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I was in the stands at every Coyotes home game these days. Though my feelings on hockey hadn’t changed, supporting Ford meant more. I sat with Shelby Fox, who had become a good friend. She’d introduced Sam and I to her best friend Marlowe, the host of Cliterally Speaking, and we fangirled hard over pizza and wine.
“So I’ll show you guys around,” Luke said. “There are indoor climbing facilities, where we learn to climb and practice different climbing techniques. Let’s start there.”
I was blown away. My brother had grown from never climbing in his life into a seasoned climber, securing harnesses on Ford and me and showing us how to scale the wall. We’d come today for his graduation, and I could hardly wait to have him back at my place full-time.
“This is just a fitness room,” he said as he walked past. “Oh, let’s go to the kitchen. If we had time, I’d whip up some linguine with clams.”
I gave him a confused look. “Who are you and what have you done with my grilled-cheese-and-Lucky-Charms-eating brother?”
He wrinkled his nose. “No way could I eat that stuff now. Once you start cooking with fresh ingredients, you never go back to the processed stuff.”
Dad and I exchanged an impressed look. This was the first time I’d ever heard Luke express any concern over what he put in his body.
“Hey, Lina,” Luke said as we walked into a large kitchen filled with stainless-steel appliances. “This is my family.”
“Well, hey there,” Lina said. “We’re gonna miss this one an awful lot.”
“I’ll be back to visit,” Luke said.
“You better be.” She smiled at him. “There’s a fresh batch of granola. You know where.”
He gave her a one-armed hug. “You know I’ll be back for it later.”
He showed us the facility’s workout room, meditation room, chapel, dining hall, art room, art gallery, and library. Every time someone stopped him to say hello, I could tell he genuinely liked them.
Though he’d gone into this with low expectations, my brother was thriving. It was more than I’d ever hoped for.
Luke proudly turned the pages of a photo album he was taking with him, showing us the photos he too of the surrounding lakes, forests, and the beach. Even when he was bundled in snow gear, his smile said it all—he was happy. There were other people in many of the photos, and he was enthusiastic when telling us about them.
“This is Briana. She’s a riot,” he said. “And June, she’s a badass who can out-climb me even though she’s in her fifties. That’s Max and Shawn.” He turned to a photo of him and another man, both of them grinning as they stood in front of a waterfall with their arms around each other. “That’s Marcus. He’s a hiking guide here.” He looked at his watch. “We’d better get to the auditorium.”
His graduation ceremony was bittersweet. I was proud of him, but emotional when I saw his tears. It had to be scary for him to leave this safe environment and go back to his old one.
Ford held my hand through it all, as always. He was my partner and also my best friend, and I was now completely in love with him. He included me in everything and made sure I knew how he felt about me every day.
Whether with selfies from his road trips or flower deliveries when he was gone for games, he went out of his way for me, and I did the same for him. I dropped off his dry cleaning and made it a priority to be by his side for all his team and charity events.
This was love, and it had made me realize that I’d never really been in love before Ford. Love felt amazing. Worrying about whether your partner was cheating or being talked down to wasn’t love. Feeling lonely or burdensome wasn’t love.
My family adored Ford—especially Gram. She and Gramps had been spending more time in Denver and had even attended some of his games with me. My Dad had also given him a strong seal of approval.
“Your room is ready and waiting for you,” I told Luke after the ceremony. “I’ll have to give the Lucky Charms I bought to the neighbor kids, though. They’ll be thrilled.”
His smile faded. “Uh, about that, Elle…”
“What?”
He looked sheepish. “I’ve decided to stay here.”
“What?”
He nodded. “There are some longer hiking and climbing trips I want to do along the coast.”
Gramps smiled with approval. “I’ve already made the calls to unlock your trust, so money’s no issue.”
Luke gave him a grateful look. “Thanks. I can’t tell you how much it means to have some time to just explore the things I enjoy and decide what I want to do with my life.”
“Long hiking and climbing trips?” I squeezed Ford’s arm, concerned. “Is that safe by yourself? You could fall and break an ankle and no one would know.”
