“Ry and I got into a lot of trouble when we were younger. He was the only true friend I ever had—other than your mother and Elijah.”
Ryder loved me with his whole heart. When I lost my memories, he never tried to fit me into the mold occupied by Old Elizabeth, the girl I used to be. But Fallon was probably the only person who really understood me. Our broken pieces were the same. The friendship we forged during our time together changed my life.
“You always told me that I would wind up hating you. You said that you were my nightmare, the villain in my story. You’re not, Fallon. You’re my hero.”
“Dad would be happy you’re here now. Do you mind turning the engine on for me?”
Fallon slides into the front seat and starts the car. The rumble of the engine is low and loud.
Marcus peers around the hood and calls out, “Press the gas a few times.”
Fallon revs the engine, and I’m thrown back in time to third grade, to the first day I met Ryder at school.
“I think we got it.” Marcus holds his thumb up, and Fallon shuts off the engine.
Getting out, Fallon helps him carefully lower the hood and push it closed.
“Thanks. Chris is usually my wingman. I appreciate the help.”
Fallon smooths his hand lovingly over the hood. “Ry was always the maestro with cars, not me. My talent was buying them,” he says with a diffident chuckle.
My boy’s face lights up like Christmas. “Do you still have the Radical?”
Fallon nods, a grin spreading across his face that does wonderful things to my heart. Fallon’s smiles are rare and a sight to behold. They transform his face from drop-dead gorgeous to devastating-to-a-woman’s-health.
“Yeah, and a whole hell of a lot more. I have a private garage at the Montgomery estate. Ry used to call it my vintage car museum. You, Chris, and Charlotte will need to come by soon and check it out. We can take some out to the Fields and play around.”
It’s like a wish bomb just exploded. “Are you fucking with me?”
I haven’t seen Marcus so excited about anything in a long time.
“Think we can convince your mom to join us? She was one kickass woman behind the wheel.”
Marcus’s dark head bows, and he shoves his hands deep inside his back pockets. Again, it shocks me how closely he resembles Ryder. Not just his build and general features, but also his posture and facial expressions. Even the way he dresses—faded jeans, a black Randy’s Custom Auto logo T-shirt, and work boots, just like Ryder used to wear.
Marcus glances over at my car. “Things have been hard for Mom since Dad died. She’s given up a lot for us.”
I hold my breath as tears begin to well. Fallon wraps his arm around my son’s shoulders, giving him comfort like a fatherwould his child. Marcus soaks it up, leaning into Fallon, and the beating organ in my chest cries for my children.
I hastily turn away before they see me. Needing some privacy so I can allow myself a few minutes to fall apart, I quickly cross the backyard and head toward the pond. Tiny grasshoppers startle and jump away as my feet swish through the long grass. Several skipper butterflies flit from clover to clover. A ladybug lands on my arm, and I transfer it to my finger, holding it up high in the air until it opens its elytra, exposing its softer wings underneath, and flies away.
Once I get to the small clearing surrounded by a grove of trees near the edge of the water, I lower to the ground, resting my back against the trunk of a thin willow, and pull my knees to my chest. The willow’s branches are long and spindly, arching over my head and drooping down until they touch the ground. The whip-like appendages sway gently in the muggy summer breeze. As they bump and rub together in the wind, the sound created is musical, like nature’s wind chimes.
This is my and Ryder’s quiet place. We would spend hours out here, talking, dancing, laughing, making love.
“I miss you so much,” I tell him, closing my eyes so I can picture him right there next to me.
I miss you too, my sweet Elizabeth. I’m always here, sweetheart. You’re never alone.
I glance across the rippling surface of the water. It’s so beautiful out here. Peaceful.
Propping my chin on my knees, I sigh. “I don’t want to be sad anymore.”
The hairs on my arms raise right before I sense anyone is behind me, and I instinctively know it’s Fallon. The same thing happened in Venice. I can always feel him when he’s nearby. The air charges with an intense crackling energy. That’s the only way I know how to explain it.
“How did you know I was here?”
“You know I have my ways.”
