by Alexa Davis
“So,” I eventually exploded, as soon as we’d put our orders in. “What did you want to talk about?” I was well aware that I was probably being very rude, but Hailey was my best friend – we were well past the stage of needing to be polite. I was certain that she knew what she was doing to me, which she confirmed with a bright smirk across her face.
“Well, first off, I just want to tell you how proud I am of you,” she said, taking my hands in hers. “We have been friends for practically all of our lives, and I know you inside and out. Over the last few weeks, I have seen a real transition in you.” My heart beat faster at her words because I truly had no idea where she was going with this.
“You have gone from a one-track mind, with regards to your career. At one point, you actually wished for a death to help get you further.” We both giggled at that, but me much more half heartedly. It was shameful, really. I couldn’t believe that I’d actually managed to become such an awful person. “And now… Well, ever since you met Roy, you have blossomed. You have become a much better version of yourself.”
“You think?” I gasped in shock. In a way, I thought that of myself, but it was much more powerful to hear it from someone else. The words meant a whole lot more. Plus, Hailey was right – she did know everything about me, so if she was saying it, it made it that much more meaningful.
“Of course, but you know what they say: love is all about finding that person that makes you a better you.”
“Well, if that’s the case, then Roy definitely does that,” I told her, nodding brightly. “I mean, he just makes me see things differently.” Just talking about him made my heart beat faster. He did things to me that I didn’t think were possible, and I wanted the world to see that. “I really do love him, more than I ever thought that it was possible to love anyone.”
“That’s what I want,” Hailey replied, a little sadly. “I mean, I’ve achieved all of my life goals except for that one. I’ve never found anyone that makes me feel the way Roy does you. I guess I feel that is what I’m missing now.”
“You’ll find it,” I replied, comforting her for a change. “You have everything going for you; any man would be lucky to have you. You just haven’t found the one that’s right for you yet.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” she said. “I just haven’t found the right one. Someone will come along though, right?”
“Of course!” I exclaimed. “If I can find love, bearing in mind what a mess I have always been, then you have every chance. You just need to be patient.”
I could see a wetness starting to form in her eye, but she quickly caught hold of herself before it fell. “Anyway, the thing I wanted to ask you was this. You have done such a good job, tutoring Ali, that I actually want to hire you. Full time, to work with other kids.”
“Do you?” I didn’t even know how to respond to that. It was insane, the last thing that I was expecting. “I… I… I don’t even know what to say.”
“Say yes,” she insisted. “We need you.”
“Well…” I started, unsure if the next words out of my mouth would go down well. “I would love to, but I actually have my own plan.” She eyes me curiously at that one. “I thought that I could use my writing skills in a different way. What I actually want to do is write a book.”
“A book?” Of course, she was shocked – to everyone else, this was completely out of the blue. This was a dream that I’d never mentioned to anyone.
“Yeah…a book about the Hangout. I want to tell all the kid’s stories. Of course, it will all be fiction based on fact, and there won’t be any names or anything. It’s just such an amazing place that I think deserves to have its story told, even if it isn’t in a blatant way.”
She mulled over that for a second before jumping up from her seat. “I love that plan,” she practically screamed. “Why don’t you do both? Work part time tutoring, fund your book, get some material, and write the rest of the time?”
“Could I? Could I really?” This was going even better than I’d hoped. “Oh my God, Hailey, that’s amazing. What would I do without you?”
She raced around to my side of the table and pulled me in for a hug, sealing my future for me. This was a dream that I’d never expected to focus on, never mind make a reality, yet here I was, doing just that. Life was funny sometimes, giving me just what I wanted, what I needed, without me even realizing it.
***
As I drove the car along to Roy’s home, I felt elated with all that had happened. I’d given up on the dream that I ploughed a whole lot of useless energy into, and the payoff for that was incredible. I was getting everything, and so much more. Plus, Roy too. Who would have thought that the cowboy billionaire who wouldn’t grant anyone an interview would turn out to be the love of my life?
I’d called Roy to warn him of my arrival, but I was still shocked to see him at the gate waiting for me. As he hopped from foot to foot, I pursed my lips, wondering if he had something on his mind. I wasn’t worried because it always turned out okay for me, but I was intrigued to say the least.
“Is everything all right?” I asked him curiously, as he opened the gates for me. “What’s going on?”
“Well, since it’s such a warm night, I thought that we could drink a bottle of wine under the stars.” He shot me a smile, one which made my heart beat that much faster. “It feels like a night of celebration, doesn’t it?”
For a split second, I wondered if Hailey had contacted him, to tell him the good news, but she never would have done that, so I had to shake that thought from my mind. Somehow, Roy seemed to know what was going on with me, without me even telling him.
“It is a lovely night,” I agreed with him as we walked over to where he had a blanket laid out. “And, you’re right, it does feel special.”
I smiled secretly to myself as he poured out the drinks, wondering how he was going to react when I told him everything. I got the sense that he was a little anxious for me, that he wanted me to find something that made me happy, a direction for my life, and now I finally had one. If that wasn’t worth celebrating, I wasn’t sure what was!
“So, how was your day?” he asked me curiously, as he poured us both out some wine. “Mine was stressful, but productive, too.” It made me so happy that he was doing something so positive with his business now, and I couldn’t wait to return the joy.
“Actually…it was pretty good,” I told him teasingly, causing him to snap his eyes up towards me. “Things are really starting to come together.” He gave me a curious look, but remained silent for me to continue. “Not only did Hailey offer me a permanent job at the Hangout, tutoring the boys and girls—”
“She did?” he couldn’t help but interrupt. “That’s incredible news!”
“Well, it isn’t just that,” I continued quickly before he could get too carried away. “I have also decided that I’m going to write a book. Fiction, loosely based on the Hangout.”
“Oh my God!” He pulled me in for a deep and loving hug, making me feel complete. It was strange how some guy I didn’t know not that long ago was now the center of my world, the one thing that made me feel safe. “That’s such good news! I can’t believe it.”
“I know, it just feels so good to be able to give something back, to do a job that feels more meaningful, you know?” I was absolutely buzzing with the news. I didn’t feel like this day could get any better. That was, until Roy started speaking again.
“I have something of my own to tell you,” he finally announced with a smile, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket. He handed it to me, and I scanned my eyes over the words.
“A…adoption?” I practically whispered. “Are you serious?”
“Well, I figure that Ali needs a family…and so do we. I have sent off an application form already, but I wanted to hear your opinion first. I can put a stop to it if you aren’t interested.”
Tears were streaming down my face, but the happiest tears that I’d ever had. Now Roy was offering me the onl
y thing that he might not have been able to before. He wanted to give me a family in whatever way possible, and I couldn’t think of any child I would rather call mine than Ali.
“I would love to,” I finally managed to choke out through the tears. “That sounds amazing.”
How could this man have been more perfect? How the hell did I get so lucky?
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Roy – Six months later
“Is this the last box?” I asked June wearily. “I don’t think that my truck can handle anymore.” I was honestly amazed that she’d managed to fit so much stuff into such a small apartment. Luckily, she was taking it all to my place now, and I had plenty of space that needed to be filled.
“You should have known that this was going to happen when you asked me to move in with you!” she exclaimed, tapping my nose in a sweet, playful gesture. “But yes, that is the last one.”
She turned back to glance at her home with a wistful look in her eyes, probably thinking over all the memories that she’d made there; the best ones being with me, of course. I didn’t say anything. I simply walked behind her and held her around the waist. As she fell back against my chest, I hoped that my message would be clear, that I was there for her no matter what, that I would always be her rock.
“Are you going to miss it?” I eventually asked.
“In a way, yes, but I feel like it fits into my old life now, the old me that I’m not anymore. It’s like looking back a whole different lifetime…it’s strange.” With that, she spun around to face me, and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Plus, I’m super excited to be moving in with you anyway. Not that it’ll feel too much different… I’m always there.”
As she pressed her lips up against mine, I felt complete all over again. We’d been through a chaotic few months, so this felt like the best way to bring us closer when we were both so busy in the rest of our lives.
I had the business, which I’d managed to bring back up to where it used to be, whilst training up Fredrick to eventually take over when I decided to retire again (at least I knew that he could definitely be trusted, he’d proven himself to me over and over again). Then, of course, there were the horrors of the trial, which had taken me to hell and back again. Preparing for it had been very traumatic for me, but then at the last minute, on his lawyer’s advice I imagine, Lewis had plead guilty, making my witness statement obsolete.
I still hoped that jail would be good for him, and that he would come out of it a better man, but it didn’t plague me in the way that it used to. He was his own man, responsible for himself. I had my own worries.
June was making a real success of herself at the Hangout, with tutoring sessions that had been life changing for some kids. She was listening to them, helping them, giving them a chance when no one else would, and that was impressive.
On top of that, she had her first book in the Boy’s and Girl’s Club series written, and I’d read it. It truly was incredible, showing off a writing talent that her journalism never would have, and it made me super proud. I wasn’t even being biased because I loved her; it truly was wonderful. She would get it published soon enough: I was sure of it.
Of course, on top of all of that, we’d been through a very grueling adoption process, one that could have broken us more than once. We’d received the outcome this morning, but I’d been waiting for the opportune moment to tell June what it was.
“Actually, it will feel a bit different,” I told her honestly, pulling the letter out of my pocket. “The adoption company got back to us today.”
“They did,” she jumped in, snatching the paper from my hand. “And we passed everything!” she screamed, jumping up and down in excitement. “We really did it. Ali will be coming to live with us soon.”
“As soon as you are settled in,” I nodded. “Have you told her yet?”
“I haven’t said anything because I didn’t want to get her hopes up, just to have to let her down, but I will first thing on Monday morning. She is going to freak!”
As she danced on the sidewalk as if she were locked away in her bedroom, I grinned to myself. This moment had gone better than I’d even imagined. I was finally getting the family that I’d always held out hope for. Things were finally coming together in the best way possible.
“Come on then,” I chuckled, pulling her from her moment. “Let’s get these boxes to my place. The sooner that we get them unpacked, the sooner Ali can come and live with us.”
As we got in the truck and headed towards our brand-new life, I watched Tank climb up onto June’s lap, which had become his new favorite place in the whole wide world. In fact, sometimes he was so protective of June that he hated it when I went anywhere near her. It drove me crazy, but June loved it, so I had to just leave them to it.
“What are we going to do about Ali’s bedroom?” June turned to me in a panic, as if the practicalities of this had just occurred to her. “She’s going to need so much stuff.”
“Actually,” I admitted. “I’ve been getting stuff for months: a bed, bedding, curtains, some clothing.”
“You have?” she exclaimed in shock. “But you could have jinxed things.”
“I know, but I just couldn’t resist. It doesn’t matter anyway now…it didn’t jinx anything. She’s coming whether we like it or not!” I joked, wanting her to forgive me. She didn’t seem genuinely mad, but I wanted to lighten the mood just in case.
“Yeah, that’s true,” she finally conceded to me. “And I suppose that does make things easier. Plus, she can always change things if she isn’t happy.”
“And the best thing about coming to live with us is the fact that she’ll still get to go to the Hangout all the time with you.” Ever since meeting June, Ali had slowly started to come out of her shell. She had a nice group of friends now, people that it would be a shame for her to lose out on.
“Yeah, she loves all the new equipment you brought: the slide and swings, the basketball hoop, the soft play area.” I’d gotten a whole load of education stuff as well, plus allowed them to hire the extra therapists that they needed. They even had a part-time speech therapist coming on board for the children who needed it. I was proud of myself for doing so much good.
The next thing I wanted to work with Hailey was food. They ate nutritional meals at the Hangout, but I wanted to help them to grow their own fruit and vegetables, to help them see where food came from. I was hoping to hire an onsite chef, too. “So she would be disappointed to miss out on all of that.”
I held her hand in mine for a moment, pleased with the way that we had seemed to bring out the best in one another. In a way, when we first met, we were both lost souls. Now, we had a positive contribution to the world, a purpose to keep on going.
“You really are going to give Ali the best life,” I told her honestly. “She is so lucky to have you as a mom.”
“You, too,” she insisted happily. “She’ll be lucky to have such an awesome dad. We’re going to give her the best family possible.”
Over the last few weeks, because of the possibility of adoption, June had been doing her best to heal the rift with her own parents. They hadn't exactly fallen out or anything, but as she centered her mind in on her end goal of becoming a journalist, I got the impression that she’d forgotten them somewhat. Seeing the kids and seeing me, I got the idea that she felt compelled to fix that because she was one of the lucky ones.
“You will have to invite your mom and dad to come and stay with us soon,” I told her as the idea popped into my mind. “It’ll probably be a good idea for them to meet me, but more importantly, they will want to get to know their granddaughter.”
She remained silent for a few moments, but I could see tears filling her eyes. “You’re right,” she eventually whispered. “And, they’ll love her, too. Then, Ali will be gaining grandparents, as well as parents. She definitely deserves that.”
“Well then, once we’re all settled, give them a call and set it up. It’ll be amazing, I’m sur
e.” It gave me a pang in my heart that I didn’t have any parents to share with Ali, but this moment wasn’t about me.
What had happened to me had happened; there was nothing that I could do to change that. All I could do was make things better for the future. My mom would have loved Ali, but I just had to hope that she would be watching over us all. I would eventually tell Ali all about everyone else in my life anyway…when the time was right.
***
“Well, it’s official,” I told her, whilst throwing my arm around shoulder. “You’re in.”
“I don’t think that just having the boxes indoors counts as in,” she replied wryly, looking at the massive tower. “But it’ll certainly do for now. I’m far too tired to do anymore now!”
“At least, you know what is in each box, so we won’t spend hours scrabbling around…right?” I asked her as her expression turned somewhat guilty.
“Well, I had all good intentions, but it didn’t quite pan out that way in the end. Moving takes up so much time. I don’t think that you understand!”
I chuckled agreeably with her. I didn’t because I’d never had to move; I’d just gone on to expand and have renovations done on the house, so maybe I really didn’t get it. “Okay, fair enough. Let’s forget all about it now and get something to eat. I think that we should maybe order a takeout and have a glass of wine.”
“Celebrate the first day of the rest of our lives,” she interjected happily. “I can’t believe we have made it this far, it’s incredible.” She looked at me with such love in her eyes that it almost had me falling apart right there and then. “Just think, once upon a time you crashed into my car—”
“That was your fault,” I felt compelled to remind her. “You were the one on the wrong side of the road, remember?”