“I’m so sorry for shutting you out, sweetheart,” I whispered as I kissed her head.

I laid her on the bed and she took off her shirt, bra, and pants. She climbed under the sheets, and as I climbed in next to her, I wrapped my arms around her and held her tightly. I closed my eyes and fell asleep. It was easy falling asleep when I was with Rory, no matter what was going on in my life.

The next morning, Rory and I got up and got ready for our run. If there was ever a day I needed one, today was the day. Rory and I always had good talks when we ran. She didn’t say much when we woke up. I thought she was still a little pissed off about last night. I’d be spending eternity making up for it. As we headed out the door and down to the beach, she finally spoke.

“Talk to me, Ian. Tell me what you’re feeling.”

I silently laughed to myself because she was throwing my words right back at me. We ran along the shoreline.

“I’m feeling really pissed off. I can’t even comprehend what my father did. I’ll never forgive him.”

“Yes, you will.”

“No, Rory. I won’t.”

“You will because life’s too short. I need to forgive my father for what he did and you need to forgive both your parents. If I learned anything from Stephen’s death, it’s that you never know what’s going to happen.”

I looked over at her. “This is different.”

“No, it’s not. Life sucks, baby, and sometimes you have to bite the bullet and go with what it throws at you.”

“My whole life was a lie,” I said.

“My whole life was a lie too. Don’t forget that. You and I are in very similar boats and we’re struggling to paddle to the shore before we tip over and drown. But see, Ian, we don’t have to struggle, and we don’t have to drown. We have each other and we are each other’s life preservers. We keep each other afloat.”

I stopped and she ran a few feet ahead. Where the hell was all of this coming from? I always knew Rory was an intelligent woman, but this...

“Why did you stop?” she asked as she turned around and ran back to me.

“Because of you. The things you’re saying.”

“I’m only speaking the truth.”

“When did you figure all this out?” I asked.

“It took a while, but eventually, I got it. It helps to talk to Stephen when I visit his grave. Every time I step foot in that cemetery, I think to myself that this could be either one of us lying in the ground.”

“Aw, sweetheart, come here,” I said as I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into an embrace. “Everything you’re saying is true. Every fucking word of it. But, I don’t know if I can do it,” I said as I kissed her head.

“You can and you will. New beginnings, Ian. It’s all about forgiveness and new beginnings. I’ve decided that I want a relationship with my father. At least you had your mom and knew her for a few years before you never saw her again. I never knew my father at all. Your mom tried to see you. She made attempts and even disguised herself. Don’t just disregard that. And, as for Richard, what he did was pure evil, but he regrets it and he’s dying. You may not have much time left with him, Ian. Don’t let him die and then you never got the chance to tell him you forgave him, because you’ll spend the rest of your life regretting it.”

I put my forehead against hers and cupped her face in my hands. “I love you,” I said as I brushed my lips against hers.

“I love you more.” She smiled.

We continued our run and talked some more. Rory was right about everything and it was going to take time, and once I pushed the anger aside, the healing process would begin.

Rory

We were in the kitchen and I grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. I sat down in the chair because I was feeling light-headed. I laid my head down on the table for a second, waiting for it to pass.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Ian asked.

“I’m just a little dizzy. No big deal.”

“Well, drink your water. You may be a little dehydrated.”

Charles had just taken the blueberry muffins out of the oven and the smell was overwhelming. Overwhelming to the point where I felt like I was going to be sick. Ian took one and started eating it. As I sat there and watched him, the sick feeling became more intense as I covered my mouth with my hand and ran to the bathroom. I didn’t even have time to shut the door. Ian came in and looked at me.

“Rory, are you sick?” He asked as he rubbed my back.

“I guess so,” I said as I continued to vomit in the toilet.

Ian stood there and waited for me to finish. He handed me a tissue and then kissed my forehead. “Why don’t you go upstairs and lie down?”

“I feel better now.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m just going to finish my water.”

Ian went to his study to do some work and I sat down at the piano. I thought a lot about our talk and I was hoping that I was able to get through to him. I stretched my fingers and began to play. As I stroked the keys and played Chopin’s “Grande Valse Brillante in E-flat Major,” I became lost in the music. This had always been Stephen’s favorite. Ian emerged from his study and stood next to the piano and smiled at me. He even swayed back and forth and moved his head around. I looked up at him and began to laugh as I continued playing. I played faster and he moved with the beat. When the song was finished, he looked at me and said, “I need to fuck you now. Are you up for it?”

“The question is, are you UP for it?” I smiled.

He gave me that playful look and I knew I was in trouble. I quickly ran up the stairs and into the bedroom, where he tackled me on the bed and he showed me how up for it he was.

Chapter 27

Rory

Adalynn’s wedding was in a couple of days and I was so excited I could barely stand it. I hadn’t been feeling well lately and I tried to hide it as much as I could from Ian because he worried so much about me, especially since Stephen’s death. I hadn’t been running the past few days because I’d been so tired. With everything that had happened over the past couple of months, I thought exhaustion was finally starting to settle in. Not to mention the fact that Ian and I made love about three times a day. That man was enough to wear anyone out. And he accused me of trying to kill him.

“Are you running with me today?” he asked.

“Yes, babe, I am. I’ll meet you downstairs.”

I felt sick again like I did every morning and I went into the bathroom and threw up. I thought the excitement of Adalynn and Daniel’s wedding might have caused some of the queasiness I was feeling lately. I had to go for one last fitting on my dress. After my run, I was meeting Adalynn at the bridal shop and then we were going to lunch. I put on my running clothes and headed downstairs. Ian was down at the beach, waiting for me.

“It’s about time,” he said.

“Sorry, I couldn’t find my shoes,” I lied.

We ran and talked about the wedding. “Wait until you see how beautiful Adalynn looks in her wedding dress.”

“I can hardly wait,” Ian replied sarcastically.

I bumped his shoulder and he almost fell over. “Oops, sorry!” I laughed.

“Now you’re in trouble,” he said as he tried to grab me, but I ran way ahead of him. He was faster than I was and he caught up to me in no time. He grabbed me, picked me up, and swung me around before we went down on the sand. He hovered over me as he tried to catch his breath.

“See what happens when you push me?” He smiled.

“I like what happens when I push you. I think I might do it more often.” I smiled back.

He stared into my eyes as he pushed some stray hairs out of my face. “I love you, Rory Sinclair.”

“I love you more, Ian Braxton.”

“Not possible.” He smiled as he lowered his lips onto mine.

“We need to head back. I have to shower and meet Adalynn.”

“Ah, that’s right. You’re going to pick your dress up today.”

He got off of me and held out his hand to help me up. Instead of running back to the house, he put his arm around me and we walked back.

“I love spending my mornings like this. Just me and you, the beach, our runs. It’s perfect, Rory, and I don’t want it any other way.”

His words made me melt, but then again scared me. What did he mean by he “didn’t want it any other way”? I laid my head on his shoulder until we got back to the house. We showered together and then he left for the office. As soon as I was finished getting dressed, I drove to the bridal shop to meet Adalynn.

“Hello, darling,” she said as she gave me a hug and kiss.

“Hi.” I smiled.

The sales lady had my dress hanging in the fitting room. I stepped inside, put on the dress, and tried to zip it.

“Adalynn, can you help me?” I yelled from the dressing room.

“Sure, sweetie. What’s wrong?”

“I can’t seem to zip this up all the way,” I said in a panic.

“Hold on, let me do it. These zippers are tricky. Rory, you’re going to have to suck it in. Have you put on some weight?”

“NO!” I said. “They sewed it wrong.”

Adalynn called in the sales lady and told her that the dress was too tight. She looked at the slip that was stapled to the garment bag and then measured me.

“It looks like you put on a few pounds,” she said.

I was horrified that she said that. “I most certainly did not and with all the vomiting I’ve been doing, I’ve barely been eating.”

“Wait, hold up, Rory. What do you mean with ‘all the vomiting’?”

“I think I’m really nervous about the wedding because I’ve been throwing up every morning.”