He knocked.
Lucy opened the door, and Jake's breath caught.
She looked different again. More confident, more herself. Her hair was up in a messy bun, she was wearing an apron covered in flour, and she looked absolutely beautiful.
"Hi," Lucy said.
"Hi."
They stood in the doorway for a moment, neither quite sure what to do. Then Lucy stepped forward and hugged him, and Jake felt everything he'd been holding in for three months threaten to spill over.
"I missed you," Lucy whispered into his shoulder.
"I missed you too. So much."
They stayed like that for a long moment. Then Lucy pulled back, wiping her eyes.
"Come in. I'm making dinner. Using actual French techniques and everything."
Lucy's apartment was exactly as Jake remembered—tiny but charming, with that incredible view of Paris rooftops. But now it looked more lived-in. Photos on the walls, books stacked on every surface, Lucy's presence in every corner.
This was her home. Really her home.
"Sit," Lucy said, gesturing to the small table by the window. "Wine?"
"Please."
Lucy poured two glasses of red wine and returned to her cooking. Jake watched as she worked—confident, skilled, completely in her element.
"What are you making?"
"Coq au vin. Classic French, but I'm adding some of my grandmother's spices. East meets West, like my final exam dessert."
"Chef Laurent loved that dessert, you said."
"He called it exceptional. Which from him is basically a marriage proposal."
"He's not wrong. Everything you make is exceptional."
Lucy smiled, but it was sad. "That's what makes this so hard, you know? I'm good here. Really good. Chef Laurent wants me to stay. Three Michelin restaurants have offered me positions. I could build an incredible career in Paris."
"I know."
"But—"
"But?"
Lucy set down her wooden spoon and turned to face him. "But I miss home. I miss Timber Falls and everyone there. I miss Uncle Walter and Rei and Mae. I miss snow in November and knowing everyone's name. I miss—" her voice cracked, "—I miss you. Every single day."
Jake stood and crossed to her. "Lucy—"
"Let me finish. I need to say this." Lucy took a breath. "When I came to Paris, I thought I was just taking a break. Learning some skills, having an adventure, and then coming home to open my restaurant. But Jake—I fell in love with Paris. With learning here, with who I'm becoming here. And now I don't know if the person I've become still fits in Timber Falls."
"Why wouldn't you fit?"
"Because Timber Falls Lucy was defined by her grandmother's legacy. By the bakery, by being the girl who stayed when she should have left. Paris Lucy is just—me. My own person. My own skills. My own dreams." Lucy wiped away tears. "How do I go back to being my grandmother's granddaughter after I've been just Lucy?"
"You don't," Jake said quietly. "If you come back, you come back as the Lucy you are now. The one who trained at Le Cordon Bleu. Who earned praise from Chef Laurent. Who learned to navigate Paris and make friends across the world. That Lucy."
