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“They’ll rebound from it,” he said, answering Theo’s question. “This is a town with a lot of faith and fortitude. Love has endured much worse than this. I’m guessing it might not be an ideal outcome, but everyone would learn to live with it, including Honor.”
The thought of it caused a tightening sensation to spread across his chest. Honor’s face flashed before his eyes and he pushed the thought of her away. He didn’t want to think about her being hurt or disappointed. Joshua needed to focus on his own wants and Violet’s needs.
“Honestly, we probably won’t even have to deal with the fallout. We’re not sticking around Love any longer than necessary,” Theo said. “If I were you, I would avoid any more tender moments with Honor. It only serves to muddy the waters.”
“You’re right,” he said with a nod. “Things don’t need to get any more complicated than they already are.”
Try as he might, Joshua couldn’t completely snuff out the memory of the kiss he’d shared with Honor. It was probably the last one he would ever share with his ex-fiancée. Soon enough he and Violet would be back in Seattle, settled into their normal routine. Honor would be nothing more than a bittersweet memory from his past.
As they approached the gates to the Diamond R Ranch, Joshua cast his gaze across the property. Illuminated by the moonlight, it was the most stunning vista he had ever laid his eyes upon. It would always be near and dear to his heart. The memories would have to be enough to sustain him.
Joshua had come back to Love, Alaska, for the sole purpose of tying up his grandfather’s estate. Honor Prescott wasn’t part of his future. He needed to work harder to put her firmly in the past.
* * *
After the guests from Hazel’s party dispersed from the Moose Café, Honor stuck around to hel
p with the cleanup. Her staying to pick up the mess allowed Hazel and Jasper to head home without having to worry about the nitty-gritty details. Boone decided to send Grace home with baby Eva so he could stay and help Honor tidy up the place. The Moose Café would be open for breakfast first thing tomorrow morning and they wanted to make sure everything was in pristine condition.
After forty-five minutes or so, they were done. Boone grabbed two sodas from the fridge and sank down onto a seat at one of the tables.
He patted the chair beside him. “Come sit with me. I need to talk to you.”
A feeling of panic immediately seized her by the throat. Having a talk with her older brother rarely boded well. More times than not, Boone subjected her to a lecture of epic proportions. She wasn’t in the mood tonight.
Boone began to chuckle. “You look like a deer caught in the headlights. I want to talk, not torture you. Have a little faith, sis.”
Honor moved toward the table hesitantly. Boone stood up and pulled a chair out for her. She sat down and folded her hands in front of her on the table.
“You look like a little kid sitting like that.”
She squirmed in her seat. “I feel like one. I have an idea what this is about.”
Boone arched an eyebrow. He sat back in his chair, arms folded across his chest. “Really?”
“It’s about Joshua. Am I right?”
“Yes. You are.” He stroked his jaw. “There are a few things I’d like to say about you and Joshua.”
She slammed her hands down on the table. “Boone, there really isn’t anything between Joshua and me other than an uneasy truce. So you can save your speech. I really don’t want to hear a lecture from you about how unsuitable we are for each other and how rotten Joshua is. I know you think he’s a terrible, irresponsible person. You thought our engagement was the worst thing possible. And I know you must think I’m the biggest fool in the world for ever falling for him all those years ago.”
Boone’s jaw dropped. “Is that really how I sound?”
“Honestly, yes,” Honor admitted in a soft voice.
He reached out and took her hands in his. “I’m so sorry, Honor. It seems I’ve overplayed my position as eldest brother of the Prescott clan. I only ever wanted to protect my baby sister. I never for a single second ever wanted to clip your wings or make you feel less than for your choices.
“When I met Gracie we were opposites in many ways. Despite everything we fell for each other. Things fell apart when I found out she was lying to me and this town. In the end, I realized that Gracie made a mistake. I forgave her.” Boone looked down for a moment. His expression was full of emotion. “We’ve had it a bit rough, haven’t we? Two parents who bailed on us. We’ve all had to raise each other and rely on ourselves, haven’t we?”
The look of pain on her brother’s face was enough to bring her to her knees. Boone was a tough guy, one who had never shown a whole lot of emotion, especially about their upbringing. “We did,” she said through a haze of tears. “We got through it though. Prescotts are made of strong stuff.” She wiped tears away with the back of her hand.
“Here’s the thing. Loving Gracie taught me something important. You can’t help who you fall in love with. You just can’t. When you and Joshua fell in love as teenagers, all I could see was the negative. I was so scared for my little sister I never stopped to appreciate your love story. And when the church burned down, it gave me a legitimate reason to hate him.”
Honor’s eyes widened. “That’s all in the past, Boone.”
Boone sighed. “Not really. It’s crept into the present. I don’t like harboring negative feelings toward people. As a man of faith, it’s been a failing of mine. So I decided that I can’t do that anymore. I can’t hate Joshua for a mistake he made when he was barely of age. I don’t want to carry that burden around anymore. It’s too heavy.”
“Oh, Boone. That’s wonderful. Forgiveness is such a powerful gift. Not only for Joshua, but for yourself as well.” She reached out and squeezed his hand.
