Home to You

“That’s—” I start, but he places his finger over my lips to stop me.

“Three months, Haven. I have three months to make you fall in love with me.”

I want so badly to tell him that I love him now. That I never stopped. Fifteen years ago, this is the exact park where I told him I was going to Juilliard, and never looked back. Now that I’ve seen the grass on the other side of the world, it’s not as green as I thought it would be.

His phone rings, and he sighs, pulling it out of his pocket. “I’m sorry. It’s Trina,” he says, accepting that call. “Hey, everything okay?” he asks, looking down at his phone.

“Daddy, I need to tell you goodnight.” Chloe’s sweet voice comes through the line. “Why’s it dark? I can’t see you.”

“Sorry, baby. Daddy’s at the park.”

“The park? It’s dark out.”

“Miss Haven and I brought our food here to have dinner,” he tells her honestly.

“Oh, is she there? Let me see,” Chloe says excitedly.

He turns the phone to face me. “Hi, Chloe.” I wave from my spot on the swings.

“Miss Haven, you like to swing? I love, love, love the swings. Daddy, when you get me tomorrow, can we take Miss Haven to swing?” she asks.

“Maybe not tomorrow, princess, but we will. I promise.”

“Okay. Well, I need to go to sleep now. Night, Daddy, love you.”

“I love you too, princess.”

“Night, Miss Haven, oh, and don’t forget to fall in love with my daddy.”

I suck in a breath as Sebastian’s laughter fills the night air.

“Well, she’s consistent. I’ll give her that,” he says, ending the call.

“We’re confusing her.”

“No. She’s a smart little girl.”

“We should probably get going. It’s getting late.”

Disappointment crosses his face, but I hold strong. A lot of things were said tonight, things that cause my heart to race. Then there’s Chloe and her declaration. How easy it would be to tell her that she doesn’t have to worry about me falling in love with her daddy because I never stopped loving him. However, I don’t think that’s the right thing to say. I live in New York, and even though we’ve revisited our past, that’s not our future… is it?

Chapter 5

Sebastian 5

I finish mowing the back lawn and push the mower to the front. As I pass the porch, I grab the bottle of water off the railing and chug it. It’s a gorgeous late-September Saturday, one with the sun high in the sky and a light breeze out of the east. I spent the morning at the weight room with the team, but now have the rest of the day to myself. A perfect day to get a little yard work done before Chloe arrives.

Memories of spending last night with Haven filter through my mind as I wipe my forehead with my T-shirt. Everything from the drive-through food to eating in the park, swinging in the same place we did all those years ago, and video chatting with my daughter before bedtime. It was the perfect ending to a great Friday night, all capped off by a peck on the cheek after I walked her to her parents’ front door and bid her goodnight.

Oh, I wanted more than just a chaste kiss at the end of our time together, but with Haven, it’s a marathon, not a race. Slow and steady. That’s how I’ll win in my quest for her heart.

It’s funny how my own heart knew it was her it was missing. Like when she left, she took a piece with her, and now that she’s back, it’s whole again. Maybe I shouldn’t have laid all my cards on the table so quickly, but you know what? Fuck it. I want her. More today than ever before. I could tell by the look in her eyes she’s not happy in New York. Even before she confirmed it, I saw it written in her delicate features, in those emerald eyes.

Then, she confirmed it, and it was like someone blew the whistle.

Game. On.

I’ve tried to play it cool today. I don’t want to bombard her with texts and phone calls, even though I’d love nothing more than to hear her voice or see her pretty face on my phone screen. Instead, to occupy my time, I’ve washed two loads of laundry, some dishes, and have been outside working in the yard since noon. The shrubs are trimmed, weeds pulled in the rock beds, and the gravel graded in the driveway to refill those pesky holes. And now, I’m finishing the yard.

I finish off the bottle of water and toss it in the trash can. With one more wipe across my face, I take off the shirt, wipe the back of my neck, and throw it on the closest Adirondack chair. I don’t usually run around without a shirt on, but I’m baking under the sun and tired of the shirt sticking to my back.