One Day Soon
Page 36
Reminding myself that she was better off without me.
That my decision to leave her was the right one.
I was there on her first day of work. Smiling and wearing a soft pink blouse and grey skirt.
I watched when she moved into her own place.
And the day she got married.
She wore a floor length sleeveless gown and carried daisies. Her hair was down and I noticed she still wore the necklace I had given her. She carried a piece of me, of our life together, even as she said vows to another man.
I also saw the day the asshole left her. I noticed she didn’t cry. Not one tear. And that made me incredibly glad. Because my selfish heart was reassured that she had never really belonged to anyone else.
I saw it all.
And she never knew that in all those years, my soul was always, forever hers.
As my days dwindled into nothing, she was my constant.
She had no idea that everything I was would always revolve around her.
That when things were at their bleakest, she had always been, would always be, my happy life.
Three years later
“And the prince got down on one knee and asked the princess to marry him. When she looked at him she remembered the boy who had taken care of her and kept her safe in a world of many dangers. He made her happier than she ever thought she could possibly be.”
“And she said, yes!” the tiny, impatient voice cut in excitedly.
“Well, let me finish, Ava. You’re the one that wanted to hear this story again.” I pulled the little girl up into my lap. She squealed as the waves came up and washed over our feet. The sun was starting to set but we weren’t in a rush to leave the beach.
Not just yet.
Ava loved the beach so we came as often as we could.
“Because it’s my favorite. Even if the boy is silly for running away from the girl, he found her again and they lived happily ever after,” Ava burst out, a bright smile on her pretty face.
I kissed my adopted daughter’s dark brown curls. “Do you want to finish it?” I asked her and she shook her head.
“No, you tell it the best.”
“Okay, well the handsome prince with the dark hair and green eyes took the princess’s hand and kissed it and she knew that they would have their happy life. That everything they had always wanted would be theirs. So she said yes. It was the perfect answer for the start of a perfect life.” Ava wiggled, wanting to get up and play in the sand.
She plopped down beside me, scooping up a handful and dropping it in front of her.
“I love that story. It’s my favorite. It’s really sad in the beginning when the princess runs away from home, but the prince finds her and takes care of her even though he’s disguised as a beggar. And they fall in love and everything!” I handed Ava the shovel and watched as she dug a hole in the sand, which was quickly filling up with the rising tide.
“But the ending’s the best. Because they live happily ever after. All good stories end with a happily ever after,” Ava said with a silly smile on her face.
“Tell it again!” she pleaded and I laughed, never able to deny anything to the six year old that had healed the last wound on my scarred heart.
“Should I tell a different one this time?” I asked her, wiggling my toes in the sand.
“As long as it’s about Yoss and Imi. That’s your name too, Mommy,” Ava announced with the brightest of bright smiles.
“You like the stories about Yoss and Imi, don’t you?”
Ava nodded emphatically. “Are they about you?”
I leaned down and scooped her up in my arms, loving the way she giggled. I nuzzled her sweet smelling hair before setting her back on her feet. I settled down beside her again and I told her stories that made her happy. That made me happy.
That allowed us to envision a perfect world where Yoss and Imi were always happy. Always together.
I told her the words by rote. A story of two people who fought a lifetime of hardship to be together.
In this story there was no heartache. No well-intentioned dishonesty. No tears that never seemed to stop.
But there was the villain. Every good story had one.
“Oh, I hate Manny. He’s the evilest wizard ever! And he’s so mean to Yoss and Imi. Always making Yoss go off and fight the mean dragon. But Imi saves him, doesn’t she? She’s the hero.”
“I don’t know if she’s the hero, but she’d do whatever she could to save the boy she loved. Because true love never dies, Ava. Never ever.”
I stared out at the rolling ocean and could hardly believe I was finally here. It was just about perfect.
Except for that one thing that was missing.
“Yoss defeats Manny though and he rides off with Imi on his white unicorn!” Ava exclaimed enthusiastically tossing a handful of wet sand into the air. It landed on her head and she laughed and laughed.
“That’s right, sweetheart. They rode off into the sunset.”
Into the sunset.
Always together.
Ava ran towards me and wrapped her tiny arms around my waist. She looked up at me with the adoration of a child. One that had seen too much in her short life but knew that now, she was safe.
“I love you, Mommy.”
I kissed the tip of her tiny nose. “I love you, Ava.”
“Can you tell me another story about Yoss and Imi. What about the story where Yoss gets a new heart because his old one is broken by the evil wizard Manny?”
My stomach twisted and turned.
That was a hard story to tell.
A heart that wasn’t really a heart…
But I couldn’t tell Ava about liver transplants and hours of waiting. Of blood and pain. I didn’t want to share the terror of not knowing.
So the dying liver became a broken heart.
The streets became a beautiful kingdom.
The predatory pimp was now the evil wizard.
But Yoss and Imi were still in love. Still looking for the ending they deserved.
“You know how that one goes,” I told her lightly.
“Imi gets him a new one!” Ava giggled.
“That’s right. Imi gets him a new one. And…”
“They lived happily ever after,” Ava finished, pulling out of my arms so she could dig in the sand again.
“Why do you like these stories so much?” I asked her.
I knew why. It was the same reason I told them.
To change history. Just a little bit. To give her a story to smile about.
But it wasn’t all make believe. All fairytales start somewhere.
In truth.
“I just do,” Ava shrugged.
The sun sank lower in the sky. Another end to another day.
“I know why you like them,” I said softly, the water lapping at my toes.
I felt him before I saw him. Before I heard him.
I knew he was there.
Ava looked up as if she too sensed his presence. Her face brightened. She gave him a delighted smile. Her heart in her eyes.
“She loves them because they’re true.” I felt his deep voice in the parts I had locked away for so long. The parts that were now open wide. Free.
Yoss leaned in close, his lips next to my ear and I could feel his breath on my skin. He placed a soft kiss on my temple. It was a kiss that told our story. The best story. The one that didn’t need fairytales and magic creatures.
The real one.
The one that belonged to us.
“And they lived happily ever after,” he murmured, sinking into the sand beside me.
“The end,” I whispered back, looking back at him. His skin no longer yellow. His smile bright. His eyes even brighter.
This was what joy looked like.
How we got here was another story, for another day.
But we were here now.
And I was the woman who believed in promises.
In fairytales.
In second chances.
I had experienced them. Lived them firsthand. I knew how quickly they could be snatched away.
And how quickly you could be handed them back.
Just when you had forgotten what faith felt like.
But I felt it now. And I trusted…
In us.
In our new family.
In happily ever afters.
Because of the man who had given me my one day soon.
Read other books by A. Meredith Walters
A book is a village, or something like that.
Getting to the end of this journey wouldn’t have been possible without my husband and daughter. It’s because of them that I have the inspiration to write.
To my amazing friends and critique partners. Claire, Tonya, Amy, Stacey, Brittainy, and Kelsie. I’m so lucky to know such an amazing group of talented women.
To Kristy. You will always get my words first. :)
To Diane Plourde for answering all my medical questions. You were so patient and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you taking the time!
To Emily Sorby for answering all my social work questions. I’ve been out of the game for a long time, your knowledge was invaluable.
To every single blogger who has shared and supported my stories. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
And most importantly to my readers.
You are why Yoss and Imi were created.
A.Meredith Walters is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Bad Rep, Find You in the Dark, Reclaiming the Sand, and Twisted Love Series, as well as Butterfly Dreams published by Random House/Loveswept. She also writes psychological thrillers under the pen name A.M. Irvin.
Before becoming a full-time writer, she worded as a counselor for troubled and abused children and teens. The Virginia native currently lives in England with her husband and daughter.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without express permission from the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Trademarks: This book identifies product names and services known to be trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of their respective holders. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of all products referenced in this work of fiction.
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2016 by A. Meredith Walters
Cover design © 2015 Sarah Hansen, Okay Creations
Editing Services by Tanya Keetch/ The Word Maid
Interior design and formatting by:
www.emtippettsbookdesigns.com
Table of Contents
Title Page
Books by A. Meredith Walters
About One Day Soon
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty- Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Copyright Notice