On Friday, Harmony walked through the Cross farmhouse one last time. Her suitcase was already in the car. This was goodbye, to this house, to Dawson, to the life she had lived here. She stopped in the kitchen to look out at the pasture. Blake Cooper was driving a farm truck and cattle were following behind him. No doubt he’d probably buy the place if her dad put it up for sale.
Her heart broke a little thinking that it wouldn’t belong to her family much longer.
It had been her refuge these last weeks. It had been the place where she’d put herself back together. She wiped at the tears burning her eyes and told herself to stop crying. She had to get on with life.
She had to get back to her life before the alcohol, before the accident and pills. She knew that she was more than the person she’d become over the last few years. She was better than this, than the person who hid behind a high, or used a high to fake happiness.
God had not created her to fail. She took a deep breath and reminded herself of the message she’d heard from Dawson Community Church the previous week. God had created her with a purpose.
She picked up the dog Patricia had given her. Its tag said Whizz, so that’s what she called it. She thought it probably wasn’t the best name but the puppy answered to it.
In twenty-six years, Patricia Duncan had given her daughter three precious gifts. Life. A family. And a puppy.
It mattered.
She made one last loop, making sure all of the lights were off, then she walked out the door. She didn’t look back. On her way out of town she planned to say goodbye to Doris and Bill.
She needed to remind Bill to feed Beau until she could arrange for someone to haul the horse to Nashville. Her horse. She knew he wasn’t worth much, but in a way, the horse had saved her life. He had given her something to focus on, a distraction.
When she pulled up to the Tanner’s house, she saw them both sitting on the front porch. Doris was home for the weekend. If everything went the way they wanted, she’d be home for good in a few days.
Harmony carried the puppy up the sidewalk and she remembered back to the first time she’d pulled up this driveway. She stopped in front of Bill and smiled at the man who had become an unexpected friend.
“I’m leaving.”
Bill shook his head and looked at Doris. She answered for them both. “We wish you wouldn’t.”
“It’s time for me to go home.”
Doris’s lips thinned. “I think you’re running, but that’s between you and God. And Dylan Cooper.”
“I’m not...”
She couldn’t lie.
Doris smiled at her.
“Okay, maybe I am running. But this is for the best. For Dylan. For the kids. It’ll hurt less if I leave now than if I let them down later.”
“Why are you so sure you’ll let people down?” Bill spoke, his voice shaking a little and his hand clenched. “I’ve never met a young woman so determined to think she can’t do right.”
“I’m... I’m just...”
“Determined.” He pointed a finger at her. “Be determined to make the right choices, not determined to mess up.”
“I’m...” She didn’t know what else to say. “You’ll feed Beau for me and take him treats?”
“Told you I would.”
Harmony handed Doris a gift bag and watched as the older woman opened it. She pulled the pale blue shawl out of the tissue paper.
“I made it myself. I think I finally figured out how to count stitches.”
Doris wrapped the gift around her shoulders. “I think you were determined to get it right.”
“Yes, I guess I was.”
Doris reached for her hand and pulled her close. “Harmony, let yourself be loved. Take a chance. I did, fifty years ago. And look how it worked out for me. This old man, I couldn’t imagine my life without him. And I almost walked away. Almost went to California to live with a cousin. I’m so glad I stayed and gave it a chance.”
“Doris, I don’t know what I’d do without you. I’m going to miss you. But I’m not you. This isn’t the same.”
“Oh, it isn’t so different. But you go and remember you have a home and people who love you here. I’m going to miss you, Harmony Cross. I’ll miss you a lot. But I’m not going to miss you near as much as Dylan and those two kids will.”
Harmony choked back a sob. “I have to go.”
“No, you just think you have to. Now give me a hug and you do me a favor.”
“What’s that?”
“First, remember to visit. Second, pray about this. You’re headstrong and determined, but that doesn’t always mean you’re right.”
She nodded, hugged Doris, then Bill, and finally she left. As she drove out of town she looked in her rearview mirror thinking, hoping, that maybe Dylan would come after her. She kept her promise to Doris; she prayed. As she prayed, she thought of a million things that she should have taken care of.
What if Dylan forgot where she’d ordered Cash’s cake? Who would fix Callie’s hair for the party?
As she drove toward Arkansas, she thought about texting Heather or Eva to make sure someone knew where to find that cake. She thought about being the person who didn’t let everyone down. Including herself.
Walking away was easier than staying. If she didn’t commit herself, she didn’t have to feel guilty if she messed up.
Just like Patricia Duncan.
The thought left her unsettled. Even as she drove, she knew she couldn’t be that person, the one who walked away. She’d learned a lot about herself in Dawson, and in the end, wasn’t that why she’d come home? Because she’d known in Dawson she would find herself. She would find her faith.
She would find her heart.