I Hear...Love (A Different Road #2) (26 page)

The girls just left for their spa appointment, so Sadie and I start to head home. I haven’t been home in days, because I’ve been spending every second I can with Kate. As I get to the back door, the front door opens again. I turn around expecting one of the girls to have forgotten something, but I see River, Josh, and Maddy, walking in instead. Maddy is wearing her chef uniform and heads straight to the kitchen.

“Let’s go,” he says.

“Who, me?” I ask, pointing at myself.

“Is there anyone else here?” River replies.

“Go where?” I ask.

“Shopping,” he says.

“Shopping?” I question.

“We need to buy the girls dresses and I know it would mean a lot to Kate if you picked out hers,” he says.

On the way to the dress shop, River tells me his entire plan. Once inside the dress shop, it doesn’t take me long to find the perfect dress for Kate.

The three of us grab lunch, then Josh drives us to the marina. I smile when we walk up to a beautiful, large yacht and I read her name. River disappears into one of the staterooms, changes into a tuxedo, then he paces the floors anxiously. Just before three o’clock, Stephen joins us on deck and shakes River’s hand.

“Thank you for coming,” River says.

Stephen nods his head, then heads over to the bar and pours himself a drink.

Josh gets a text from the driver saying the girls are on their way. Josh races around and places rose petals in a path from the dock all the way to inside the main cabin. Half of the ones on the dock and outside the cabin quickly get carried away on the gentle breeze.

The driver pulls the limo up as close as he can and stops. He exits the vehicle, then opens the back door. He offers his hand to each of the ladies as they step out. Kate is the last one out of the vehicle. Her beauty takes my breath away, but more importantly, her mask is nowhere to be seen. It’s just Kate in her raw, stunning beauty. Stephen, Josh, and I walk down the dock to meet the girls.

“You look absolutely stunning,” I whisper in Kate’s ear, then take her hand.

Josh takes Nina’s hand, and Stephen takes both Joss and Maddy’s hands. We escort them from the dock and help them board the yacht. Joss’s face is a mixture of nervousness and excitement as she takes in the trail of rose petals. The main part of the deck is lit with hundreds of flickering candles that lead inside the cabin. Stephen lets go of Joss’s hand, then she follows the trail of rose petals and candles.

I squeeze Kate’s hand, then wrap my arm around her shoulder as we walk inside. The instant Joss’s eyes find River’s standing at the rear of the cabin, they fill with tears. She walks up to River and places her hand in his outstretched hand.

We all gather around as dead silence fills the room. The only thing that can be heard is a sniffle from Joss as she cries happy tears.

“Nutmeg,” River says, sniffing the air with a smile.

“Why did he say that?” I ask, leaning toward Kate.

“I don’t know,” she whispers back.

“Joss Lynn Meyer,” he starts.

I lean in again and quietly whisper in Kate’s ear, “Her name is Jocelyn?”

“No, her name is Joss . . . pause . . . Lynn,” she whispers back.

“That’s what I said, except without the pause.”

“Her first name is Joss, her middle name is Lynn,” she clarifies.

“Oh.”

“Now, shush,” Kate says, giving me a little shove.

“There’s never been anyone in my life who has completed my heart, until the day I met you. You’ve shown me things beyond what the human eye can see. You’ve filled my thoughts with color I thought I lost so long ago. You make me a better man. Joss Lynn Meyer, will you do me the honor and become my wife?” River asks, bending down on one knee.

I look at Kate standing next to me, and she has silent tears running down her cheeks with a huge, proud smile on her face.

River opens a box in his hand and Joss gasps. She gets on the floor on her knees in front of River, then places her hands on his cheeks.

“River Mason, you are the light that fills my soul. Yes, I will marry you,” she says, then kisses him.

Everyone cheers as River removes the ring from the box, then slips it on Joss’s finger.

Champagne is popped and everyone toasts to the newly engaged couple. I take Kate’s hand and lead her outside.

“Do you like your dress?” I ask.

“It’s beautiful,” she replies, taking the fabric in her hand with a smile.

“I knew it was you the second I saw it.”

Her eyes come to me and a surprised look fills her face.

“You picked it out?” she asks.

“I did. Did I do good?” I ask.

“You did more than good,” she replies, placing her hand on my cheek.

She leans in and places a warm kiss on my lips. I pull her slender body to mine and deepen the kiss.

I lean her back against the railing, then run my hand from the part in her hair down the side of her face, when a fishing vessel catches my eye.

“Didn’t the fisherman who helped rescue you call you
Little Missy?
I ask.

“Yeah, he did,” she answers. “What made you think of that?” she asks.

“Look,” I say, pointing to the vessel behind her.

Kate turns around and sees the boat I’m referring to. It’s a new, state of the art fishing vessel, and her name, elegantly stenciled on the bow says,
Little Missy.
The pilot sees us, toots his horn, then waves an enthusiastic wave to us. It is, in fact, the man who helped rescue Kate.

“River,” Kate whispers with a smile.

River is the kindest man I know. The weathered man who saved my life disappeared and quietly slipped away the night I almost drowned. He didn’t stick around looking for praise or reward and sadly I don’t even know his name. He, however, has been on my mind nonstop. I can’t thank him or Sadie enough, for their precious gift of life.

“Can I talk to my sister alone for a few minutes?” River says, standing next to me.

“Absolutely,” Cooper says, kisses me on the cheek, then heads inside the main cabin with everyone else.

“Little Missy,” I say.

River smiles, then tips his face up to the warm evening sun.

“Pedro,” he says, slipping his hand into his pants pocket. “He refused to accept it at first. I told him there was no gift large enough that could thank him for saving someone that means so much to me. I told him he either accepted the boat or everything else I had. He accepted the boat.”

Pedro is my hero and it feels complete to know his name.

“I have something I want to return to you,” River says, reaching into the breast pocket of his tux.

He removes a wrinkled, worn, and stained piece of paper, then holds it out to me. I instantly recognize the personal stationery. It’s the letter I wrote to River the night I tried to commit suicide. I wondered what happened to it. I wondered, more wished, that he didn’t find it and read it. I left a mess of a life in that apartment, and I wish that note had somehow just disappeared. So much has changed in such a short time. Tears run down my cheeks, as I look at the letter in his hand.

“Did you . . .” I start to ask.

I have to know if he read it. If he read it, that also means that Josh has read it. It also means he knows I solely blame myself for our parents’ death and for him being blind.

“I did,” he replies.

My heart sinks with regret.

“I want you to have it back. I’ve held it close to remind me why I was doing what I was doing. Now, I don’t need it anymore. I have my sister back,” he says, holding it out.

I take the vomit stained letter in my hand. I remember each and every word written in this letter like the day I wrote it. Most of it is what haunts me at night. As much therapy as I get, and as many times I’ve been told it isn’t my fault, I still just can’t let this last piece go. I blame myself.

I grip the letter in my hand, then River places his hand over mine and squeezes.

“I’ll say it as many times as you need to hear it to believe it, but I sincerely hope it only takes this one time. It never is, and never was, your fault. I never once, not even for a half of a second, then or now, blamed you. You were five, Kate, just a little girl in pigtails. You didn’t bring the alcohol to the lips of the other driver. You didn’t get behind the wheel of a car and enter a freeway. Listen to my words. It wasn’t your fault. You can’t accept the blame for something someone else did.”

My chest constricts, as I feel the guilt clawing its way to the surface. Angry, hot tears sear down my cheeks, as every word he said conflicts with the reality in my head. I look up at his pale blue eyes, and as sincere as they are, they are a constant reminder of what I did. I turn away, then wipe away the tears streaming down my face. River puts one hand on my shoulder, then the other, and turns me toward him. He wraps his arms around me and squeezes me tightly to his body. My body trembles with emotions in his arms.

“But, it was my . . .” I spit out broken.

“I don’t ever want to hear you say that again,” he says, squeezing me harder. “It’s not. It never was and it never will be. It’s not your fault.”

River keeps repeating the same words over and over again, it’s not your fault, it’s not your fault, while squeezing me tight. The air in my lungs burn, as I listen to him repeat them over and over again.

After what feels like an hour, I finally settle down and stop crying. River’s tux jacket is soaked with my tears. He wraps his fingers around my upper arms, then pulls me off his chest.

He lifts his hand and gently places it on my face. As he feels my face, I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Finally, clarity sinks in. After months of actually really hearing my counselors, is what helped me dig my way out of the depths of depression. Finally, I hear River and take it to heart. My lips tip up into a small smile, as I realize the depths of what I was taking responsibility for was never mine to take in the first place.

“I see the real you,” River says with a smile, as he feels my face.

“I hear you,” I reply, and give him a hug.

“You’re going to be alright,” he says, giving me a hug. “I’m going to go find my future bride now,” he says, releasing me.

I watch as he walks away, then I look at the letter in my hand. I don’t open it. I don’t need to. I rip the letter in half, then place the two pieces together and rip it in half again. I repeat it several more times, until it’s in tiny pieces and I can’t rip it anymore. I open my hand and let the last messy piece of my life flutter away. The pieces scatter in the wind, then fall into the water below.

A warm hand is slid around my waist, then brought up to my head. Cooper tilts my head toward his lips and places a firm kiss on my temple. I lean my head on his shoulder, until the last piece of torn paper sinks below the ocean surface.

“Are you hungry?” Cooper asks.

I lift my head and smile at him, then reply, “Yes.”

The last heavy weight, that I didn’t even realize was so very heavy, is lifted from my shoulders as we head inside the cabin.

Joss’s eyes find me immediately and she smiles a warm smile. She walks over to me and gives me a hug.

“Let me see that ring!” I say, hugging her back.