Suddenly, the room felt full and alive and vibrating with love. Even Tessa perked up and they were all talking, all meaning well, all completely unaware of the weight pressing down on Lacey’s chest.
Because they didn’t know Roman had been on one knee in the sunset. They didn’t know she had saidnot yet. They didn’t know he was leaving today.
They didn’t know that she might have tossed the chance for the very thing they were so wildly singing about this morning.
But she did and she?—
A hard knock on the front door stole all their attention.
Roman!Lacey practically leaped from her chair, knowing deep in her heart that he’d had the same sleepless night and he was back to ask again and this time?—
“Anyone home?” a gruff voice from outside demanded.
With a punch of disappointment, she opened the door to see Seamus Donahue, the weathered old fisherman, holding the football she’d dropped off last night at the marina on her way home.
“Seamus? Is something?—”
He powered by her. “Tessa! Are you here?” he called. “Oh, you’re all here. Well, good, ’cause I have something to say.”
“Join the crowd,” Eli replied, coming closer with Atlas. “Look at my handsome grandson.”
“I can’t look at anything but this.” He lifted the football the way Jonah had lifted Atlas.
“Oh, the whole team signed it!” Tessa smiled for the first time since she’d walked in. “I love that boy.”
“You better!” Seamus said, letting Jonah take the football to examine it. “I know you didn’t raise him, Tessa—I learned that the hard way when I walked into a pile of…not my business.”
They all laughed at the memory of how Seamus took one look at Roman and saw Artie Wylie, and they’d all missed it. Not Lacey, but she knew that Roman was the baby Tessa had given up for adoption.
“It’s a great donation,” Tessa said. “You didn’t have to come all the way?—”
“Oh, yes, I did! This is going up for auction tonight and I…I just had to…” He looked around, his voice cracking. “Is he here?”
“Roman?” Lacey asked. “No, he’s home or…” On his way to Jacksonville, she added glumly in her head.
“Then I’ll tell you, since he’s your boyfriend and”—he turned to Tessa—“your son.”
“What?” they asked in unison.
“Did you look in this envelope?” He pulled out the white paper from his jacket.
“That’s the official certification,” Lacey said. “To prove the autographs are real.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, but it’s also…” He pulled out a sheet of paper from the envelope, snapped it open and cleared his throat. “‘The Arthur Wylie Memorial Youth Fishing Scholarship to cover gear, rods, tackle, payment for charter fishing days, and one annual Artie Day Fishing Tournament for underprivileged children.’ Fully funded for five years by ananonymousNFLplayer who also agreed to give the scholarship winner private fishing lessons for the next five summers.”
For a moment, no one spoke. Then Atlas let out a squawk, but it wasn’t loud enough to erase the echo of the last few words. They hung in the air like…like the answer Lacey had been so desperately seeking.
With one quiet and meaningful gesture, Roman showed exactly who he was. Not just a great guy with talent and good looks, not just the dreamboat she’d fallen in love with this summer, and not just someone temporary looking for companionship for the season.
He understood the concept of family, of legacy, of permanence and personal commitment. Could it be any more obvious?
As she stood there and they started to react, Lacey searched the room, her gaze landing on her mother first, then Tessa. The two of them were looking hard at her, with matching expressions that stated the obvious:You know what to do, Lace.
She nodded as if they’d spoken out loud.
What in the heck was she thinking?Not yet?Was she out of her mind?
“I have to go,” she said.
