“San Francisco is so beautiful,” Sadie continued, taking another bite of angel food cake. “We went to Alcatraz Island and took the audio tour, ate the best seafood I’ve ever had in my life, and we even went on a ghost tour in an old Victorian neighborhood.”
The farmhouse table was crowded tonight with the entire family. Jackson sat next to Eve, occasionally reaching for her hand under the table. Hank and Brenda had joined them, and they were seated next to each other.
“Eve, this feast is delicious,” Mima said. “You’ve absolutely outdone yourself tonight.”
“You have,” Brenda said. “Bravo.”
Hank quietly smiled and nodded his agreement while everyone else added their approval to the mix.
“Best damn meal I’ve probably ever had.” Jackson pushed back his chair and stood. “Eve? Need to talk to you. Outside.”
“Not this again,” Daisy said.
“Hush now.” Mima patted Daisy’s arm.
Choosing not to look at anyone, Eve rose, dabbed at her mouth with a napkin, and followed Jackson outside. She wasn’t frightened like she’d been almost a month ago. And to her, Jackson had never been someone to fear. She’d been afraid of his intense anger for her and for good reason. For a long time, she’d associated intense anger with physical pain.
But now, her heart ached. Just like it had on her wedding day when she’d had to let him go.
Jackson braced his arms on the wooden fence of the deck and looked out at the sun cresting the hill, a splash of orange and red. There was nothing more beautiful than a sunset in Hill Country.
“I bet they don’t have sunsets like this in Nashville.”
“No.” He turned to face her. “Eve, I’m leavin’ tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“They’re sendin’ a car and a private plane for me. Don’t see why I should stay another day. This is too hard.”
Hard? I’m dying.
“It’s hard for me, too.”
“You made a choice, baby.”
“So did you,” she bit back.
“Yeah.” He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Let’s not do this. We tried, didn’t we?”
“I didn’t want to hurt you, just like you didn’t mean to hurt me.”
“Remember I told you the only thing that would hurt me is you givin’ up on us. But I was wrong.” He turned to the sunset view again. “It isn’t hurtin’ me. It’s killin’ me.”
With a smooth stone lodged firmly over her throat, Eve wasn’t sure she could speak. “In a partnership, both people have to compromise. Give somethin’ up. You aren’t willin’ to give anythin’ up. You just want me to.”
“I told you we’d take turns. All I wanted was two years.” He crossed his arms and faced her again. “But I’m not askin’ you to come with me anymore.”
“Y-you’re not?”
Her heart skipped a beat in anticipation, hoping there was good news coming. Yes, yes. Maybe he would stay. He’d come to his senses. Because she loved him, and he loved her. They’d have to find a way to make it work here.
“I know that’s not fair to you. That’s why I’ve got to leave tonight. I don’t see the point anymore. I’m sorry, baby.” With that, he turned and walked back into the house.
Eve stayed outside until the sun had disappeared and the darkness of the night encompassed her. She stayed until Sadie found her and simply walked up next to her and took her hand. They remained like that for what felt like hours but was probably only minutes.
“Are you okay?” Sadie asked quietly.
“No,” Eve hiccupped.
“You will be. You’re stronger than I am.” Sadie sighed and put her arm around Eve. “I would have given everything up for Lincoln. That doesn’t make me someone to admire, I know. Not like you.”
“Don’t be silly. I’m no one to admire.”
“You’re strong, Eve. You put yourself first when you stood Jackson up. He wasn’t ready to be the kind of husband you deserved. You fought your way back after that monster hurt you and could have taken your fighting spirit away forever. Now you’re a doctor, and an important member of our community. Remember what you told me the night of my wedding? You were going to be okay, either way.”
“I lied. I’m not going to be okay.” Her voice broke.
“Eve? Jackson is leavin’,” Mima called out. “Y’all come say goodbye.”
“Oh God.”
“You don’t have to,” Sadie said, squeezing Eve’s shoulders tightly. “Stay right here with me.”
“No. I want to say goodbye.”
Jackson said his goodbyes to Hank, Lincoln, Mima, Daisy, and the rest, giving them all a quick hug. Eve was last. As everyone watched, Jackson pulled Eve into his arms and rested his chin on the top of her head. Closing her eyes against the pain, Eve whispered goodbye.
She and Sadie stood watching the limo as it drove away, kicking up gravel.
Brenda gave Eve a quick hug, then turned away, but Eve caught the tears in her eyes before she did.
“Ice cream?” Sadie said.
Eve simply nodded, unable to trust herself to speak and not burst into tears. Everyone else had dispersed.
“Eve Iglesias!” Mima’s voice called to her loudly and urgently the moment Eve crossed the threshold.
Eve ran toward the sound, which came out of the bedroom she’d been staying in. Mima stood in the center of the room, and laid over Eve’s bed was her marriage quilt.
“Where did you—?” Eve stepped closer. Her and Jackson’s names were still embroidered on it, but the date had been carefully unstitched. Removed. It was a blank space. “Why did you—?”
Bringing this quilt out was really hitting below the belt. Her hands trembled, and her throat clogged with a sob.
“Because,” Mima said. “You needed to remember.”
“That I loved him enough to marry him? I haven’t exactly forgotten that.”
“It’s to remind you that everything that’s been broken between two people who love each other can be fixed. You only have to care enough not to give up or give in. The old date is blank now, and that’s your future. It’s wide open. Sometimes with love you have to give just a little bit more and meet in the middle. Love is a fine balancing act. Sometimes you give more, sometimes he does. But if you don’t take a risk right now, you may never have a chance again.”
“It’s too late.”
Mima handed her the truck keys. “No, it’s not. You go and catch him at the airport.”
And then what?
Eve didn’t know but suddenly she didn’t care. One of her biggest faults was being the martyr. She’d let him go once before without a fight but not this time. Now she was strong enough to realize that she could love him without losing herself. Maybe she could show him by being the bigger person, swallowing her pride, and letting him know she’d come with him to Nashville. A year was too long to be away from each other.
“This is crazy. Stupid.” Eve took a deep breath. “And I’m doin’ it.”
“Yay for crazy stupid love,” Sadie cried from just outside the bedroom door.
“That’s my favorite kind,” Lincoln said as Eve flew past him.
She jumped in her truck and started it up. Rolling down the long driveway she kicked up gravel and followed the tracks of the limo.
They’re sending a car. And a private plane.
Jackson couldn’t have said “we live in two different worlds” any better than if he had actually said those very words. He might be clueless in some ways, but he’d meant what he said. No point in staying a day longer when she’d already made up her mind. When he thought about what she’d seen of his world so far, he couldn’t blame her for not wanting any part of it. She’d seen nothing but takers like Winona. Nothing she could relate to or understand. But that wasn’t Nashville for him. The city was filled with people just like him and Eve, who’d come to find better lives and a chance at their dream.
He’d done everything he could to tell her how he felt. Wrote a song for her. Told her he loved her which was gut-wrenching considering his fears of abandonment. His words had told her all she needed to know about his commitment to her.
I showed her how I feel. I dropped everything I was doing because she showed up.
Shit, could his old man be on to something here? The knowledge went through his skull like a sledgehammer. He’d done everything but show her how he felt. The only real way he’d shown her was through their making love but that could be construed many different ways.
Jackson had told Eve how he felt, but what had he really given up for her? She was right, he’d been asking her to give up everything while he gave up nothing. And being a man of Stone Ridge, he’d been taught better than that. He’d been taught “ladies first.” Ladies foremost. It was old-fashioned, yes, but that was his town. His people. They were always there for each other, helping those in need. He wanted more of that, and less of coveting all of the things that he thought meant success.
He’d really made a colossal mess.
“Turn around.”
“But what about the plane?” the driver asked.
“I’ll take care of that.” Jackson pulled his phone out. A minute later when the driver still hadn’t turned back, Jackson yelled, “Turn around!”
“Yes, sir.” The driver executed a flawless U-turn and they headed back to Stone Ridge.
Now Jackson had to think of a grand gesture. Something he could show her that she’d understand meant he’d do anything for her. Give up this opportunity and live in Stone Ridge. There had to be a way for him to find a balance. He could buy Priscilla’s bar and carve out of niche for himself right here in Stone Ridge. Or maybe he could work out a way to take this opportunity on his own terms.
A truck sped by them going in the opposite direction and damn if that didn’t look just like— “Turn around!”
“I did,” the driver protested.
“No, I mean turn around again.”
“What?” Through the mirror the driver quirked a brow. “Wait. Am I being punked?”
“No! Look, we’re wastin’ time here. Turn around, back to the airport.”
“No problem, sir. I live to serve!”
This time the turn had a little spice in it as the brakes squealed and tires burned. Jackson wondered if he’d pissed his driver off.
“Look, I swear I’m not some entitled celebrity asking you to follow my every whim.”
“Not at all, sir. Turn around! Turn around again! Nothing crazy about that.”
“Call me Jackson. I’m not a sir. This is about a girl. My girl. I mean, I swear that’s her truck, just ahead of us. Can you catch up to it?”
“Ah, romance! Why didn’t you say something? I’ve been married forty years myself.”
Jackson could almost feel the accelerator press down. “Then you understand. This girl was supposed to be my wife eight years ago.”
“Kind of a slow burn there, yeah?”
“Long story,” Jackson said. “See if you can get her to pull over.”
The driver followed closely enough that Jackson read the license plates of Eve’s truck. In the darkness he couldn’t get a close view of inside the cab, but it was definitely her truck. Where the hell was she driving like her pants were on fire? He’d have a talk with her about the difference between racing a horse and racing a truck like a speed demon.
While the driver honked and even pulled his hand out the window in the universal sign for “stop” Eve kept right on driving.
“She seems clueless, sir.”
“Shit fire! She isn’t. She’s just ignoring you. Just follow her, wherever she goes.”
“You sure this is the girl, sir?”
“I’m sure.”
“Dale Earnhardt Jr., that one.”
“Not usually.”
Another few miles and one thing became quite clear. Eve was headed to the regional airport and she wasn’t going to pull over. Had he forgotten something important, and she was rushing to catch his plane?
“Guess you will make that flight after all,” the driver said as he smoothly turned into the regional airport minutes later.
“Pull over,” Jackson said and hopped out of the limo. He sprinted and caught up to Eve, just as she nearly fell out of the truck.
“Jackson?” She narrowed her eyes at him, and then at the limo. “That was you behind me?”
“You didn’t think about pullin’ over?” he yelled. “Did that not sound like a good idea to you?”
“Don’t you raise your voice at me! I was in a huge hurry and I thought it must be a crazy person back there thinking I wasn’t goin’ fast enough. So, I went faster. Why were you behind me? You should have been way ahead of me.”
“We turned around.” His heart kicked up and his chest constricted. “I was comin’ back.”
“You were comin’ back?” Her eyes were wide, her wild brown hair flying all around her. “Did you…forget somethin’?”
He took a step closer, hope spreading over every fiber of him.
“Yeah. I don’t care if we live in Nashville or Stone Ridge, I want to wake up next to you every morning for the rest of my life.”
“Oh, Jackson.” She smiled, and that tiny piece of hope sprouted. “I already made a mistake lettin’ you go and all I know is I don’t want to lose you again because I’m too proud. Everybody thinks I’m so strong but I’m not when it comes to you. I came here to ask if you’d still like me to come with you. I know you said you couldn’t ask that of me, but I love you, so that means I have to be with you. Wherever we are. I have to trust there’s a way we can work this out. Please tell me you still want me to come with you.”
“C’mere.” Jackson pulled her into his arms, her head fitting so neatly below his chin. He bent to press a kiss at her temple. “You have a backstage, all-access pass to Jackson Carver and I believe you know that.”
When he’d been coming back to her, she’d been heading back to him. And if that didn’t say compromise, well, he didn’t know what did.
“Funny thing is, I just decided that I don’t want to go back to Nashville and the lifestyle that made me crazy. When I came back home, I was wound tight as a cord. I like the slower pace here. Not sure what I’m going to do, Eve, but we’ll work it out. You and me. When it comes right down to it, I’m way more cowboy than I am Nashville.”
“I love you, cowboy,” she said.
“And I love you.”
Maybe sometimes it really was that simple.