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“They threatened to sell the house?” She squeezes her mouth shut and takes in a deep breath through her nose.
I nod. “That’s not acceptable of them, Claire.”
“I know.” Claire stills, her expression boring into me. “But you can leave Longdale if you want, Sophie. I’ll be just fine.”
“Well, you can leave, too. Why are you still here and then getting aftermefor not moving on?”
“I want to move sometimes,” she says. “I was staying to make sureyouwere okay.”
We both laugh.
“You can run off with Oliver,” Claire teases. “And I wouldn’t even be mad if you eloped in some crazy place as long as you let me throw you a reception here eventually.”
Her words shock me, but right now, I’m a puddle. My heart is beating wildly thinking about letting myself love him, completely, finally after all these years of telling myself I couldn’t.
“Sophie, he’s in love with you,” Claire says.
“What makes you think that?” I feel a shiver throughout my bones. It’s telling my body and soul that she’s right. But that doesn’t mean I can’t ask her for her thoughts on the matter. I’d like to bathe in thoughts about Oliver and how he feels about me.
“After you left Scott tonight, he talked to Grandma and Grandpa.”
I grip the edge of the table. “He did?”
Claire nods. “A nice, civil conversation. He was actually really good at validating their feelings, without letting them walk all over his own. He asked them to stop treating you that way. Sophie. He told them he was in love with you.” Claire’s eyes shine. “He promised that, if you felt the same way, he’d stay by your side. He said he wants to spend the rest of his life with you.”
I cover my face with my hands. My heart is beating so wildly I can hardly think straight. “I can’t believe it. Except. Icanbelieve it, actually. That’s the part that’s so surprising…that I’m not surprised.” I look at Claire. “He’s never said he loves me. What did they say? How did they react?”
“Whoa. Hold up. You’ll need to ask him about why he hasn’t mentioned that yet. And as for Grandma and Grandpa? They said this will be difficult for them to accept, considering the past. But they said they were willing to try. Grandma was even smiling at the end.”
This is all too much for me to take in.
“You should find Oliver,” Claire says. “Go talk to him. He’s worried about you.”
“How do you feel about all this?”
She swivels her gaze up to the ceiling. “My only hesitation before was my fear that you’d get hurt. But seeing his face tonight—” She whistles and shakes her head. “He really does love you. And you can take care of your decisions yourself. I need to trust you in that.”
“Thank you, Claire.” I hug her, not able to stop the sting of tears in my eyes from all the pain and all the love that’s been here in this house for so long.
Chapter 33
Sophie
I’m doing a strange, sort of wiggly dance as I get out of my car at Oliver’s house. It’s just nerves—the kind of nerves that buzz through my body like a cellphone on vibrate.
The early June sunshine has started to hit the treetops in Longdale. The air is so clean. My mind is so clear.
I sort of slept last night, even though every cell in my brain and body wanted to talk with Oliver.
I’m ready for this. I’m ready for all of it with him. And having to wait until this morning felt impossible.
I stand outside his house, reach my hand out to knock on the frosted glass of his modern-style front door, and then hesitate. For the first time in a long time, I don’t have work today. I mean, with Scott being transported right this moment to a scrapyard upstate, I can’t. It killed me to have to post on social media and the library website: “Library hours have been canceled indefinitely. Stay tuned for more information.”
And that was it. Something about it feels so final, and I don’t know if I’m just preparing myself for the possibility that the county will decide to forgo the library program altogether, or if I really do have a sixth sense about it.
In any case, nothing’s holding me back now. Nothing’s tying me down until at least August when the board meets. I’m free to love Oliver.
I knock on his door, not at all sure of what I’ll say when he opens it. I glance down at the casual pants and tank top I threw on this morning, fingering the folded-up sheet of paper in my pocket. I did shower and wash my hair, so there’s that. No juicy peach dog dry shampoo for this moment.
