I didn’t have an answer to that yet. Not one that I’d had time to fully figure out at least.
When I looked back toward where Leigh had been standing, she was gone.
My chest tightened. Then I saw her, walking down the path that led to the pond, her sundress swaying with each step.
I didn’t think. I just followed. It was impossible not to.
The pond was quiet, peaceful, the sounds of the party fading behind me as I walked down the familiar path. Leigh stood at the water’s edge, her arms wrapped around herself despite the warm evening.
“Hey,” I said softly as I approached.
She turned, and the smile she gave me was sad around the edges. “Hey yourself. Quiet down here.”
“Yeah.” I stopped beside her, close enough that our arms almost touched. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. Just... needed a minute.” She looked out over the water, where the last light of sunset was reflecting in shades of pink and gold. “It’s beautiful here.”
“It is.”
We stood in silence for a moment, and I could feel the weight of everything unsaid between us. Two more days. That’s all we had left.
“Dex…” she started.
“Leigh…” I said at the same time.
We both stopped, then laughed. That nervous, slightly desperate sound of two people trying to hold it together.
“You first,” I said.
She took a breath. “I was going to say... I think I should move to Willowbrook.”
My heart stopped. “What?”
“I can move my studio. It’s just a business. I can set up anywhere. And Wren…” Her words were coming faster now, tumbling over each other. “Wren actually told me she wants me to go. She said I should choose what makes me happy for once instead of what’s safe.”
“Leigh…”
“I know it’s crazy. I know it’s fast. But I can’t…” Her voice broke slightly. “I can’t just walk away and leave you. I can’t do it.”
Everything in me wanted to say yes. To pull her close and tell her to stay, that we’d figure it out, that I wanted her here more than I’d ever wanted anything.
But I couldn’t.
“I can’t let you do that,” I said quietly.
She turned to face me fully, confusion and hurt flashing across her face. “Why not?”
“Because Blue Point Bay is your home. Your life and your family needs you there. Everything you’ve built is there.” I forcedmyself to keep talking even as my chest ached. “And because I think I need to leave Willowbrook.”
Now it was her turn to look stunned. “What?”
“I’ve been thinking about it all week. Hell, probably longer than that.” I ran a hand through my hair, trying to find the right words. “This garage, this house, they’re not really mine. They’re my grandfather’s. I’ve been living his life, trying to honor his memory, but I’ve never actually built anything for myself. I’ve just been... maintaining what he left behind.”
“Dex…”
“I’m not done.” I took her hands, needing to touch her, to make her understand. “I’ve been thinking about selling the garage. Or maybe getting a manager to run it. The business is solid. It doesn’t actually need me there every day. And the house...” I swallowed hard. “The house is full of memories, but some of them aren’t good. My parents, the losing my dad, growing up without them. Maybe it’s time to let someone else fill it with better memories.”
Leigh’s eyes were wide, shimmering with unshed tears. “What are you saying?”
