“Happy New Year’s, Zo.” He gave her a squeeze. “I hope you saved me something to eat. I’m starving!”
“These bottomless pits had a go at everything, but I tucked a chicken sandwich and some of Gwen’s chocolate cake in the Esky for you.” She grinned. “Can’t let a man go hungry.”
“You’re the best.”
He was about to reach down and grab his food when he noticed a figure hovering close by. He blinked. Then shook his head. A woman stood with bare feet, sand particles dotting her legs, and a blue dress swirling around her thighs as a breeze pushed past. Long, dark hair tumbled down her shoulders, unrestrained and rippling in the air.
It couldn’t be…
“Hi Sean.” Lily waved her hand in greeting.
He straightened, shock filtering through his system. She was here. Really here.
“Lily.” He went to her, hunger forgotten as his mind whirled. “Is everything okay? Are your folks—”
“They’re fine. Everyone’s fine.” Her hands wrung in front of her. “Can we uh… can we talk?”
“Sure.”
They moved away from the curious stares of Mack and Zoey, and the rest of his friends. Lily headed down toward the water until the sand grew firm beneath their feet and their steps left perfect impressions behind. It felt as though he was having an out-of-body experience—that someone else was in control of his actions.
“What are you doing here?” he asked when they came to a stop.
“I turned down the TV show job.” She sucked in a breath and turned to him. The beach was lit with torches and lanterns.
He frowned. “Why?”
“When I got back to LA, I realised it wasn’t what I wanted, deep down. It felt like something I was supposed to do, another check box on my perfect career list. I was thinking too much about the connections, working with a woman I admire and becoming a more well-rounded writer when really…” She shook her head. “I hadn’t stopped to think about whether it was the kind of work that inspired me. Or if it would even be the kind of environment I would thrive in.”
Water lapped at their feet, and it was soothing and warm. The smell of salt in the air mixed with something sweet and fruity on her skin.
“I kept wanting to pick up my novel instead of working on what I was supposed to, and I pushed that feeling aside because it didn’t slot neatly into the future I’d sketched out for myself.” She bit down on her bottom lip. “Just like I kept thinking about you, even though you weren’t part of the future I’d sketched out, either.”
It was one thing to know she felt that way, but another to hear it out loud. “You came all this way to tell me I’m not good enough for your dreams?”
“No! That’s not what I meant.” She waved her hands as if trying to scrub the words away. “What I mean is… I haven’t been listening to my heart for a long, long time. Every decision I’ve made was about the next rung I could climb, regardless of whether I even wanted what was at the top of the ladder.”
He looked out to the ocean. The moon was approaching fullness and the glow reflected on the waves rolling beneath it.
“Sean, being with you in Forever Falls was the closest I’ve felt to being the real me in a long time. Not the successful export. Not the film industry up-and-comer. Not the girlfriend of Brock Silvers. Just me. Lily Dunn. No fancy titles or anything.”
“Lily Dunn is the best version of you,” he said huskily, brushing a strand of hair behind her ears. Her eyes were glittery and sincere. “You don’t need any labels to be worthy of a fulfilling life.”
“The silliest thing of all was that I knew what I wanted all along.” She reached up and touched his chest. “I wrote what I wanted and watched people bring it to life on a movie screen. I fell in love with a man because he was acting like you.”
Her words forced the air from his lungs. It was like dancing on a ledge, wind whipping his hair and the possibility of certain failure mocking his every step. Could he believe that he—with his humble life and his slow path to finding himself—was a hero in her eyes?
“I know you have little reason to trust me, Sean. Especially after you were honest about your feelings and I pushed you away. You wanted to make things work and I wouldn’t even hear you out.”
“Of course I trust you,” he replied. “You have a big heart. You… you helped me to see that I had stalled my life.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re not the only one making a career change.”
She gasped. “You quit Riptide?”
“I did. Gave two weeks’ notice and then I will be officially employed by the Patterson’s Bluff Surfing Club. I’ll start at the bottom of the ladder there, but I’m signed up to get my Bronze Medallion and hopefully by next summer I’ll be keeping these beaches safe.”
“I’m so proud of you.” Her eyes gleamed, and she laughed, brushing a tear away with the back of her hand. “Can I blame the emotions on jetlag? I just… oh Sean. That’s wonderful.”
But he couldn’t let this conversation finish without being clear about what he wanted. The life he’d never thought possible—the life he’d only ever felt existed in the movies—it was within his grasp.
And he would no longer settle.
“But I have to say something.” He let out a breath. “I don’t want to be a layover on your journey, okay? I don’t want this to be a ‘let’s see where it goes’ deal with plenty of ripcords along the way. Because I know what this is.”
“I know what it is, too,” she said, gazing up into his eyes. “It’s real.”
“I want everything with you, Lily. Because I knew we had something special when we were young. And I knew, the second I saw you in that airport, that it hadn’t gone away.”
Lily pushed up onto her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. Water splashed their legs as the wind picked up, and her dress flapped against her thighs. “I’m home now. I mean, I have a few things to finish up in LA but I’m cancelling my lease and packing my things and…”
He could scarcely breathe.
“I’m coming home for good.” She looked up at him and his heart felt like it was about to burst, like the stars reflected in her eyes. “And I want to come home to you. I love you, Sean.”
He bundled Lily up in his arms and held her tight, crushing his lips to hers. Their kiss was heaven. Sweet, comforting, familiar heaven. And all the regrets he’d held—about their missed connections and him taking so long to do something with his life—all vanished into dust.
She’d woken him up in a way he’d never expected. She’d helped him to see that he was capable of more than the easy path. She’d helped him come alive.
And he would help her value the pleasures in life, not just the work.
They made one another a heightened version of themselves. Reaching toward their full potential.
“I love you, too,” he whispered, planting kisses along the edge of her jaw and sliding his hands into her hair. “I have always loved you.”
“Thank you for helping me see I was almost throwing away the most important thing in life.” She tipped back her head, staring up at him with eyes open and full of love. “And thank you for helping me believe in myself, in my talent. I’m going to come home and work on my novel and… I’m going to get it published.”