Chapter 37

Blake

The sun hung above the horizon and turned the sky pink. Not a single cloud remained from the previous day’s storm. Even the water was still and calm. Blake stood and stared at the “Closed” sign for a long time. He knocked on the door, but no one answered. He leaned back, hands in his back pockets, and looked up. Not a sign of life anywhere.

“Can I help you?”

He turned to see the police officer who’d pulled him out of Claude Jepsen’s punching range a couple weeks earlier. The officer had a day’s worth of stubble and looked as though he’d been up all night.

“I was looking for Emmy. Emerson. The owner of this building.”

“Is she expecting you?”

“Ah, no. I don’t think so.”

“Then perhaps you’d better come back when she is.”

Was it Blake’s imagination or did he sense a tone of protection? He resisted the urge to say it wasn’t a crime to stand outside someone’s door. He wasn’t causing a public scene or a disturbance.

Then the door opened. Not all the way, but Emmy stuck her head outside far enough to see it was him.

“You okay with this guy bein’ here?” the officer asked.

She shrugged and didn’t answer.

“Let me know,” he added. “I’ll be out here for a while. They just cleared the bridge for traffic an hour ago. I’m expecting people’ll be up and nosing around soon enough.” He gave Blake another look, a man-to-man stare down that left his intentions clear. I’m right here, buddy. If she wants you gone, I’ll take care of it in the blink of an eye.

“Do you – can I come in?” Blake asked. He’d rehearsed his words all night but now he could barely get them out.

She stepped outside and wrapped her arms around herself. She wore a sweatshirt and leggings, no makeup, her hair piled on top of her head. The grand, green ball gown was gone. So were the shoes. Still his heart skipped.

“I told you not to follow me.”

“I know. But I had to come. I couldn’t stay away.”

“Whatever you have to say, you can say it out here.”

He glanced over his shoulder. The cop had taken a few steps back, but Blake was still pretty sure he was within earshot. “Okay. Here it is, Em. I love you. I always have. When we broke up after college I was wrecked. Didn’t even want to get out of bed. Didn’t want to do anything except go back in time and change everything that happened. I’ve never been as good a man as when I was with you. Never.”

“And yet you managed to pick yourself up, get engaged, and become CEO of Eastefire. You couldn’t have been that wrecked.”

“You want to know why?”

“Why you became a huge success? Sure, I’d love to.” The sarcasm fell heavy from her tongue.

“After Piper died, my mom made me talk to the family priest. Father Michael. It didn’t help much, to be honest. He kept talking about God and heaven and trusting that better things were waiting for all of us. We just had to believe they were out there.”

She wound a loose curl around one finger. Behind her, the sun rose higher in the sky, lighting her face. “So what happened? You became newly devout and that helped you heal?”

“No. But I did realize that you’re my heaven. You’re my better place, my hope. You always were. If bad things happened, you made them okay. When I lost you, the only thing that kept me going was believing I’d see you again. Maybe in this life, maybe not until the next one, but that’s what got me out of bed each day. Believing that somehow, someday, I’d see you again.”

She reached for the door frame to steady herself and cocked her head. All the anger slipped off her face, and she closed her eyes for a long moment. When she opened them again, he saw tears shining in them.

“Please give me another chance.”

She swallowed, and he could see the struggle on her face, her need to remain mad warring with something else. “There was a time I would’ve done anything to hear those words. I used to dream about them, about seeing you again and about this happening. But now, I don’t know if I can. Last night –”

“I was an idiot. An asshole, like you said. And I was wrong. I told my father to fire Nikolas. And to press charges against Bryan.”

Her eyes widened. “Why would he do that? There’s no proof.”

“Bryan was running his mouth about stealing from you and I recorded him on my phone. He didn’t know I was standing there.”

At that, she took a tiny step closer to him. “Well, that’s...but my building isn’t for sale anymore.”

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t care. I told my father we were looking for another location. Being closer to campus would make more sense, anyway.”

“He listened to you?”

“Reluctantly. But I’m the CEO. And his only son. At the end of the day, I guess that still counts for something.”

She put her hands into the pockets of her sweatshirt, and he noticed only then the Misterion College crest on the front. The collar was faded and the sleeves were frayed. Yet she’d kept it after all these years.

“Will you give me a second chance?”

“Because you came to my doorstep and called me your heaven?”

“No. Well, yes. It’s the god’s honest truth, and I’d say it every day for the rest of my life if it would make you believe me. I’d write it on the sky or on the side of a mountain or tattoo it onto my arm.” He dropped to one knee. “But also because as much as I believe in waiting, and if you ask me to, I will, I’d rather not.” He pulled a box from his front pocket, the small, black velvet box he’d never sold or given away after college, and opened it to reveal a diamond ring surrounded by sapphires. “You wanted it once and I was stupid enough not to know it. This is my grand gesture, Emmy. Please marry me. Please. I don’t ever want to watch you walk away from me again.”

Emmy

Later that afternoon, as the sun cascaded down the other side of the island, Emmy leaned against Blake. They sat on the steps of the Delta Chi house. They’d sneaked onto campus again, but Emmy was pretty sure that Liza had given Andy a heads-up about leaving them alone this time. It helped to have friends in high places. Actually, it helped to have friends in all places on Drake Isle. She’d never forget what they’d done for her last night. All of them. Just when she’d thought everything was ending, she jumped off a cliff and found herself caught in a safety net of all the best people.

She held up her hand to catch the changing light, and the diamond ring threw sparks in every direction. She’d never tire of looking at it. “You really bought this when we were in college?”

“I really did.”

“Did you pick it out yourself?”

“No way. Piper helped me.”

“Really?” Her throat went tight. “I wish she was here to see this.”

“Maybe she is.” He swept his hand in the air, as if capturing all of Misterion College. “Maybe she’s in the shadows watching us.”

“Maybe she is the shadows.”

“Maybe.” He kissed her. “Either way I think she’d be happy for us.”

She leaned against his chest, solid and strong. “It’s not as bad being here this time.”

“No,” he agreed. “I’ll be spending more time on the island this summer, getting things ready for the opening in September.” He played with her hair, running his fingers through it over and over.

“And after that? Are you a city guy now? Is Boston where you want to be?” She raised her face for a kiss, and his hands moved from her hair to beneath her shirt. In less than a minute she was lost in his touch.

“I was never a city guy,” he said as he kissed her. “I want to be where you are.”

She closed her eyes, content not to speak. But after a moment, he did.

“I’m curious about something.”

“What’s that?”

“What did the letter say? The one you sent me after college?”

Emmy sat up. For a while she’d remembered every word, every heartbeat she’d felt while writing it. But the words faded with time, which was probably just as well. “Honestly, I don’t remember most of it. I think I just said that things happen for a reason and if I heard from you, then we were meant to be.” She didn’t say the rest. And if I didn’t, then we weren’t. She’d never dreamed it would take nearly a decade to hear from Blake again, but she had. Finally, she had.

She linked her fingers through his. “It doesn’t matter now, does it? We’re together. That’s what counts.”

“That’s the only thing that counts.”

As the sun slipped further into the horizon, the murmur of voices interrupted them. Liza and Andy emerged from behind the library.

“Okay, let me see this ring,” Liza announced as they walked across the grass. Emmy held out her hand as her friend oohed and aahed. “Oh, Em, it’s perfect.”

“Thanks. I think so too. Along with the guy who gave it to me.”

Liza looked around. “I’ve never been down here. It’s quite a place, huh? Great buildings.”

Blake nodded. “It has quite a history, too.”

“You mean your family?” Andy asked. “Or the girl who died here?”

“I guess both.”

“You knew her, right?” Liza said as she dropped to a seat beside Emmy.

Emmy looked at Blake as a ripple of wind passed through the trees around them. “She was my best friend.”

“Hell of a thing,” Andy went on. “I pulled out the file a few weeks ago just to take a look. Figured I’d get questions from reporters once the college opened again. I wanted to have my ducks in a row.” He scratched his chin. “Couple of things didn’t make sense, but island resources were always limited. I might’ve asked a few more questions if I’d been on the case, but...” He shrugged. “I’ll take another look at it when I get back to the office. See if it’s worth reopening.”

“What made you say yes?” Liza asked, still looking at Emmy’s ring. “I thought you’d sworn off men forever.”

Her cheeks warmed. “He gave me a diamond and called me his heaven.”

Andy chuckled. “Yep, that’ll do it.”

And it had, Emmy thought, but it wasn’t just the ring, or the fact that Blake had taken her side and not his father’s. He was her heaven too. Her better place and her promise. Maybe she’d known all along that she’d see him again. Maybe that was why she’d come back to the island, because her heart had planted its roots here long ago. All she knew was that they had ten long years to make up for. She couldn’t wait to get started.