My mom is standing front and center when we get to Main Street, and a few of my friends wave or cheer quietly, anticipating the reveal.
“Hi, Ma.” I kiss her on the cheek.
“Oh, I’m so proud of you. This is wonderful,” she squeals.
“It’s covered by a black curtain. You haven’t even seen it yet …” I mutter, trying not to get my hopes up.
There is a chance that everyone will think it’s terrible.
“But I know the kind of work you do, and I already know it’s beautiful,” she says with a know-it-all nod that only a mother can give.
I shrug as Forrest, Penelope, and the kids walk up.
“You ready, bro?” My twin shakes my shoulders, jostling me.
“Uncle Fletch, you built this?” Matthew says in awe, though the clock is still covered.
I had him out to the barn in the final stages, because the little man seems interested in working with his hands. He helped me screw on the big hand of the clock, an ornate wood piece that I carved the founding date of Fawn Hill into.
“Sure did. Next one, you’ll build.” I wink at him.
“All right, everyone, can I have your attention?” Keaton says into a microphone, and the whole thing feels very grand.
My brother decided to appoint himself emcee of the unveiling, just like he basically appointed himself mayor of the town. I didn’t mind though, it felt nice to have my sibling proud of me for a change.
“I am so glad we’re all here to view the new clock tower today, but it’s an even bigger day for our family. Fletcher has been honing his craft for a few years, and when he was awarded the project, I knew he’d do the best job. He has built us a gorgeous clock, one that will make Fawn Hill proud every time it chimes on the hour. Fletcher, we love you, and we’re so proud of you.”
My family whoops and hollers, shaking me as I throw up a sheepish wave to the crowd that’s clapping around us.
Then everyone is counting down, and Bowen pulls the cord to the drape …
The moment the curtain drops, and the minute hand starts ticking, I don’t see the clock face.
In my mind, I only see her face.
“Wow, it looks amazing.” Penelope smiles at me.
Forrest claps me on the shoulder. “Epic job, bro.”
Mom has tears in her eyes when she hugs me. “I will cherish every time I look at it on my morning walk. I’ll always see you on Main Street, now.”
“I wish Ryan were here to see this,” Presley mutters sadly, and Penelope leads her away by the elbow.
My heart drops to my feet when my sister-in-law says that, because I wish she was, too.
“You’re a fucking moron.” Forrest rounds on me, shaking his head.
“What?” I throw my arms up. “Do we have to do this today? You do all realize I just accomplished something huge.”
“You told her to go. You got mad, acted like a child, and told her to go to Denmark.” Bowen fills in the blank, and they all stare at me like I should be grounded.
“Do you think that being in love is easy? It’s fucking hard. Especially with Penelope. Never fall in love with her, woman is barking mad,” Forrest quips, and Keaton shoots him a glare.
My twin continues. “But seriously, being in a relationship, a partnership, it’s hard. Not every day, but a lot of days. You fight, you disagree. But that doesn’t mean you kick the woman you love out of your home, much less your town. You should have fought for her and you know it.”
“She wanted to go to Denmark,” I say weakly, knowing that’s not exactly true.
“Bullshit,” Keaton curses, and all three of our heads swing his way.
My big brother has to be mighty pissed at me to let a curse fall out of his mouth.
“You’re in love with her, and she’s in love with you. So you two have some issues, who cares? Presley and I couldn’t be more different, but we make it work. Because we would rather die trying than be with anyone else. And at the end of the day, you and Ryan are more alike than anyone I’ve ever known. I knew it from the moment I saw you two together. The connection you have is deep, maybe deeper than any one of us has with our wives.”
Apparently, they aren’t even going to let me defend myself. Not that I really have a leg to stand on, most of what they’re saying is right on the money. I hang my head, thinking about how much I fucked up. I never should have let her go. I should have gotten right in her face, challenged her like she always challenges everyone else. I should have told her to hell with her boss, we’d fight a lawsuit together. That I wanted her right here, living in our apartment and teaching in the school I know she loved working at.
“Speak for yourself,” Bowen grumbles, but Forrest elbows him to get with the program. “They’re right, bro. You’re a moron. But you don’t have to remain one.”
“What does that mean?”
They all roll their eyes at me, but Forrest speaks. “Pull your head out of your ass and go get her.”
Keaton follows that harsh directive up. “Go to Denmark, Fletch. Your clock is done, there is nothing keeping you here. Of course, we want you to stay, but your place is with Ryan. Plus, I always knew this town was too small for you. Knew it the minute you came home from the hospital and wailed your lungs out every time Mom brought us down to Main Street. You’ve spent a lot of time holding yourself back, keeping yourself small. Time to go big, brother.”
Each one of them looks at me expectantly, and I know it’s inevitable.
Whether it’s right now, or I get my ass in gear a month from now, there is no question that I’ll be going after her. And I’ve wasted enough time in my life.
So I ask for the help they’re clearly offering. “How fast can we book a flight to Copenhagen?”
38
Ryan
I stare at the picture on Presley’s Instagram feed, the one she just posted.
It’s a photo of Fletcher, looking as handsome as ever, standing below the monstrous clock tower. The one he designed. I missed it, the unveiling. His biggest accomplishment, the thing he’s been working so hard for, and I wasn’t there. The hard truth rips me apart.
Tears well behind my eyes, and I blink them back rapidly. I’ve cried more in the last two weeks than I ever have in my life, and I’m not about to break down in hysterics at my desk.
Not that anyone would care. Most of the people at this private security company are so secretive, they barely even look my way. They have whispered conversations in Danish, and I’m regarded like an intruder even though I’m building their entire damn threat protection system.
This job sucks balls. It’s boring and easy, and I hate Copenhagen with its bike-friendly lanes and cute little riverboats. It’s too damn charming and I’m too damn heartbroken.
I still want to throttle Geralyn, and I’ve told her as much. I gave my notice, effective immediately after the end of this project. She’s been a good boss, but she soured our relationship the minute she threatened me with a lawsuit. That, and I don’t take orders from anyone in that way. I’m a free bird, and she wants to tie me down. That’s no bueno in my book, and I’m going my separate way after I build this system for these assholes.
Presley has called me a couple of times in the last two weeks, though we’ve avoided the subject of Fletcher. I know she’s in a tough spot, but it seems she’s taking my side in things. Sure, I froze up about his sobriety and got defensive when he didn’t immediately agree to uproot his life and come to Denmark …
But, he told me to leave. Basically kicked me out and told me he didn’t want me around anymore.
Inside my chest, a gavel of sorrow slams down on my heart.
Fletcher was the man I was supposed to spend my life with, and it was over. I had no idea where to go from here.
Before, when I’d broken up with a guy, I’d been sad most times … but I knew I’d get over it. That there would be another, that someone better was out there for me.
Yes, we had our underlying issues, and it
would have been difficult to move past them, but it’s all I wanted to do.
Because I knew that there wouldn’t be another. There was no one else better.
I met my match, and he let me go. That thought was so devastating, I had to tiptoe around it in my brain. It was like laying my hand on a white hot stove; I knew I had to gingerly grasp the idea, but splaying my palm wide on it would burn me down to the core.
And it wasn’t just Fletcher that I left. As much as I thought it wasn’t possible, I’d made a life in Fawn Hill. I got to see my best friend every day, especially when she was struggling through her infertility issues. For the first time in forever, I was part of a group, even if it was just as a girlfriend and not as a permanent member. I had a job I really liked, and I had to put in my resignation without even saying goodbye to my students. The whole thing devastated me, and I was a little shocked that I missed waking up in that rural Pennsylvania town.
Every day for the last fourteen days, I thought about going back. About flying to Fawn Hill and demanding he take me back, because I was in love with him and I knew he was in love with me. In any other situation that I really wanted to fight for someone, I probably would.
But that was the difference here, wasn’t it? Fletcher was the only man who ever truly had the power to wreck me.
And he’d done it. So, I couldn’t go back.
39
Fletcher
“Can you tell me how to get to this street?”
I point to a paper map, speaking loudly, as if the guy I’m talking to is deaf.
“Yes, just take a left down this street and it’s two blocks up,” he says in perfect English, an amused smile on his face.
He pinned me for exactly what I am … an idiot American tourist.
“Thank you.” I nod, and speed walk off in the direction he’s pointed me in.
Not that I have any idea if he’s messing with me or not. I have absolutely no international travel experience, am roaming the street of a foreign country on four hours of sleep, had thrown up no more than two hours ago on my first flight ever, and couldn’t read anything in Danish.
But I’m here, and I am determined to get to my woman.
Forrest worked his computer whiz magic and booked me a flight to Copenhagen a mere sixteen hours after the clock unveiling. Penelope had thrown together my suitcase, while Mom tucked an extra fifty bucks in my pocket … for what, I’m not sure. Maybe a bag of pretzels on the plane?
Not that I could eat. I’ve been sweating bullets the entire time, nauseous and anxious as I’ve ever been. Flying is fucking scary, how come no one ever told me that?
I tried to picture Ryan’s face the entire time and even snuck into my dirty memories to dream up that luscious body in front of me. That had kind of done the trick, and I’d drifted into turbulent sleep with thoughts of her perfect ass dancing in my head.
The directions Bowen had printed up on how to get to her office once I made it to the center of Copenhagen were completely wrong. I’ve been hopelessly wandering around for forty-five minutes, looking for some building with the name of the company she’s working on a project for. Not that the city isn’t beautiful, and I definitely want to explore when we’re all made up and have spent a couple of hours in bed … but I just want to get to her.
Finally, I spot it, the tall white building looking like some modern cube with windows that bubbled out from the concrete sides of it. I nearly get run over by three bikers as I try to cross the street, and I wonder again what this country’s fascination with bicycles is.
“I’m here to see Ryan Shea,” I say, a little frantically, to the security officer sitting behind the check-in desk.
The lobby is cavernous, with white marble everywhere, and the Dwayne Johnson lookalike, with bleach blond hair, eyes me suspiciously.
“Who?” he asks in a thick Danish accent.
I try to calm down, but he’s the only thing in the way of telling my girl that I love her.
“Ryan Shea. She’s working on a project for this company, as a consultant. Something about coding a system.”
Again the guy looks at me like he might slam my face into the marble check-in desk, or as if I might be carrying a hidden grenade. After a few beats, he picks up the phone and rambles something off in his native language.
“What did you say your name was?” he asks me.
I didn’t, which is probably why he’s looking at me so strangely, now that I think about it. “Fletcher Nash.”
He repeats my name into the phone and then says something else in Danish, and then hangs up.
Drumming my fingers on the desk, I search his face for any sign that she’s going to come down. “Well?”
“Back away from the desk, sir. You can sit on that bench over there.” The way he says it, it’s not a request.
Either I go sit down, or he’s going to break my arm or something. Stepping back, I pull my big duffel farther up my shoulder. I didn’t even bother booking a hotel when I left, thinking I’d just find something when I touched down in the city. Or, hopefully … I could stay with Ryan.
It all hung in the balance.
An elevator dings, and out she steps, her black locks piled on her head and a leather skirt cinching her waist. Fuck, why did she always have to wear leather? It really distracts me from every other thought I was trying to push out of my head.
“Fletcher?” Her jaw about drops to the floor. “I thought someone was fucking with me when they said you were down in the lobby. Wha … what are you doing here?”
I stand, suddenly feeling very awkward. Especially in front of The Rock here, who has this snide smile on his meathead face.
“Can we talk outside?” I throw my head in the direction of the door.
Ryan walks out before me, looking confused, shocked, and worried at the same time. The minute the revolving door lets us out onto the sidewalk, she turns to me.
“What are you doing in Denmark?” I think she might try to touch my arm, just to make sure this isn’t an illusion.
Ducking my head so that I can look her directly in the eyes, I shoot her straight. “I came here for you. To tell you that I’m in love with you, and I’m never letting you leave again.”
Ryan blinks, her caramel eyes trying to comprehend. “You didn’t let me leave. You told me to go.”
It’s an arrow to my heart, but one I deserve. “And I’m a fucking idiot, Ryan. I never should have said that. I was being a coward. I’ve never experienced anything outside of my hometown, it’s all I know. But the woman I love was asking me to go on the adventure of a lifetime with her, and I should have said yes. I’m here saying yes, if you’ll let me.”
“You said you’d never leave Fawn Hill.” There are tears in her voice.
“I don’t care where I live, or where the hell in the world I am. Because you are my home. Nothing is right side up in my world when you’re not with me. So, I came here. Can’t you see? I’m addicted to you. I’ve been clean and sober for five years, and one look at you and I’m back on my knees, begging for just one more taste. I can’t get enough of you, Ryan. You’re all I think about, and when I’m with you … you make me better.”
She swings her head away, those straight, shining locks obscuring her face from me. “I promised myself, I was taking a break. I’m scared! I’m petrified to love you, but I’m also just petrified of love. I don’t know how to do it, I have no clue how to receive it in a healthy way. Look at what happened when we tried!”
“Love isn’t just trying one time. It’s trying all the time, every single day. We let our problems overshadow everything else, we were both wrong. I’m here telling you that I want to give it all up for you. My security blanket, the safety of Fawn Hill. I thought it was the only thing that would help me stay sober … but I don’t need it anymore, I was lying to myself. You’re what I need.”
I’m pleading with her, and finally, I take her hands in mine. “I love you, Ryan Shea.”
Now the tears spill o
ver her lower lids. “I love you, too. I’ve been so miserable, Fletcher. Leaving you … it proved that I never really loved anyone before. The way I feel about you—”
“It’s something you only get once.” I have to cut her off, tell her that I feel the exact same way. “So, let’s stop wasting time.”
She accepts by stepping into me and grabbing me behind the neck to pull my mouth to hers. All of my favorite things about her rush in; her scent, the way her lips part for me, the shape of her body in my hands.
The beat of my heart for only her.
“I can’t believe you got on a plane and flew to Denmark.” She breaks our kiss, laughing through her tears.
Pressing my forehead to hers, I relish the feel of her in my arms. “Believe me, it was not pretty. Don’t expect me to get on one anytime soon.”
Those amber eyes gaze into mine. “Guess you’re stuck here with me, then.”
“That was the whole point.” I nuzzle her nose with mine.
“So, what now?” Ryan breathes, neither of us moving to detach our embrace.
I know the perfect answer.
“Forever.”
Epilogue
Fletcher
Five Years Later
The plane lands smoothly on the runway, one that was paved two years ago.
My hand is clasped tightly around hers, mostly because she knows I don’t like takeoff or landing, but also because there is never a time I don’t want to be touching her.
The scenery outside the window looks exactly the same as it always has. Since the day I was born, I’ve seen the same trees, landscape, and people. But that all changed when she stepped into my world. Or rather, when she stepped out of it.
“You happy to be home?” Ryan turns to me, her newly cut jet-black waves billowing around her shoulders.
Nash Brothers Box Set Page 74