“I couldn’t find what I was looking for. And I had to track down my legal counsel.”
“Lawyers are never around when you need them to be,” Will said. He and Flynn knew some of what Slade had done that day. They’d come up with a reason to assemble the rest of Slade’s friends for him.
“I instructed my divorce lawyer to inform the judge of what Evy did—how she told the girls I was dangerous, not just to myself, but to them. I have a feeling they’ll be on the next plane out.”
“Why are you clutching that box?” Emma asked.
Slade awkwardly tucked the box beneath his arm. “Because I needed to return your things and I didn’t want to lose your engagement ring.” He found it and handed it carefully back to her. “I don’t know many women who would leave a three-carat diamond on the floor of someone’s house on purpose.”
“Rings are replaceable.” Emma smiled gently. “Friends are not.”
“Or sisters.” Slade rummaged in the box again and handed Will the picture of his sister.
Will touched his forehead to Emma’s. Her finger stroked Amy’s picture and then Will’s face. She gave him a gentle kiss on the lips.
Beside Slade, Christine shifted against the railing, as if uncomfortable.
“Becca, you were the first person to show me how to let someone die with dignity and love. None of us, especially Flynn, could have stood vigil at his grandfather’s bedside without your compassionate wisdom.” He handed her the Purple Heart medal her first husband had earned. “I wish I’d known you years ago.” Things might have turned out differently for both himself and his father.
He reached for the baseball cap. “Flynn, I know you don’t have to hide beneath this hat anymore trying to prove you don’t look like your dad. I know you wear it to be closer to your grandfather.” He handed the cap to his friend. “I hope you won’t give me too much of a bad time when I show up to a business meeting wearing a tie. Some protocols still need to be honored.” But Slade was done wearing one seven days a week. He finally felt as if he was free.
The handcuffs clanked together as Slade pulled them from the box. “Nate, given the emotional significance of everyone else’s items, I don’t want to know the truth behind these.”
Everyone but Christine laughed as Slade handed them over. “I assumed you were trying to tell me to unshackle myself from the house.”
“Close enough.” Nate tucked the cuffs into his back pocket.
Christine was fidgeting now, no doubt realizing all the offerings but hers had been returned.
Holding the box with two hands, Slade looked inside. He winced. One hand loosened its grip and reflexively reached for the tie that no longer hung around his neck. He let his hand drop to his side, sliding it into his pocket before taking the box again with two hands.
“I brought back your shoes, Christine. I know you don’t agree with how I spend money on myself or the girls, but life is short. People can be taken away from you, and people can take themselves away.” He kept his gaze on her, hoping. “I realize now that my Dad died years before he committed suicide. Mental illness stole him from me. I know that I can’t buy back those years or my innocence, no matter how much money I make. In the future, I want to spend more on making people happy than on the status and image that come with success.”
He glanced down and saw she was wearing a cheap pair of flip-flops. “But, Christine, if you love high-quality shoes and they make you happy, you should wear them more often.”
He knelt at her feet and placed his fingers lightly on her ankle. He could feel her pulse pound rapidly. He gave her a smile, equal parts gentle challenge and acceptance. He was ready to love her. “What do you say? How about you wear this fine example of Italian workmanship?”
When she didn’t move, he tried again. “I gave up my Italian ties. One of us has to represent.” He lifted her foot up ever so slowly, nearly passing out with relief that she let him. And then he replaced her plastic flip-flop with Italian craftsmanship, first on one foot and then the other. He deposited her plastic sandals carefully in the box as if they were more expensive than the leather on her feet and set the box aside.
“I’ve let you down in so many ways, Christine. I didn’t tell you the whole truth about the day my father died. I didn’t stand up for myself against Evy or express my feelings for you. I haven’t felt worthy of anyone’s affection for years, much less been able to feel worthy of love when it’s offered without expectation.”
He still knelt at her feet, on one knee. “I was afraid. Not that I’d try to kill myself again, but that someone I loved wouldn’t believe I wouldn’t try. And so I locked myself away with expensive ties, trying to feel safe. Instead, I felt empty and lost and alone.”
“This is better than when you proposed to Emma,” Flynn whispered to Will.
Everyone shushed him. Everyone except Christine.
“I’ll always have this crazy extended family.” He paused. “Did you know Hiro Takata wants to adopt me? I don’t understand how so many people find something to like about me, but I’m hoping you’ll find many things to love about me.”
He took off the engagement ring he’d slipped onto his pinky when he’d reached in his pocket and held it up to her. “I love you, Christine. I know we only met less than a month ago, but sometimes you just realize deep down in your heart that you want to spend the rest of your life with someone. I want to spoil you with great shoes and fancy dresses, even if they have feathers. I want to work as hard at loving you as you work in the vineyard. And I promise you that I will never leave you of my own free will. I’m yours from this day forward, from now until forever.”
Tears in her eyes, Christine drew him to his feet. “How could I turn down an offer like that? Especially when I love you so very much.”
“Maybe because he never popped the question,” Flynn ribbed.
He’d been so nervous he’d forgotten to actually ask her. “Will you marry me?” he blurted.
“Yes.” Grinning, she slid her hands up to rest on either side of his neck. “I’ve been waiting for someone who deserves my love and loyalty.”
Slade was so happy. There was only one thing missing. “The girls are going to be upset that they missed this.”
“Not to worry.” Nate waved his cell phone. “I recorded the whole thing.”
* * *
LATER, WHEN THE champagne had been popped and toasts made, when family members, extended and otherwise, had been notified, when the sun had gone down over the mountains to the west, Slade leaned against the railing on Flynn’s porch, his arm around Christine.
They were serenaded by frogs and crickets down by the river as Slade counted off how blessed he was with Faith, Grace, Christine, Hiro, Flynn, Will, Becca, Emma, Nate, Agnes... He was running out of fingers.
“This rock is huge.” Christine turned her finger so the five-carat ring glittered in the porch light.
He caressed the finger that wore his ring so well. “Does that mean you want to trade it in for something else? We could go smaller.”
“No.” She clutched her hand to her chest. “You said you wanted to spoil me, and you did just that. But it’s not a ring I can wear every day in the vineyard, especially not during harvest.”
“I could buy you an everyday wedding band.”
“You don’t have to.”
“No, but I want to. Plain diamonds, channel set in platinum.” Nothing but the best for his wife. She was the primary reason he was finally ridding himself of the shackles of the Death and Divorce House. The twins, his friends, Hiro. They had created a very strong supporting role, so that he’d finally learned that money couldn’t wipe out mistakes.
“Oh, yeah.” She nudged him playfully with her hip. “I won’t worry about losing that, either.”
“I have an early wedding gift for you.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? You were that confident I’d accept?”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead, choosing not to tell her how lacking in confidence he’d been. “I made an offer on some property on the east side of town overlooking the river. We’ll need to build a house, but I know this great architect...”
“Have fun overseeing the plans. I think that should be a long-overdue birthday present for you.” She snuggled closer, crooning softly, “And many more...”
“You don’t want to help me design it?”
“I’m plenty busy working at the winery. Harvest is almost here. And I trust you.” She rubbed a hand over his chest where his tie used to rest. “Ryan had this idea about crowdsourcing, which wasn’t quite right. But then I realized Harmony Valley can call in a crowd—all the younger relatives of our residents. We can give them each a tie-dyed T-shirt made by Mayor Larry and a bottle of wine when it’s ready. And Flynn wants to pitch moving here permanently to anyone who shows up to help.”
Slade shifted until he held her at arm’s length. “We were talking about building a home. The place we’re going to raise our children. And you changed the subject to the winery?”
She laughed. “I know, I know. I get carried away with my work.” She planted a gentle kiss on his jaw. “As long as you have a professional-grade kitchen and some kind of wine storage...and a fantastic bedroom, second story, overlooking the river...I’m in.”
“You’re a dedicated woman. And I wouldn’t have you any other way.” He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. “Now, my real early wedding gift to you is that I sent out a press release saying our permits and our winery are not for sale.”
“That’s so sweet.”
“The reason being that our partnership has already sold—”
“You lied to me?” Christine tried to push away from him, but he held on tight.
“Let me finish.” He waited until she stilled. “I bought the permits from the partnership and now I’m giving them to you.” He did release her then. Or at least he let her step back. He kept his hands on her arms. He’d probably always be reluctant to let her go.
“What? But why?”
“Because I realized that personal promises should come before profit objectives. Because I’m not afraid to put my future in your hands.” He grinned. “And because we’re three beer guys who know nothing about growing or making wine. We need a fourth partner, someone who’ll be in charge and have our best interests at heart. The partnership still owns the property and the winery, but you’ll own the permit and control how much wine we make and when.”
She stretched to her tiptoes to press a kiss to the scar on his neck. “You never have to buy me anything again.”
That was nice to hear, but Slade doubted he’d be able to stop himself from spoiling her.
Life was too precious and love too fragile to take anything for granted.
* * * * *
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ISBN-13: 9781460332214
SEASON OF CHANGE
Copyright © 2014 by Melinda Wooten
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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Season of Change Page 24