first opened, spread across the larger-than-life cheek in front of me. Pictures of our friends, shots of Savannah’s architecture, places that I loved, all inched across the canvas, closing in the gaps of my forehead and lips. And, peppered gentlyacross the entire masterpiece, were lyrics of the songs Lee had written about me, scrawled in Lee’s handwriting.
“Did Charlie do this?” I rasped, thick tears clogged in my throat.?
I couldn’t stop staring. Every memory, everything that meant something to me, made up the details of my face. I finally let a sob escape when my eyes landed on a photo of my momma holding me when I was a baby, right here in this very barroom.?
“I’d love to take credit for this one, but Charlie really put his heart and soul into this over the last few months,” Lee breathed out, and I felt him closing the distance between us. “Merry Christmas, Magnolia.”?
Turning toward him, I wrapped my hands around his neck, pulling him in for a hug, fighting down the urge to kiss his cheek, not wanting to open up the invitation for anything further to transpire between us.?“Thank you, Lee,” I whispered in his ear. “It’s beautiful.”?
“It’s my absolute pleasure, Maggie. And yes, she is.”?
I broke our connection and turned to face the artwork again. A wide smile crossed my face, warmth filling my heart for the first time in a long time.
The detail and care that only my brother could pull off was so evident in this design. I imagined guests walking by and gazing intently at this, a conversation piece for sure, and the pride I would feel as they fawned over it.?
Every time I passed by it, I would remember Lee, who gave me this amazing gift. Lee, who would be gone, living out his dreams again in Nashville. Grief hit me like a tidal wave.?
I turned toward him again, staring at him through blurry, tear-glazed eyes. Of all the grand gestures, and all of the heartfelt moments we shared, this was the most genuine, beautiful moment of my life. And I didn’t want the feeling to end.?
“Will you dance with me, Lee?”?
He let out a sigh, pulling my messy, sleep-stricken head toward his chest. Our hands entwined, and Lee lifted them to his lips, softly humming a familiar, yet distant tune.
We swayed across the worn, wooden floor for what felt like hours, the room filled with the echoes of our shared history, of the last few months where we battled to stay apart, when all we wanted to do was this, right here.?
He pulled me closer, hands finding the familiar place on my back, fingers tenderly tracing the curves he knew so well. I rested my head gently against his shoulder, my hair softly grazing his neck as I lifted my gaze toward him. I let out a soft, content sigh.?
“I remember that sound,” he said, voice thick with longing. Carefully, his hand slipped beneath my shirt, and his thumb traced smooth, soothing circles on the small of my back. Searing, intense desire shot through me. “I remember how you’d say my name in the dark when it was just the two of us. I remember the way it felt to have our bodies pressed together, just like this. I remember the warmth of your laughter echoing in my ears, the way your eyes sparkled when you were lost in thought, listening to me play my guitar and sing to you. I remember those quiet moments, wrapped in blankets, sharing secrets under the stars. I remember everything.”?
We exchanged a glance that poured over us, full of dreams we once held and promises kept, of laughter shared and tears shed. A silent conversation played between us, brimming with everything we wanted to say over the last few months but could never quite find the words for. The bond we shared, a testament to a love that’d only grown deeper with time and never truly dissipated, was a living, breathing thing between us.
“It’s almost time for you to go,” I whispered, pulling him a little closer, not wanting to let him go.?
“You’re right, but a few more moments with you wouldn’t kill me,” he chuckled softly.?
Our dance continued, every touch, every look, every subtle gesture, a love letter—our song—written in a language only the two of us could understand as we moved in the silence, swaying to a rhythm only we could hear.
When I was ready to pull away, and separate us for good and to return to our lives without each other, the door flew open.?
“What the hell is going on?” Dane slammed the bar door behind him and crossed the room faster than either of us could react.?
He yanked Lee off me and landed a punch square in his face. I stood there, stunned and trembling, as they hit the floor, breaking chairs and tables in their chaotic fight. Their shouts and cries filled the air as they swung at each other.
“Lee! Just go!” I finally yelled, grabbing Dane by the back of his shirtand using what little strength I had to push him up against the bar and away from his brother.?
Lee and I stared at each other for a minute, and in an instant, I knew.?
This was his last attempt. The one thing he had left in his arsenal to pull me away from Dane. And while my heart sang a different tune, at the end of the day, my mind was still made up, and nothing was ever going to change it.?
“I’ll be gone after New Year’s Eve,” Lee said, wiping at his bloody lip. “And that’s it, Maggie. Then, I am done. I’ll truly be a silent partner from here on out.”?
The bar door closed behind him, and Dane and I stood quietly, staring each other down with chests heaving and adrenaline rushing.?
I broke the silence. “What are you doing here?”?
Dane laughed and stomped through the bar to my office, practically kicking the door down. He completely bypassed the enormous work of art that now looked sad, almost lonely in the darkened barroom. I followed him and watched as he flung himself into my desk chair, his face stormy with rage, opening the bottom drawer and pulling out a bottle of bourbon.?
