Brayden sees me and immediately grins. He comes over and gives me a hug just as Sophia calls out to us.
“Hey! Fancy running into you two here.”
June comes running down the aisle and nearly crashes into me. “Lei!” she says with a smile.
I look at her suspiciously. “You never get this excited,” I say. “What do you want?”
“I don’t want anything,” she says, still smiling. “But somebody does. Guess who was just in here asking who painted that mural on the wall?”
I shrug. “Who?”
“Gus Newton, owner of Perks Coffeehouse. He’s the one who puts up local art in his shop. He wants yours, Lei.”
I shake my head. “I don’t get it.”
“Oh my God!” Sophia yells. “Those paintings that are hung up in there? They’re all for sale,” she explains to me. “Some of them sell for hundreds of dollars.”
“Really?” I say.
“I’ll tell him you’re interested,” June says. She hands me his card. “Call him yourself, actually, and you can figure out a timeframe.”
Brayden grins at me. “That’s awesome.”
“So June, did you hear your sister and Brayden are about to be the town heroes?” Sophia says.
She fills June in on the soil development, and June is so impressed she suggests I tell Mom and Dad, “…so you can brag. Hey, how come Phillip didn’t help you with the testing?” she asks me suddenly.
“Phillip didn’t believe it mattered,” Sophia says airily. “Phillip was too busy trying to save the world in his head rather than the one he’s living in.”
Brayden gives Sophia a look, but June thinks it’s hysterical.
Sophia bumps June with her basket by mistake and June looks at what she’s bought. “Your breakfast?” she inquires.
“Bananas with a donut,” Sophia says as she turns to Brayden and me and gives us both a knowing look. “One goes perfect with the other. What else do you need, right?”
Brayden grins at her. “You just don’t have any shame, do you?”
“None whatsoever,” she says with a look over at me. “I think others could learn from me, actually. Life is supposed to be fun, after all. And if it ain’t fun, what’s the point?”
Brayden kisses me goodbye by my car. “Good luck this afternoon,” he says, and I know he doesn’t just mean my job. “I know you need to take some time to get your feet under you, so please…” He cups my cheek in his hand. “Take it, okay? However long you need. I’m not going anywhere. Take the time for you, Lei.”
I kiss him back. “I’ll be thinking of you the whole time.”
On my way to work, the leasing agent calls to tell me my application was approved and that I can move in this afternoon if I want.
“Yes, that’s perfect,” I say to her. “Thank you very much.”
While Phillip’s teaching class, I pack up all my stuff. It doesn’t take long; most of the furniture is his from before we moved in here, and I’m not going to try to share things we bought together. Cut the couch in half? I don’t think so.
I pack what is really and truly mine, and I leave the rest. If Phillip wants help later to sell some of it, I can do that. Because I know he may want to leave this house, too. All the memories here are of the two of us, and I think we both need a fresh start.
I reach for the phone then. I need help moving, and Sophia’s at work.
“Hi, Leleila.” Mom answers on the second ring. “How are you, honey?”
“I’m all right.” I clear my throat. “I’m sorry to have surprised you this morning like that. Phillip and I officially broke up. I had to wait to tell you until he could reach his parents. It’s all for the best, for both of us, and I’ve never been happier.”
“Oh, honey.” After making sure I’m definitely okay, Mom says she likes Brayden. “I never knew, Lei. And that’s my fault. But I never knew someone like Brayden could work so well with you.”
“It’s not your fault, Mom,” I say.
“No, it is. I pride myself on knowing the facts, and the fact is you’re different than your father and me. You know I was so different from my own parents, too, and I feel like I should have seen this. Good for you. I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I say. “Um, is Dad there? I need him for something.”
It takes three trips to get my stuff from the house to my new apartment. Between Dad’s economy car that barely fits a human being in the back seat, and my sedan, we could do better. With Brayden’s truck, it would have been one easy trip, and we probably would have gone to dinner afterward and celebrated and then made love to christen my new place. But I can’t call Brayden for this. I want to start my official relationship with him on the right foot, not moving out of the house I shared with my ex.
“Are you okay, honey?” Dad asks me as we unload his car in the parking lot and start toward the elevator.
“Yeah.”
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“It takes a very strong, brave person to change course, you know.” He stops to shift the boxes in his arms. “You moving out, taking up painting again—that takes courage.”
“But you always said to stay the course.”
“I meant if you love the course you’re on. If you don’t, I think changing course takes just as much conviction,” he says. “You know you’re doing the right thing.”
“Yes. Thanks, Dad.”
We finish unpacking, and I wave goodbye to my father as he pulls away. Then I walk into my new apartment alone. I stand in the middle of the tiny studio, completely clueless about what to do next. I’m definitely scared. I’d been dutifully marching along in place by Phillip’s side, and Brayden was like a wake-up call, the best wake-up call I’ve ever had in my life. But I’ve never been a woman without Phillip by my side. I grew up with him.
I reach for the phone to call June.
“I live near your store now,” I say.
“What do you mean?”
“I live on Main,” I say. “I moved out on my own. Like you did a hundred years ago? Well, I’m just now catching up to my little sister.”
I can practically hear her mind racing, trying to figure out what’s going on. “Are you saying…” she begins but doesn’t finish the sentence.
“I’m saying Phillip and I broke up, and I’m head over heels in love with somebody else,” I say.
June screams. Three times. When she finally comes to, she says, “I wondered why Brayden looked so tired today. He didn’t sound sick. He looked pretty satisfied, actually.”
“Enough,” I warn her.
She laughs. “Leleila, I’m happy you’re happy.”
“Thanks.”
“And I’ve cleared some space in the front corner of the store, by the way. It’s going to be for your paintings. I’ll sell them, and maybe then I can pay you back for the new business your sign and mural sent my way.”
“That’s awesome,” I say to her. “But you don’t owe me anything. Actually, I was wondering about that empty suite next door to you?”
“The dusty, peeling paint suite?” June asks me.
“Yes,” I say. “That one. How much do you think it leases for?”
“Not much,” she says. “The building owner begged me to incorporate it into my store. Said I could have it as part of the same lease price. She just wants to see it being used.”
“I want it,” I say. “I’ll turn it into a painting studio, and I can hold a mural painting class there too.”
“That’s a great idea,” she says. “I’ll call Jodie and tell her to hold the suite. You can call it Big Sky Painting.”
“Actually, I’m going to call it Painting Big Sky,” I say. “Oxymoronic, right?”
“But it works,” she says.
When I hang up with June, I get a joyful phone call from Mom and Dad together. I guess the town newspaper came out this morning, but they just saw it. Brayden and I are on the cover with the title “Town Heroes” abo
ve our heads.
“Oh no,” I say. “Brayden’s going to be so embarrassed.”
“He should love it,” Mom says. “It’s wonderful. And what a lovely picture of you both. Brayden looks so handsome.”
I finally get them off the phone with a promise to bring Brayden over for dinner so we can tell them the whole story. “Every detail,” Mom insists, “Especially the parts where you and Brayden take that romantic trail ride through the woods. And did he lift you at all?”
“Lift me?” I repeat.
“In his arms,” she says. “You know, over a stream or something fantastic like that. It’s always in the romance novels that way.”
“Mom, I had no idea you read romance novels,” I say. “I thought that was beneath you.”
“Oh, who doesn’t love a little romance now and again?” She giggles. “Right Fred?”
Dad chuckles, and I hastily tell them goodbye.
Then I take a deep breath and call Gerry. I have to leave a voicemail, but he calls me back within the hour and agrees to meet me at Huckman Hall for tea.
Gerry sits quietly until I’m done telling him my decision and my reasons behind it. He reacts in silent surprise—I only catch it in his eyes—when I tell him Phillip and I ended our engagement, and then he says, “So what are you going to do? Because I know you couldn’t have made either of these decisions lightly.”
“No,” I say. “Not at all. Actually, there is something…” I tell him about my painting.
“I saw the mural at the store,” he says. “And I wondered who did that. It’s quite eye catching, you know.” He smiles. “I’m proud of you, Lei. I admire what you’re doing very much.”
“Thank you for always trying to guide me in the right direction even when I was so far off,” I tell him.
“And you and that guy in the paper,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. “Your partner in heroism…he wouldn’t have anything to do with your future, would he?”
I smile at him innocently. “Why would you say that?”
“Just a hunch,” he says. “Pretty impressive stuff that you two sleuthed out, by the way. You don’t need to be tenured to see that.”
I smile wider. “No, I guess not.”
I leave Sophia a message that I’ll call her later, and then I take three days alone. I work, and I paint, and I enjoy my own space. I need to make it mine before I invite him into it. I also do something I’ve been avoiding.
I call a therapist in Missoula, someone a colleague mentioned she saw and highly recommended. I make an appointment with her for next week to discuss my past trauma and how to get a handle on it. If I ever run into Noah again, I don’t want to feel like I have to hide. And if I’m going to be in a healthy relationship with Brayden, I want to feel strong and in control of my life, not like I’m running from old demons.
I also can’t avoid Sophia. By the end of day two, she’s called ten times, and when I do return her calls, she insists on meeting me at the café.
“Okay,” I tell her. “But I’m still figuring my life out. I’m not sure I’m ready for an outside opinion.”
Sophia stares at me as I walk through the doors.
“What?” I say as I sit across from her at the table.
She blinks and then shakes her head. “Nothing,” she says, and I’m almost disappointed. “I just had this crazy thought the other day when we saw each other, but then you left the store so fast to get back to work. And then, when I saw you walking through the door just now…” She stops as she stares at me again and gasps. “Holy fuck! You lost your purity ring, didn’t you?”
I shush her. “Quit yelling. I’m not sixteen. Or religious.”
She lowers her voice. “But did you? Did you have sex with Brayden?”
I nod and try not to smile any wider than I am.
“And?” she starts to ask. Then she looks at me closely again and surely notices the sparkle in my eyes and the happy glow in my face, a glow that hasn’t disappeared despite the days apart. “I don’t even need to ask you. Congratulations on having amazing, life-changing sex, Lei.”
“It’s not just that. I mean, yeah, that’s great. But I love him. A lot.”
“I know you do. It’s so awesome!”
I keep smiling.
The next evening after I finish work, I drive to the ranch. I get out of the car slowly and walk up the steps to Brayden’s house. I knock, my stomach doing cartwheels.
“I moved out on my own,” I say as soon as he opens his door.
His eyes brighten. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
I step inside and shut the door behind me.
“Yes. I’m finally okay.” I reach out and hug him, resting my cheek against his soft blue t-shirt. “I live on my own for the first time in my life. And I officially dropped out of the PhD program.”
I step inside and shut the door behind me. “Plus, I’m going to lease the empty business suite next door to June’s and do my painting there.”
“That’s awesome,” he says.
“And I’m seeing a therapist.”
He takes my hand. “That’s great, Leleila. I’ll support you with that in any way I can.”
He leads me out to his porch and lies down on the rug in front of the fire. I join him, and he stretches his legs out, his blue jeans still hugging every part of him to perfection. He points at the cracks in the ceiling paint. “It’s a sun. You see it?”
I look where he’s pointing. “I do,” I say, and I feel the blood coming into my body after my day of work.
Brayden reaches over and takes my hand in his.
“A lot of changes, and they’re all good,” he says. “So let’s celebrate.”
I turn to face him, and my stomach clenches. “What do you mean?”
“I mean”—Brayden turns on his side and kisses my neck—“I want to spend quality time with you indoors at last with no interruptions.” He stands up to draw the shades and then lies back down next to me. “What do you say?”
I feel like I’m going to explode if he doesn’t touch me right now. I say yes.
“All day?” I reach for the buttons on his jeans.
“And night,” he says as he kisses me.
“I love you, Brayden Wild,” I say. “You’re my best friend. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Brayden’s sapphire eyes are clear and brighter than ever as he looks at me. “I’m so in love with you, Leleila. I can’t picture myself with anyone else. No matter how many obstacles seemed to be in our path, all I’ve wanted is to spend every day together. I’ve never loved a woman like I love you. This feels like I never want it to end. I’m forever yours. And hopefully you’ll be forever mine.”
Forever sounds good to me now. When it’s with the right person, forever sounds perfect.
Epilogue
Brayden
I watch as Leleila heads toward me down the cereal aisle of June’s store. Same beautiful woman with the striking green eyes, coming to meet me in a store aisle. But everything else is different. She’s different.
The tension that always coiled around her, that look of almost near-pain she would wear, is gone. Leleila Wills is happier now. And of course I’d love to take all the credit, but I’m just one piece of the puzzle. Her dream of painting is becoming a reality. She sold a few pieces to a couple of stores on Main Street, and she’s going to hold her first showcase at her studio early next year.
Phillip and Mindy started dating and moved out of Mountainview and into Missoula so he could be closer to campus. Leleila said she didn’t care either way, but I know it was a relief for her to not have to run into them in town all the time. We still see him and Mindy occasionally at Big Sky Grocer, and the four of us are friendly. But they don’t come to town often.
After a year of dating like “normal” people, Leleila and I finally decided to move in together. I had purchased Big River Ranch six months earlier, and Leleila said she couldn’t imagine finding anywhere she loved as m
uch.
We’ve already discussed how much we want to start a family together someday in the near future. And that’s why I’ve got this ring burning a hole in my pocket.
When Leleila reaches me, I put my hands on her waist. “Come walk with me,” I say as I give her a long, sweet kiss.
“Where are we going, Bray?” she asks me as I pull back. Her eyes are dazed and slightly unfocused like they always are after I kiss her.
“It’s a surprise.” I take her hand and lead her out to the street.
When I stop at the door to CeeGee’s Bakery, she squeals. “I’m starving! I would give everything for a cupcake right now.”
“Well, you don’t have to give anything because here we are.” I open the door, and we walk up to the counter.
We do our usual routine of taste testing the new flavors of cupcakes available today. Leleila settles on a peanut butter cup while I go for the double dark chocolate ecstasy.
We sit down at a booth in the back, and when she’s not looking, I slip the ring out of my pocket and onto the top of her cupcake like a cupcake topper.
She lifts her head from where her gaze was staring into her purse and turns to her cupcake. My pulse is pounding as I watch her go from about to swipe a bit of frosting off the top and then lick it off her finger, as is her custom, to the moment she sees the bright diamond glimmering on the dark sugary top.
“What the heck—” Her fingers close around the ring and she lifts it out of the frosting gingerly. Her gaze flies up to meet mine. “Brayden. What is this?”
I leave the booth and sink to my knee in front of her. “Leleila, I love you more than anything. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
The hand holding the ring goes to cover her mouth, which has dropped open. Her eyes widen as she stares at me without speaking.
“Lei? I know you went through an engagement once before and it didn’t turn out the way you’d dreamed. If this is too soon, please say so. I’ll wait for you. You know I will.”
A mischievous glint fills her emerald eyes. “No substitute dance partner required?”
Brayden (Wild Men Book 6) Page 26