It was raining, so I only peeked at the beach. I allowed myself to smile again at the memories I made on the island because I was blessed to connect with Spencer Charles early on the first day. Those memories would serve as a reminder that good men did still exist.
I headed back to my room, grabbed my luggage, checked out, and boarded the shuttle to the airport. The rain caused some delays at the airport, but I didn’t let it bother me. I just listened to one of the audiobooks I had planned to listen to while I chilled on the beach. I didn’t spend nearly as much time doing that as I thought I would, because my time was mostly otherwise occupied. I loved that for me. I slipped on my headphones, queued upUnexpected Passby A. Blossom, and settled in. Before I knew it, it was time to board my plane. The plane ridewas uneventful, and soon enough I climbed into the passenger seat of Bryanna’s SUV.
“Welcome home, boo,” she told me with a grin.
I returned it. “Thanks, Chica.”
“Was it hard saying goodbye to Spence Charming this morning?”
“I never shoulda told you that I have him in my phone as that.”
“Nope, you shouldn’t have. ’Cause to me, he’ll always be Spence Charming.” We both laughed. “Was this morning hard? Did y’all agree to meet up as soon as you touched down? What?”
“Um, actually he had to leave yesterday morning.”
“What?”
I told her about the accident and how he needed to be there for his daughter.
“Aww, poor Mikayla.”
I turned in my seat to face her. “Uh, how do you know his daughter’s name?”
“Duh. I internet searched him.”
“What?”
She took her eyes off the road for a second to glance at me. “You didn’t?”
“No. He was right there with me. If I wanted to know something, I could’ve just asked him.”
“Oh, that is so early 2000’s of you.”
I chuckled. “Shut up. Anyway, I agree. Poor Mikayla.”
“How long will he be there?”
“Who knows?” I gave a shrug of my shoulders. “I guess for as long as it takes for . . . I think her name’s Harmony, to get back on her feet.”
Bryanna parked in front of my house and helped me carry my bags up the stairs of the front porch. There was a package on top of my welcome mat. I grabbed it and carried it inside, alongwith the bags. As I placed my purse on the console table by the door, I looked at the return address on the package. Written in the rushed and sloppy handwriting of most men was Spencer’s name, along with the address of a P.O. Box.
“It’s from Spencer.” I was confused.
“Oh, well, now you’ve gotta open it while I’m here,” she told me.
I wanted to grab the scissors to open the packaging, but apparently, Bryanna couldn’t wait to open my package. She just used her fingernail file. Inside the box was a beautiful summer sundress. It didn’t look like the one I’d worn at the resort, but it was still pretty and floral. I picked up the note before Bryanna noticed and grabbed it because that was something she definitely would’ve done.
“For you to wear on our next date. See you then. Spence,” I read.
10
SPENCER
Harmony and I were always in agreement that the most important thing was Mikayla and her comfort. Because of that, when I got to Jackson Island, South Carolina, I moved into Harmony’s guest room as opposed to moving into a hotel. I wanted Mikayla to sleep in her own bed and be around her own things while we waited for her mother to be released from the hospital.
“You’re on toast. I’m on bacon and eggs,” I told my daughter when she stepped into the kitchen on Monday morning. “Let’s go. Wash your hands and get the bread into the toaster. I don’t want you to be late for cheer camp.”
“I wanna stay home with Mommy. What if she has to go to the bathroom or needs something to eat? Who’s gonna take care of her?” Mikayla asked me.
