Page 133 of The Golden Hour

Daisy is still there, and Honey is still her mother.

But Honey also remembers that she’s Miss Honey to these kids.

Her job was important to her, and now she has it back.

She finds one loose thread in that tangle of problems and finally pulls.

Mason’s car is in the driveway when Honey arrives home.

She glances at the time on her phone twice to confirm that it’s only noon. Mason shouldn’t be home for another seven hours, she thinks as she unloads Daisy and carries her inside the quiet house. Her dad’s in the garage, and she finds her mother in the kitchen, staring out the window with a cup of coffee in her hand.

Melissa glances over when Honey walks in, immediately placing her mug down and reaching out for Daisy.

“Come to Mimi,” Melissa says, taking the baby from Honey’s arms. “There she is. Did you make some new friends?”

Daisy smiles around Ellie the Elephant’s ear in her mouth, and Melissa laughs before glancing back toward the window.

Honey follows her mother’s sight and is surprised to see Mason sitting in the backyard. Still in his scrubs. He’s sitting in one of the chairs under the oak tree she used to climb as a child. She can’t see his face, but his body language says enough—his shoulders look relaxed, his breathing even, his elbows leaning on his knees.

“He wouldn’t tell me what happened,” Melissa says, pressing kisses to a giggling Daisy’s cheeks. “Said he wanted to talk to you first.”

“That sounds ominous,” Honey says quietly, anxiety spiking in her gut.

“Maybe,” Melissa says, eyes trailing back toward the window. “Maybe not.”

Honey checks that Daisy is settled before she steps outside. Mason’s shoulders rise slightly at the sound of the sliding glass door, but he doesn’t turn around; he just keeps staring at the oak tree.

The fall air is crisp, but the lingering early-afternoon sun is warm as Honey walks toward him. The anxiety coils in her gut tighter and tighter with each step she takes on the grass. She doesn’t know why he’s home, but it feels important that he is.

“Mason?” she whispers, once she’s next to him.

He sighs deeply, like he’s relieved or settled.

“Hi, baby…” he murmurs, his voice honey-thick.

“Why are you home?”

Mason lets that question sit, and she sees his face twitch, his brow furrowing as he considers his answer.

“The hospital offered me an attending position,” he says. “They gave me a contract to sign.”

Honey’s mouth goes dry.

She doesn’t know why, considering this was the plan all along. He finishes out his residency and gets an attending position there. Everything’s been so complicated with the lawsuit, the process feeling like defusing a bomb, staying in a state of subterfuge. She knows why it feels like a betrayal, and yet…

It’s all so confusing.

“Oh…” is the only thing her dry mouth allows her to choke out.

Mason smiles widely, still not looking at her.

“Yeah, they offered me quite the package. Debt relief. Inflated salary,” his mouth curves into a grin, and he wiggles his eyebrows at her. “Leadership track. Everything I was hoping for… and more…”

Honey swallows hard.

Her voice comes out sharper as she asks, “And what did you do?”

Mason watches the golden autumn afternoon.