I’m about to climb into my car when I see a familiar car. The same car that was parked outside of my house just a few days ago.
Ashley.
My gaze darts everywhere trying to find her. But when I do find her, she’s not alone. The woman I’m falling for, the woman I’ve been obsessing about for days is sitting at a small table inside a restaurant across from a man who’s definitely not her father. She’s smiling, and as I stand there, completely frozen, she tips her head back and laughs.
That’s my laugh. That’s my smile. That’s my hand she’s reaching out to cover his with.
I know my possessive reaction is a defense mechanism, just as I know I should go inside and talk to her. After all, this could be nothing. It could be an old client or a former colleague. But just as I’m working up to doing that, she stands from the table and this other man pulls her into his arms.
They’re hugging.
But Ashley doesn’t hug.
Fuck, she’s resting her cheek on his chest, and even though she’s turned away from me, her comfort around this guy is evident, even from a distance. I take a step to the door, then I freeze in horror. The flowers I’m clutching fall to the ground as I watch the other man bend down and kiss the top of her head, giving my woman physical affection so freely when I know just how hard it is to get her to accept it.
I pivot on my heel and walk back to my car swiftly. With little attention to the road and other drivers, I pull out into traffic and drive back the way I came, all the way to the ferry terminal and all the way onto the next boat headed to the island.
It’s only once we’re underway and the distance is growing between me and what I just witnessed that I let my hands uncurl from the tense grip on my steering wheel, and let the reality of everything sink in.
At least now I know why she’s sorry.
Chapter twenty-six
Ashley
It's surprising to me, how strange it feels to be back on the mainland after just over a month in Dogwood Cove. It’s funny how quickly you can adjust, I guess.
When I first got off the ferry, I drove straight to Vancouver General Hospital to see my dad. He’d suffered a mild heart attack and was admitted to the cardiac floor. The first few days I don’t think I slept much, and I only went back to Dad’s house to shower and change my clothes in between days at the hospital by his bedside. He underwent an angiogram and stenting to clear the blockage. Those hours sitting in an uncomfortable chair, waiting for the doctor to come and talk to me were pure torture. I don’t remember my mom being sick, I was too young when she died of cancer. But being in that hospital, worrying that my only remaining parent might die was by far the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through.
My phone was filling with messages from Finn and everyone else back in Dogwood Cove, and eventually I started leaving it in my car. I just couldn’t handle all the concern and questions. Especially because no matter how much I miss them, especially Finn, my mind has taken to catastrophizing everything. What if it hadn’t been a mild heart attack? What if it was something more serious and I couldn’t get home in time? What if my father died and I wasn’t here…
Yeah, needless to say my head hasn’t been a very pleasant place to be lately. I know I need to reach out, especially to Finn. It’s not right for me to freeze him out like this, but I don’t even know what to say. When he offered to come here right after I left, I wanted so badly to say yes. But at the same time, what would that mean? Him being here, meeting my dad, are we really at that point? I want to say we are, but our stupid lack of communication means I can’t be sure. God, I was such an idiot for not talking to him.
Thankfully Dad was able to come home after just a few days in hospital, but he needs quite a bit of help. Mrs. Crenshaw has been amazing with meals and groceries, and her husband, who has always done general maintenance and yard upkeep ever since I was a child, helped me move my Dad’s bed down to his office so he doesn’t have to do the stairs.
Dad and I have spent hours this week just talking about anything and everything, except, that is, Finn and my time on the island. Aside from telling him I enjoyed the work and the town, I’ve stayed far away from that topic. Not because I don’t want to talk to him, but because I just don’t know what to say. How do you explain to your father that you fell hard for a man you’ve only known a few weeks? For that matter, how do I tell my only parent that I want to move away?
Dad has always been the pragmatic one, the logical thinker. When I’ve faced any problems, he’s the parent who would sit me down and have me make a pro-con list. The difference is, this time, the only con to moving to Dogwood Cove and being with Finn is leaving my father behind.
“Sweet pea, if you frown any harder, your face will stay like that.”
His voice still sounds frail, but it’s getting stronger by the day. I soften my expression and turn to see Dad shuffling into the kitchen. He’s a shadow of the strong man he normally is, but I’m filled with so much gratitude that he’s still here to tease me.
“Dad, what are you doing out of bed?” I chastise him gently as he makes his way to a stool that lines the counter.
“They said no heavy lifting or driving, not no moving,” he retorts. I take a deep breath. His heart attack scared us both, but he certainly seems to be handling it better than I am.
“I just made some peppermint tea, want some?”
He nods and I busy myself with pouring a second cup. I pass it over to him and go to sit beside him, carefully letting my head fall to his shoulder.
“What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours, honey?”
I lift my head and give him a small smile before taking a sip of tea. I’m not really sure how to answer his question.
“A lot, Dad. A lot.”
He wraps his arm around my shoulder and squeezes gently. “Talk to me, sweet pea.”
