Page 21

"You said you deserve the yes." I step closer. Close enough to touch her. "You do. You deserve every yes for the rest of your life. And I'm standing here, in the middle of a festival I swore I'd never attend, asking you to let me be the one who gives them to you."

Kennedy crosses the distance. Her arms go around my neck. Her mouth finds mine. The kiss tastes like salt and cider and sunlight.

The crowd explodes. Hank whistles. Ms. Shelly claps. The kid with the glue yells "MISS BROOKS IS KISSING THE GRUMPY MAN!" and his mother tries to cover his mouth but she's laughing too hard.

I pull back. My hands on her face. Thumbs wiping her tears.

"I love you." The words come out steady. The first steady thing I've said in three years. "I love you, Kennedy Brooks."

"I love you too." Her laugh is wet and bright and full. "You impossible, chair carrying, dead end street man."

"It's not a dead end. Turns out somebody just needed to walk down it."

She grabs the front of my flannel with both fists. Pulls me down for another kiss while Maple Lane Falls loses its collective mind around us.

Hank yells across the square. "Drinks are on me! Somebody get that man a whiskey!"

Dolly: "Somebody get ME a whiskey, I can't stop crying!"

Ms. Shelly appears at my elbow, squeezes my arm. "Good flannel." Then she turns to Kennedy. "I told him. Tuesday morning. Wear the good flannel."

"I know you did." Kennedy wipes her face. Laughing. "You meddling, book hoarding, beautiful woman."

We stay at the festival. The whole afternoon. Kennedy's hand in mine, walking past the corn maze, through the vendor rows, in front of the FALL IN LOVE sign where someone takes our photo. We drink cider at Hank's bonfire. Eat donuts from Pistachio Sweets. Ms. Shelly sits in the rocking chair and declares it the best seat at the festival.

Lina tells me my coffee is free for life. Maya says her daughter is going to hear about this. The vendor from Home Sweet Burgers gives me a burger and says "on the house, parking lot man."

Maple Lane Falls. My town. My people. I just hadn't let them be mine until today.

At sunset, Kennedy pulls me into the town square. The FALL IN LOVE sign is pink and gold in the fading light. The string lights blink on one by one.

"Dance with me."

"I don't dance."

"Liar. You've been swaying to the bluegrass for an hour."

"That's not dancing."

"Close enough." She takes my hands. Puts them on her waist. Steps close. Her head against my chest. We sway in the town square while the fiddle plays something that sounds like coming home.

I press my mouth to the top of her head. She smells like cinnamon. My arms tighten around her.

Three years ago I drove into this town because the road ended. Today I stayed because she was standing in the middle of it.

Liam would've loved her.

He'd have been right.

EPILOGUE

KENNEDY

SIX MONTHS LATER

Rhett Gallagher is late to Saturday breakfast.

This is notable because six months ago, Rhett Gallagher didn't do Saturday breakfast. Or breakfast with other humans. Or anything that required being in the same room as more than one person at a time.