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"Because you wanted to marry an architect. Not a builder."
"Oh, Cole. We were young. We had so many problems with one another. Your snoring. The fact you put way too much spice in that chili you were always making. And, you know, you were never spontaneous. Romantic."
Her words jolted me. “I wasn’t?”
“You know that’s not you,” Steph said kindly. “You’re just not that guy.”
I swallowed. I thought back to the way I’d been with Elara. Making my backyard into Little Italy for the night. Suggesting we skinny-dip together. Insisting we keep the tiles in her dad’s old bar. Truth is, I was a romantic. When I was with the right person.
“Right,” I said. “Guess I let you down, huh?”
“It was a two-way street,” said Stephanie with a smile. “I was pretty hard on you. I nagged a lot. And I was pretty mean about you quitting your architecture dreams. Guess I found it hard to adjust to becoming a mom so young.”
I nodded.
“Anyway, I’m glad everything that happened happened. And I’m glad that we got to this place we’re at now. But most of all, I'm glad you're Lexi and Rhea's father."
I swallowed away a pang of emotion. It felt as though a weight had been taken off me. I straightened my back. It was a release.
"Thanks, Steph," I whispered, grateful for her honesty and support.
"I should have told you years ago."
At that moment, the girls burst out of Steph's front door, a whirlwind of love and affection. I scooped them both into my arms, lifting them effortlessly. A kiss for Lexi, a kiss for Rhea.
"The town meeting," Steph said. "Elara's back for it, right?"
I shot her a look, and she smiled, sphinxlike, before heading back inside.
"Come on girls," I said, as we headed for the car. "I want to hear all about Bowders."
"Bowser!" they squealed in unison.
On the drive home, a plan began to take shape in my mind. It was crazy, a foolish idea, really. By the time we reached my trailer, I had dismissed it. Too risky. Too humiliating. Too much potential for it to backfire.
But then, as I stepped out of the car, I saw something that instantly changed my mind.
A "For Sale" sign outside Elara's trailer.
I'd been expecting her store to sell for such a long time, that I hadn't even thought that she might sell her trailer.
Suddenly, I could see everything so clearly.
I wanted her. I needed her.
I had to give her the option of being with me, and I would fight with all my strength to give her the kind of exciting, interesting life she deserved. But the time was now. If I didn't act at that planning meeting, I might never see her again.
For a moment, I was overwhelmed with a memory—Elara, dressed as a ghost, smiling and embarrassed, right at the start of everything. So much had happened since then, but for the first time, I could see that there was so much more to come.
I couldn't let her turn into yet another regret, yet another ghost. I had some serious romance to do.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Elara
Sleeping on the floor sucked. But it didn’t suck as much as sleeping in the trailer next to Cole McCoy. So, I'd opted for the floor in my retail unit. At least I had a sleeping bag and a pillow for Anthony.
As I stretched and yawned, feeling an ache in my muscles from the way I'd lain, Anthony came over and rubbed up against me.
