“Thank you,” I say.
Winnie looks up at me, distracted. “For what?”
“For defending me.”
She sees the box in her hand is empty and drops it at her feet. “You’re welcome. Damn. This is the only box that isn’t broken down. I think you would have seen it fall out when you tore apart the other boxes, right?”
I cup the back of her head. “Thank you. No one has ever given me the benefit of the doubt before, let alone someone I love.”
She smiles softly, her skin glowing in the moonlight. “I’ve been thinking about your silly fishing analogy from the other night. You were talking about how invisible fishing wire is, right? And how you can hold a pole on the beach and no one knows if you’re actually fishing because you can’t see the line from afar. We’re fishing. There’s a strong line. I’m in. All in. And that means defending you because I trust you and know you and believe you when you say you wouldn’t do this.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.” She rocks up on her toes and kisses me chastely.
The back door swings open, and Bradie leans out onto the deck. “Zoey found it!”
Winnie and I follow Bradie through the house to the front porch. Zoey is in the dining room holding the small Plexiglas box with the shiny white gold and diamond ring inside. “Floor vent!” she says triumphantly. “You had the covers off them at one point didn’t you?”
I nod, too dumbfounded and grateful to speak. “It must have tumbled in or been knocked in my mistake. I always check the vents. Well, ever since Declan shoved a slice of cheese through the one in our living room. You’d be amazed how quickly cheese starts to stink,” Jude says and makes a face. He looks over at me as he takes the ring from Zoey. “I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am.”
“Apology accepted,” I say and dig my phone out of my back pocket. “But I just did the same thing to Kidd, so if you’ll excuse me, I have to call Joel and try to catch him before he gets to Kidd’s.”
I step back onto the porch as I hear Jude call to Duke. “Hey, Duke! Wanna try on a Stanley Cup ring?”
“Are you kidding me? Yeah!”
I smile but it’s short-lived because I feel like shit. I’ve spent the last few months here in Maine being judged for my past and I just did the same to Kidd. Luckily, Joel answers the phone right away and he hasn’t been to see Kidd yet.
“No need to bother him. I was completely wrong. We found the ring. I’m so sorry to bother you, Joel,” I tell him.
“No problem. It’s my job,” Joel replies easily. “Now speaking of jobs, can you come by this weekend and give me a quote on some renos to my condo?”
“Definitely.” When we hang up, I decide I’m going to ask Kidd to help me on the roofing job I’m starting next. Maybe he just needs the same thing I did: a second chance.
When I walk back in the house, Duke’s got Jude’s Stanley Cup ring on his finger. It’s way too big, but the beaming smile on his face says he doesn’t care at all. “Can I get a picture with you and the ring?” Duke asks.
“Totally!” Jude replies, and Bradie pulls out her phone. She’s smiling, which makes her look younger. It’s the first time since we reunited that she doesn’t look skeptical or stressed. She snaps the photo and hands the phone to Duke to approve it, and then looks up at me. “You better teach him all your tricks because he’s definitely not going to give up on his NHL dreams now.”
I grin. “I’ll do my damn best to make his dreams come true.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” she says quietly. “You wanted in. You’re in.”
“Good.” I reach over and give her a small side hug and she wraps an arm around my waist and hugs me back.
Winnie calls from the kitchen. “Boston cream pie is being served!”
When dessert is over, Zoey picks up a sticky Declan and excuses herself to get him into the bath. “I’m so glad we have a tub now. That stand-up metal shower stall was a nightmare.”
“Seriously, dude, you did a fabulous job, and I will write you a glowing recommendation if you need it,” Jude offers.
“Thanks. I will take you up on that just as soon as I get my incorporation paperwork in and get a website up and running,” I explain.
“The Hendricks Homes website will be up and running by Christmas,” Winnie says. Our eyes meet. “I bought the domain name for you the other day.”
“You…” I turn in my seat, cup her face and kiss her.
Jude groans. Duke joins him and Bradie laughs.
