“I’ll take it for you two,” Robert offers, reaching in the back seat for my phone. “Say cheese.”
I hold up my ring and look at Harrison. At that exact moment, he glances down at me, and Robert snaps the picture.
Without even looking at it, I already know it will be my favorite of all time.
“Robert, can you pull over on Fifth Avenue, anywhere along the park,” Harrison requests.
“What are we doing now? I thought we were going home.”
He reaches over and interlocks our fingers. “We are soon.”
Robert pulls over, and we quickly get out, trying not to hold up any traffic. Harrison leads me over to one of the benches that line the front of the park.
“When we go home, I want to walk into our apartment with nothing in our way. A fresh start to our new life.” He lifts my hand and kisses it lightly, holding my eyes. “How are you, Jules? Truly.”
“Better than when I saw you last, I can tell you that. I won’t lie and say everything is great. I still have flashbacks to the day at the park, but I’m working on it, I promise. I started seeing a therapist. She’s amazing, and I wish I had started when my dad died. Life is starting to make sense again, and she’s helped me navigate my feelings over everything that’s happened to me over the last year or so.” When he doesn’t respond, I ask him something that’s been on my mind. “Are you mad at me?”
He takes a few deep breaths as if contemplating his answer. “About what?”
I shrug. “I can make a list, but off the top of my head, for not saving Claudina before Seb or for walking away from us.”
“Juliette, not even for one second did I blame you for the park incident. It was an accident, end of story. So no, I’m not mad about Claudina. You love her and have always had her best interest at heart.”
“But…?”
“I understand, in a way, why you handled things the way you did. However, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t mad after you left the hospital…or maybe hurt is a better way to describe my feelings. You left me. You didn’t let me care for you or to help you navigate this time with you. We were supposed to be a team, and I didn’t like feeling helpless.”
“Wearea team,” I croak.
“You had physical injuries that needed tending to. It should have been me helping you, not your mom. I love Inès, but that’s my job now.”
“I know.” I drop my head. “I’m sorry.”
“Baby.” He cups my cheek, lifting my head. “I’m not mad anymore, I promise you. But you asked, so I wanted to be honest about my feelings. Emotions were high for everyone involved after the park incident.”
I nod. “I know.”
He leans in and kisses my lips gently. “God, I missed you so fucking much. You have no idea.”
“Trust me, I felt like I was missing a limb, but I’m a better version of myself now.”
He scoffs. “You are perfect, then and now.”
“Then, had you shown me the blueprints, I would have freaked out and never even considered teaching.”
He’s silent because he knows it’s true. I might have taught Claud with Adriana, but I would have never considered teaching others.
“And Seb?” I ask tentatively. “I can’t believe he came today.”
“I didn’t know how much I wanted him there until he showed up.” He squeezes my hand lightly, and I can feel the weight of his shoulders fade. “That was his olive branch, his blessing in a way, and I’m grateful. He’s struggling with a lot of the same issues as you from the day at the park. I know you’re nothealedfrom your memories or even your injuries. But for Seb, it’s just adding to a huge pile he’s still trying to overcome.”
It’s not lost on me that we haven’t said the wordkidnap, and keep referring to it as the park incident.
Knowing Claudina has no idea what almost transpired and that Amber is getting the treatment she so desperately needs is helping with all our healing processes.
“So we’re all good?”
“Better than good, Jules. You’re going to be my wife. I’m the luckiest man in the world. No matter what’s been happening, I couldn’t fathom having you come home without a ring on your finger.”
