“It’s time.” Hadley takes my wineglass and sets it down on the bedside table nearest me. “Enough Dutch courage. We need to be sober to soak up every word.” She opens her book and gasps. Her chin lifts, and she spears me with more glassy eyes.
We are not going to be able to get through this without it becoming a total blubber fest. I don’t need a crystal ball to confirm it.
“He dedicated it to you.” She puts her hand over her heart as she reads the inscription out loud.
For Stevie with all my love.
You are my muse, my best friend, my soul mate, and the reason I get out of bed each day. You are the only woman who will ever own my heart, for now and all time.
P.S. I briefly considered naming this Two People and a Dog, but it’s not very romantic, and we’re the only people who would get it. My sun rises and sets with you, my auburn-haired love, and there was no more perfect title.
Tears prick my eyes as I turn the page of my book and read the same words. Oh, Beck. My pulse is racing like crazy, and I’m equal parts excited and terrified to read this, but here goes nothing.
We read side by side, but Hadley is ahead because she’s dying to get to the end. I forbid her from skipping to the last page even though I’m sorely tempted. I want to read it from cover to cover, page to page, and no shortcuts are allowed. I want to absorb every single word my love put to paper and imprint them on my heart.
It starts the first night we met at the hospital in the memorial garden. His thoughts about Brielle are peppered through those early sections, and it gives me greater insight into what he was thinking and feeling at that time.
“Gosh, Stevie, he loved you from the moment he met you. The way he speaks about you is beautiful. So freaking beautiful.” Hadley sniffs, and I pass her the tissue box. We’ve been exchanging it back and forth as needed.
I knew he had romantic feelings for me way before I realized it, but I didn’t grasp how strong they were until now.
His pain is palpable during the period where we were transitioning from friends to lovers, and I cry as he describes his longing and fear as I struggled to deal with my changing feelings and the guilt I felt at betraying Garrick.
It brings it all back, and I have to take a break.
Hadley can’t drag her eyes from the book, so I leave her reading while I top off my wine and catch a breather on the small balcony outside her living room. It’s nearly midnight, but the streets are still busy as people enjoy their Friday night with friends and loved ones.
Leaning against the railing, I stare out at the city streets I love with new appreciation. Seattle will always have a special place in my heart, for many reasons, but mostly because it’s where I fell in love with the man who is my everything. My heart is currently doing cartwheels, and it’s swollen to bursting point. I wish Beck was here so I could throw myself at him and return all his professions of love.
I have never felt worthy of Beck, and it might be easy to say it’s so true now, but it’s not. We are worthy of one another because we love each other with the same deep intensity and conviction.
I head back to the bedroom, pick up the book, and continue reading.
“Ho. Lee. Shit. Babe.” Hadley bolts upright, stabbing me with wide eyes. “I know you’re behind me, but I have to read this part out loud. He spoke to Garrick! Beck and Garrick met.”
“What?!” My eyes almost bug out of my head. “When?”
“It was after that last day in North Bend. Garrick initiated the meeting, and Hudson was there.” Her eyes narrow to slits. “That little shit could have told us.”
“Never mind that. What happened?”
“He doesn’t say much about it, just that Garrick wanted to make sure Beck was going to love you right.” Her eyes soften. “That was sweet. And protective though unnecessary.”
“That sounds like Garrick.” I smile because it’s further proof we did the right thing walking away. I think we were pulling a dark side to the surface within one another, and we needed to sever all ties to reclaim the light.
She wraps her arm around me. “You need to brace yourself for this part. I’m going to read it as Beck wrote it.” She clears her throat, and I snuggle into her side, listening attentively as she reads the passage.
I left the meeting feeling lighter and more hopeful than I had in months. I knew I should have headed straight to the airport and gone home, but I couldn’t resist temptation. I had given Stevie an ultimatum for good reason. To protect our love and safeguard our relationship, but it was also to give her time to heal. I knew she wouldn’t be in a good place. I knew I needed to leave her alone until she was ready to come back to me, but I’ve never been good at staying away from her. It’s why I left Seattle and cut off all communication. I purposely changed my number, adopting Hadley’s tough-love method, so we wouldn’t be tempted to keep in regular contact.
“Well, fuck.” Hadley looks a little sheepish as she looks at me. “That’s taking tough love to extremes. Who does he think I am? A freaking masochist? I would never do something that severe.”
“Keep reading,” I encourage, desperate to find out what he did.
If there was an emergency, Stevie could always reach me through my sisters or Hudson. I didn’t want to leave her isolated without any way of contacting me if she needed to.
“What the actual fuck?” Hadley almost spills her drink as she glowers at the page. “Hudson had Beck’s number, and he didn’t think to share it with you?”
“It was probably some stupid bro code arrangement. Now, stop with the commentary and read the rest!”
