Page 62 of Just One Chance

I swallowed some of my beer. "I guess they are."

"And yours are too."

I shrugged. "Who wants to get hurt?"

"When I got over myself and let my walls down, I let love in. And it's the best feeling in the world. I love Clara, my family, and yours. It's so much better than going it alone."

"It worked out for you." That didn't mean it was going to work out for me.

"It can work out for you too. You just have to figure out what you want."

I stretched my legs in front of me. "I can't imagine living in Florida with all that heat and sand."

"Could you if Kennedy was there?"

I didn't want to picture myself on that beach, because I felt good whenever I thought about Kennedy being in my future. "I don't have the answers."

"You'll figure it out. And if you need to talk, I'm here."

"Thanks, man."

The subject turned to the brewery and his thoughts on my business. He was a consultant for that kind of thing, so his knowledge was invaluable. I couldn't sell my things far away. I needed to be local, so where I set up shop mattered. For now, I lived here. And I couldn't imagine moving anywhere else. Not while my siblings were settling down and would have families soon. I liked being close to McCoy.

I couldn't see myself living anywhere else, but what if that's what Kennedy wanted? Could I move to be with her?

"You're on the right track. You just have to figure out what you want."

"Well, I thought I had things figured out until you showed up. I thought my life was here with my family. I was going to build the business and my house, and now I don't know what I want."

"I just want you to think about those things. Consider them. Don't assume that you'll be fine with Kennedy leaving."

I wasn't deluding myself; I knew it was going to be hard. But I'd get over her eventually, right?

"You all going to build that snow room?"

"What do you think?" He wasn't in the brew bath when we were all talking about it.

"I think it's a great idea. But you know I love risky ideas."

"You think my parents will go along with it?"

"Clara said your mom was interested. I don't know about your dad."

"Yeah, I haven't heard."

The fire crackled.

"But she wanted you to build the logs and trees. I think you should do it. It's a good experience.”

"You think I'll be building a lot of snow rooms in the future?"

He grinned. "If you move to Florida⁠—"

I shook my head. "I thought I knew what I wanted, and then you had to come over and blow everything up."

He chuckled. "I'm just telling you my experience. It doesn't have to be yours."

I heard the sound of an engine coming down the lane. "That must be Kennedy."