Page 80 of Forever Endeavor

CHAPTER 25

Six Weeks Later

Billie

Dragging herself across the entrance, Billie’s bags slipped off her shoulders and the thud-thud-thud echoed in the emptiness. The thick air was stale from the house being sealed tight for nearly two months. The mustiness reminded her of walking into the fishing cabin that first day in Janus Lake. Her eyes darted up to the ceiling to check for feathered stowaways.

After opening some windows to let in a cross breeze, she looked around and released a heavy sigh. She was completely disconnected from these surroundings. It didn’t feel like home when she left, and it certainly didn’t feel like home coming back. She’d been more comfortable at the Punta Cana hotel she’d never stepped foot in before. Hell, even the stinky shithole of a cabin with a bait bucket for a toilet was more hospitable.

She carried her thoughts with her into the shower, washing off the exhaustion after a long day’s drive. On the way back, it had been so tempting to put on the turn signal at the Janus Lake exit and steer her car straight into town. The only thing preventing her from turning the wheel had been willpower and radio silence from Sonny. They’d texted during the first days she arrived in the Dominican, but he was busy moving, she was busy writing, and shortly after, the messages stopped. It was probably for the best anyway. She remembered divorce experts recommending going incommunicado after a breakup, creating the emotional space needed to move on. Only she and Sonny weren’t divorcing, and her heart had done anything but move on.

Wrapped in her favorite robe, Billie went to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine. She took a sip and immediately spit it into the sink, the taste of wet, sour cardboard coating her tongue. Either it had gone bad in her absence, was a lousy vintage to begin with, or she’d developed a preference for beer. Like it wasn’t enough that Sonny Hayes had spoiled her for other men, but now he’d gone and ruined wine for her too.

As she poured the rest of the bottle down the drain, her phone buzzed to life. Only one person would have the brass ones to call at this late hour. She answered on the third ring. “Hi, Carmen.”

“Billie…oh, Billie,” she sniffled. “I…I…hold on a moment.” She dropped the phone and released a goose-like honk, blowing her nose before picking up again. “I’m sorry. I’m a complete wreck.”

“Oh God, Carmen. Who died?”

“No, no, no one died. Nothing’s wrong, it’s only very, very, right. I just finished reading your manuscript. My dear, it’s…it’s incredible.”

She pressed her hand to her chest, relieved by the head honcho’s early review. “You really think so?”

“I think it’s your finest work yet. It’s beautiful, heartbreaking, powerful, and best of all, it’s got that magnificent, tear-jerking final chapter. You did it, Billie. You got to happily ever after all on your own.”

“Yes, I managed to get there, but I definitely had some help along the way.” She’d done it not merely by sheer imagination, but by reliving the joy of witnessing Cal and Liona’s reunion. And by embracing what being with Sonny had taught her, helping to make peace with her broken pieces and opening up her heart once again.

“Forgive me for asking, but where’d you get this idea? It’s not another one of yourLaw & Ordertreatments, is it?”

Billie laughed. “I just wrote from the heart. I think it was probably inside me all along.”

“I loved it. So much so that I’ve sent your draft on to the senior editor tonight with my instruction to drop whatever they’re working on to make this their top priority. I have a meeting with publicity first thing tomorrow. I’m putting a rush on it for the holiday campaign.”

Billie yawned and stretched. “Wow, that’s great. Really great.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m thrilled you love it.”

“You don’t sound thrilled. You sound like you’ve just lost your best friend.”

Billie ran her hand through her damp hair, shaking the clumped tendrils loose. “I’m just wiped. Why did I ever think it was a good idea to drive an entire day out of my way just to save a few bucks? I should’ve paid whatever it cost to fly direct instead of being so cheap.”

“If you hadn’t been frugal, you would have missed the best part of the trip.”

She smiled. “Yes, I suppose that’s true.”

“And how was Punta Cana?”

“Fine, I guess.” She looked down at her untanned arm. Being holed up alone, writing non-stop day and night, hadn’t been much of a holiday. Whenever she did leave her room for a bite or a walk on the beach, goo-goo-eyed couples were everywhere she looked, kissing, holding hands and painfully reminding her of the romantic vacation that it could’ve been. “I was so focussed on the book that I didn’t see much of it beyond my balcony.”

“That’s a shame, but the point was to be there to work, and you achieved that. This book is going to be a crowning finale for the Moonlight Chronicles.”

“That’s very kind and you were right, it turned out to be a great diversion. Now that I’m back, there’s nothing to distract me from the fact that my book is finished, my house is empty, and there’s a giant, grease monkey-sized void in my heart.” She sighed. “Plus, I’m all out of wine.”

“I’ll send a case over in the morning. Better yet, come to the office when you feel up to it and we’ll toast to Amethyst Jayde’s next bestseller with a bottle of Dom Perignon.”

Sonny

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