Page 83 of Because You Loved Me

Asher couldn’t have been more than four or five. He was perched on his father’s shoulders. They stood in a forest, each of them wearing matching smiles.

He swallowed down the lump in his throat as he stared at the photo for a moment before picking up the letter.

Asher. My son.

If I know you at all, you’re probably pretty pissed off with me right now.

Asher shook his head. “You know it, Dad.”

And I bet you have a few questions about the cabin you’re sitting in right now.

He raised his eyebrows and blew out a breath.

I know it probably all seems a bit secretive and strange that I had a little cabin in the woods that nobody knew about, but a man is entitled to a few secrets as he gets older, and this was mine. When your mother died, I was lost in a way that I wasn’t sure I’d be able to come back from.

I still had all of you kids, and I knew I had to be strong for all of you, and I did my best. But ultimately, it was this place that saved me from myself.

You see, I didn’t know what to do with myself when Angela died, and I threw myself into my work in a way that was entirely unhealthy. As rewarding as my work was, it wasn’t enough. And it kept me from facing the truth.

That there was more to life than work.

It wasn’t until I bought this little run-down shack in the woods on a whim one day that I started to feel differently.

At first, I would come out to the woods to be alone and feel closer to your mother. But it didn’t take long for it to become like a type of therapy for me, son. Working with my hands, fixing things, and breathing life back into this place healed me.

And I hope it will do the same for you. We always did share a love for the woods, even if we didn’t spend as much time together out there in recent years.

Asher stopped reading and looked into the fire. He didn’t need healing. He never had.

Don’t sit there and think you don’t need the healing, son.

He laughed out loud.

You do. I see it in you. You’re so much like me, with your drive and your work ethic. But there’s more to life, son. I didn’t realize that until I met your mother. She taught me what living really was. She gave me a family and a purpose beyond myself.

She saved me from myself and healed me the first time.

My greatest wish for you would be that you find that kind of love, too. That you find a woman who loves you, accepts you, and makes you a better version of yourself and teaches you that there is so much more to life than working all the time. But since I can’t give you that, I’m giving you this cabin, and the time to discover it for yourself.

Asher, I’ve watched you give your all to the company and your work. And I want you to know that even if I didn’t tell you enough when I was alive, I am so proud of the man you’ve become and the work you’ve done. But now it’s time for you to learn that there’s more to this life.

Spend your six months in the cabin or with one of your siblings. Travel and see the world, or simply explore your own backyard. But I hope you take this time to discover yourself in a new way. Let people in, Asher. Not only your brothers and sisters, but everyone.

And when you find that special person, the one who makes you feel things you didn’t know were possible and sees you for who you really are, hold them close, son. And never let them go because that person will be the greatest gift of your life.

Noa.

Asher swallowed hard, but he didn’t try to stop the tear that streaked down his cheek.

Make this cabin your own, Asher. And when it’s time, go back to work and continue to make Carlson Corp and the town of Trickle Creek great, if that’s what you still want to do. But whatever you choose, I hope you do it for yourself. You don’t need to make me proud, son. I already am. I always have been and I always will be.

Love, Dad.

* * *

Noa woke up with a clear head despite the late night she’d had. After talking things out with her mom, she’d returned to their suite, to find Ryan, fresh off a conversation with his parents. The two of them ordered room service, and like the best friends they’d always been, stayed up until after midnight talking.

She was beyond grateful that their ill-fated engagement hadn’t ruined their friendship. And maybe it wasn’t a relationship most people would understand, but that didn’t matter.

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