Page 91 of Meet Me on Lilac Lane

Yeah.You’re right, Dad.

Loving Cody was worth the risk.

Cody woke up feeling like he’d wrestled a six foot, one-hundred-pound lake sturgeon single-handedly into his boat.

He’d walked like a robot through the day yesterday after Mia had broken things off with him. Then, last night, he’d tossed and turned in his bed, hashing through the arguments for and against all of his dreams. He’d cried out to God throughout the night, asking for wisdom.

Then, this morning he’d called Liam and told him what had happened on the water and how Liam’s words had helped.

“That’s great,” Liam said. “You sound tired.”

He told Liam what he’d been wrestling with all night. “I don’t know if I should give everything up or keep fighting.”

“You don’t have to let one bad thing define you. Or even a series of bad things.” Liam cleared his throat. “God loves you, man, and that’s what defines you. Do what He created you to do.”

He hung up with Liam with a renewed determination. He respected Mia’s decision to not have a romantic relationship, even if the thought felt like having fishhooks stuck through his heart. But he could still chase after the dream of reopening the fishing company.

Even after the storm the night before last, he couldn’t deny that the passion for being on the water burned bright in his chest. While he would have given up all of that for Mia, he couldn’t imagine a better life.

He briefly toyed with the idea that he should give it up just to show her he was serious about her, but he knew she wouldn’t be happy if he did that. Part of respecting her decision was making some of his own.

He pulled on a pair of joggers and a lightweight jacket and then his running shoes. He’d take his morning run and end up at his parents’ house.

Time to confront his dad once and for all. Time to fight for what he wanted and not to just wait for loss to find him.

The sun shone bright in the blue sky as he pounded the trail. After running a mile out and back, he turned up the road that led to his parents’. When he got close, he saw that the shed door stood ajar. He slowed his pace, evened out his breathing, and went in.

“Hey there, Cody.” His dad stood near the tool bench, a fishing rod in his hand. “Lily caught her first fish with this rod. For a while I thought she might be the fisherman between you two. She could catch a fish just by looking in the water.”

Cody laughed. “Our good luck charm.” Was his dad really starting to talk to him again? Incredible.

His dad hung the fishing rod back on a hook then took down a different one. “This is the rod you caught your first fish on, do you remember that?”

Cody remembered the bright summer morning, the feel of the tug on the line, then the overwhelming pleasure of landing the fish. It had flopped around in the bottom of the boat until his dad picked it up and showed him how to pull out the hook. “I think I cried.”

“No shame in having some emotions. That was a big day for you.”

Did he accidentally turn down Memory Lane? “Dad, I didn’t come over here to reminisce.” He leaned a hip against the tool bench. “But I guess that’s a good place to start. You know how much I love fishing. Both tossing in a line for breakfast on the beach and doing the commercial fishing with you. You taught me to love it.”

His father nodded but wouldn’t meet his eye. “You used to be the most passionate fisherman I’ve ever met.”

“And I want to rekindle that fire. You can’t ask me to give that up. I don’t want to give it up.” He noticed his hands flailing and tucked them into his pockets. “Why, Dad? Why don’t you want me to buy your business? And the fishing license?”

The hand holding the fishing rod trembled. “I lost my best friend out there. Not to mention Troy. Two fine men.”

“Do you still blame me for the accident? Is that why? Because you don’t trust me out there?”

“Blame you? I don’t blame you. If anything, I blame myself. I should have let that one go. We’d already put in a full week.” His dad passed a hand over his eyes. “I heard about that school of fish, and all I could think about was how it could be an extra mortgage payment for your mom and me. We didn’t really need the money, but I thought if I could pay off the house, I could save up to take your mother somewhere nice for our thirtieth anniversary.” His dad looked at him, eyes pleading for understanding. “I don’t blame you, Cody. You did everything right.”

“Then what? You still haven’t answered my question. Why can’t I buy you out?” His belly still churned. The admission from his father salved some of his wounded heart, but if it wasn’t that his dad blamed him for the accident, what could it be?

“I’m scared!” The words exploded out of his father. He turned and braced both of his hands on the bench. His shoulders hunched, knuckles white. “I don’t want to lose my only son the way I lost my friend—the way you lost yours. Every time you talk about going back out on the water, a kind of panic comes over me.”

“Dad—”

“No, let me finish. It’s been a long time coming. You were right to make me talk about this.” His dad heaved himself up and away from the bench. He faced Cody square on. “When I thought about you going back out on the water, I thought I would lose my mind. Your mother reminded me that all my worrying wouldn’t keep you safe, only God can do that. She said you are written on His hand.” He rubbed the top of his head, a gesture Cody recognized as resignation. “I’ve got a ways to go, but your mother was right. I need to leave your safety up to God. People die all the time from all sorts of things: cancer, car crashes, heart attacks. It’s out of our control.”

Something loosened inside him. “I’m not likely to be struck by a car on this island.”

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