“What could this be?”
He swipes a thumb over the top of my lips. “Come find out.”
I follow him outside, where he points to the land. A breeze flutters over the grass, causing a low hum of light to breathe to life. It unfolds from the meadow, ending in a trail that leads all the way to the house.
Shock rocks me. I bring my hands to my face. “What is this?”
Pane casually leans against the balustrade, eyeing me with a look that I can’t place. “You remember what I said to Luke?”
“About not calling the police?”
He scowls. “No. About you being connected to this land.”
I do remember it. Those words crashed into my heart at a gazillion miles per hour, gutting me. “Yes,” I whisper.
He reaches out and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Then he nods toward the land. “When I first arrived, the glow stopped at the meadow. Now it comes all the way to the house.”
I frown. “I don’t understand.”
Pane tugs me down the steps. He doesn’t have to tug hard, because I eagerly follow him. We walk to just shy of the meadow, where the magic is now bleeding into the bare earth, where the grass doesn’t grow because the ground is blocked from the sun by the trees closest to the house.
“Close your eyes.”
I reel back. “What?”
“Just do it, Sunbeam.”
At the sound of my nickname on his lips, a sizzle spirals down my spine. I do as he says, and the next thing I know, he’s holding my hand and touching my waist. Then he sways me side to side in a dance.
Just when I’m wondering what this has to do with anything, warmth starts at my feet and works its way up my legs to my torso. It spreads through my chest, bleeding out into my limbs.
Pane presses his body to mine, still swaying gently. “You can open your eyes now.”
I do as he says and gasp. Underneath us, a thick patch of grass has sprouted from the earth, winding its way past my feet and reaching for my ankles.
There’s never been grass in this spot—ever. Not just that, but it’s pulsing with light that’s coming from deep in the ground. Drifting up from it are small glowing globes that uncurl into white butterflies that slowly flap their wings as they surround us and lift off, disappearing into the night sky.
As I watch, hundreds of globes transform before flying up, up,up, and the grass continues to spread. The shrubs that frame the old farmhouse, scraggly and sad, have new life breathed into them. Thick waxy leaves sprout from the branches, and bright-white gardenias blossom, filling the night with their sweet scent.
I reach for a blossom and run my fingers over its soft petals. “For years these bushes have barely blossomed.”
“And now they’re in full bloom,” he says.
I turn back to him, searching for answers. “Pane.”
A gentle smile spreads across his face. “It’s not me. This is all you. This earth is connected to you. I saw it that first night. You seemed to glow when you looked out over the meadow.”
I blink, slowly beginning to understand what he’s saying. This land, maybe because I’ve lived here all my life, is tied to me, and because my heart was broken for so long, the land was broken, too.
Sure, vines could wind their way inside the house and fetch me my dad’s boots, but for years, the house has been surrounded by a patch of dirt as if ... as if the magic was broken.
But now it’s healing in the same way I am.
Tears choke up my throat. “Pane.” I throw my arms around his shoulders and bury my face in the softness of his corded, sturdy neck. “Thank you.”
As he holds me tightly, I inhale his scent, letting the smell of him—the sandalwood and dry gin—fill my senses until I’m practically drunk.
“No,” he argues. “Thank you.For everything.”
We hold each other for several long seconds, and I swipe away the tears that spring from my eyes. If only my dad could see this, he would be so proud. He died when I was going through everything with Luke, but now I’m healing. I am healed.
All thanks to Pane Maddox.
I slip from his arms and glance up in wonder as light butterflies dance around his head. I extend a finger and one alights on the tip, slowly opening and closing its wings. Its energy is a low hum against my skin, a familiar and comforting feeling that fills my heart with joy.
I don’t want this feeling to stop. Ever. But part of me knows that all good things must come to an end.
