Marcus:That's not my call. But Jake—if you still love her, if there's any part of you that wants to try again, you should talk to her.
Jake:What if she's just coming back because Paris didn't work out? What if it's not about me?
Marcus:Then you'll find out. But you won't know unless you talk to her.
Jake set down his phone and stared at nothing.
Lucy was coming back. In five days, she'd be back in Timber Falls.
And Jake had no idea what he was going to do about it.
Lucy's last week at Le Bernardin was a blur of handover meetings and final services.
Chef Alain pulled her aside on her last day. "You are making the right choice."
"How do you know?"
"Because for the first time since you started here, you look alive. Nervous, yes. But alive."
"I'm terrified I'm making another mistake."
"Perhaps. But staying here when your heart is in Vermont—that would be a bigger mistake."
On October 24th, Lucy said goodbye to Amelie and James at their usual café.
"I can't believe you're leaving," James said, his eyes suspiciously shiny. "Who's going to laugh at my Chef Laurent impressions?"
"Literally anyone. They're very good impressions."
"Call me when you get home," Amelie said, hugging Lucy tight. "Tell me how it goes with Jake."
"What if he doesn't want me anymore?"
"Then he's an idiot. But Lucy—I don't think he's an idiot. I think he's been waiting for you."
Yuki, who'd been silent, finally spoke. "You chose yourself once. Now choose love. Both things matter."
Lucy hugged all of them, trying not to cry. These people had been her family in Paris. Leaving them hurt almost as much as leaving Jake had.
Almost.
On October 25th, Lucy boarded her flight from Paris to Burlington.
She tried to sleep but couldn't. Tried to read but couldn't focus. Just sat in her seat, heart pounding, thinking about what she was about to do.
She was going home. After seven months in Paris, she was going home.
And she had no idea if Jake would even want to see her.
The flight landed at 4 PM Vermont time. Lucy collected her luggage (two massive suitcases containing her entire Paris life), and walked into the arrivals area.
Uncle Walter was there, holding a sign that said "WELCOME HOME LULU" in his terrible handwriting.
Lucy dropped her bags and ran to him. He wrapped her in a hug that felt like coming home.
"I'm so glad you're back," Uncle Walter said into her hair.
"Me too. I'm sorry it took me so long to figure it out."
