Page 116 of Welcome Home to Ivy Falls

‘Ugh. Would it kill the band to play something from this decade?’

‘They take requests. You should tell them what you want to hear.’

‘Maybe.’ He kicked the tip of his dress shoe at the grass. ‘Speaking of requests, I listened to your advice. Signed up to audition for Grease. When you try out you have to sing and dance to a selected song. Any chance you could come over to the gazebo? Let me show you the routine I have planned?’

The party was in full swing and I was finally released from Hearth and Home duty.

‘Lead the way.’

Soft candlelight flickered on the tables set up on the grass. The moon was putting on a show tonight, a golden orb dancing against a black velvet sky. It was hard to believe that only a few days ago the lawn had been littered with uprooted trees, jagged branches and more than a few crumpled shingles from nearby roofs.

We walked up the first two steps of the gazebo until Dex came to a stiff halt. ‘You’ve been a real good friend, Miss Piper. I know I didn’t make those first days of practice easy for you, especially with the whole gummy bear incident. Thank you for never giving up on me. I’m really sorry I’ve had to lie to you.’

‘Lie?’

He tipped his chin up to the gazebo. ‘Don’t be too surprised. I think he’d do anything for you.’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘Go up the stairs and see.’

He jumped off the steps and dashed across the grass to where his mom was sitting. They shared a few words until he pulled her out onto the dance floor, her smile lighting up the night.

I climbed the steps and a breath caught in my chest. Ford stood in the corner, a black suit hugging the outline of his frame. Those twenty-five-hundred-dollar shoes were on his feet, and his dark hair was combed back from his face. As usual, his glasses sat perfectly on the bridge of his nose.

‘Hi,’ he said, taking a few steps toward me.

‘What are you doing here?’ I babbled. ‘You’re supposed to be thousands of miles away!’

‘Gray came to visit me in Senegal. He told me about the tornado. I called and couldn’t get through. I apologized to my boss, bought the first ticket I could find, and flew back.’

‘The cell tower was damaged in the tornado. You could have waited. Tried to call again. That’s a long trip.’

He stepped in closer and put his hands on my cheeks. ‘See, that’s the problem. When it comes to you, I can’t wait.’

‘Ford, what is going on?’

‘That night on the rooftop you made me make a promise, which I convinced myself I could keep. But the more time I spent with you, the harder it was to stay away. To not feel anything for you. What I should have said in the hallway before I left was that I love you, Piper. Coming to this town, finding you, it was all unexpected. For so long I’ve thought my life only had room for one thing: my career. You’ve shown me that I need much more. I want this to work between us. How do we make that happen?’

I pulled back and walked to the edge of the gazebo. My breaths came in choking spurts. Tears burned the corners of my eyes. Ford was behind me a heartbeat later. The intoxicating heat of him wrapped around me like a warm hug.

‘I know you’re scared. That you’ve been through so much, but I’d rather break my own thumbs than hurt you. I swear that as long as you’re with me you’ll be loved tous les jours de ma vie.’

Even with his uneven breath speaking French, I couldn’t move.

‘I’m sorry. Was this wrong to do?’

‘No, but you have to understand that I never thought I’d get here. To a place where I felt happy. Believed I deserved to have a good life. I’ve made so many mistakes and shitty choices. When you’ve plunged to the darkest depths, it’s hard to believe you’ll ever see the light again.’ I turned and found those beautiful blue eyes. ‘Spending time with you has felt like the biggest gift I’ve been handed in this life, and I don’t want to give it back.’

He put his hands on my waist, staring at me with a devotion that took my breath away. ‘I’ll be done in late March. We can talk and text in the meantime. When I’m finished, I’ll come back and we’ll plan what’s next.’

‘Don’t you want to continue to serve on the Humanity of the Seas? It’s your passion.’

He pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. We’d only been apart a few weeks, but I’d forgotten the tenderness in his touch. How all he had to do was skim a finger across my skin and my entire body went electric. ‘Oh, I have a new passion now.’

‘Ford…’ I grabbed the lapels of his suit. ‘What is your plan?’

‘Dr Sheridan and I have talked. When I get back, I’m going to work at the clinic during the week. On the weekends, I’ll serve as a volunteer physician at one of the community shelters in Nashville.’

‘And you’ll be happy with that?’

He tucked a finger under my chin. ‘Yes, because I know this is where I belong. In Ivy Falls with you, as long as you’ll have me, Bird.’

I slung my arms around his neck. ‘Yes, that’s what I want, because I love you too.’ I pressed another kiss to his beautiful lips. ‘Just so you know, I had a plan too.’

There was that sweet grin of his I adored. ‘Were you also concocting a grand gesture? Maybe flying across the world so you could see this sexy face again?’

‘No, I’m a normal person. I was going to make a phone call.’

He threw back his head and laughed. ‘My plan was much better.’

I kissed him again and mumbled ‘I agree’ against his smile.