Page 57 of Peaks and Promises

“Forgive you?” I spoke slowly, as if the words were foreign. “I need you to forgive me.”

He let out a breath and, stepping in close, he put his hand around the back of my neck. “Son, I forgave you a long time ago.”

Paul Haven was many things, but a liar was not one of them. He meant it.

“Dad.” I hesitated, my chest tightening. I had to swallow again before I could speak. “Just let me get it out, okay?”

Holding my eyes, he nodded and squeezed the back of my neck.

“I’m…sorry. For everything I said. But especially for taking so long to come home. And I don’t have much to forgive, but if you want me to say it anyway, I will. I forgive you.”

Tears glistened in his eyes and a smile lit up his face. He put his arms around me again and hugged me tight.

A weight lifted, not just from my shoulders but from the very depths of my soul.

I was home. And my dad didn’t hate me.

Another hand touched my back. I opened my eyes to find my mom with tears streaming down her face.

I let go of my dad, and he stepped back so I could wrap my arms around her.

“Oh, Reese,” she said through her tears.

“I’m so sorry, Mom.” I held her tight. “I’m so, so sorry.”

She gently rubbed my back. “It’s okay. You’re home now.”

After a long moment, I let go, and she stepped back.

Although she’d aged since I’d been gone, she didn’t look old. Her brown hair was streaked with gray, and she had smile lines around her eyes. She took off her blue-rimmed glasses to wipe away her tears, but she didn’t stop smiling.

She replaced her glasses and looked me up and down. “You’re so different. If I saw you on the street, I don’t know if I would have recognized you.”

“He grew.” Dad held his hands out horizontally, indicating I’d gotten wider.

I’d always been the tallest of my brothers, but when I’d left, I’d been soft and out of shape. For most of my childhood, I’d been picked on for being chubby. My brothers had gotten into more than one playground scuffle defending me.

That chubby Reese Haven was no more. I’d spent years training—and eating—like a bodybuilder, and I had the physique to show for it. I looked a hell of a lot different.

“Yeah, a lot of hours in the gym,” I said with a shrug.

“Let’s not stand out here in the driveway,” Mom said. “Come inside.”

I followed my parents inside, and as soon as I crossed the threshold, the scents of my childhood washed over me. It smelled warm and clean, like wood and citrus. I stopped in the hallway to gaze at the photos. The last time I’d been there, it had been filled with pictures of me and my siblings. Many of those were still on display, but they’d been rearranged to make room for new ones. Graduation pictures. Wedding photos. Pictures of my nieces and nephews.

Suddenly, it felt like I’d missed a lifetime.

Missed everything.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” Mom asked. “They’re going to be so excited to meet you.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know if everyone is going to have the same reaction as you.”

“Let Zachary take a swing at you,” Dad said. “That’ll be the end of it.”