Page 66 of When It Burns

All my love forever and always,

Mom

My hands shake as I fold the letter back up and put it back in the envelope. I wipe the single tear that had accumulated in my eye and look up to Heather who is crying silently beside me.

“She and your Dad loved you so much. And I have no doubt they would have wanted you to have this too,” she says, holding out a small jewelry box.

I take it from her hand and let out a choked sound of shock when I see my Mom’s engagement ring and wedding band perfectly preserved in the box in my hand. “How? This was lost in the fire,” I say, blinking to make sure that I am not dreaming.

“We thought so too. But a couple of months after the accident, I got a call from a jewelry store in Crestview. One of the small stones on the side of the engagement ring fell out, and your Dad dropped them both off the day of the accident so that they could check the prongs and clean them. The store obviously didn’t know about the fire, so it took them a while to piece together what had happened. The jeweler had a friend here in town that he called when no one came to pick them up, and that’s how they got my number,” Heather explains.

“Go find your forever, Theo,” Bobby says with a smile, and I stand on my shaky legs to do just that.

I take my time driving home from Bobby and Heather’s, thinking about the emotional roller coaster that today has become. I had gone to tell Bobby and Heather about Caroline, never once considering it would turn into what it did. The letter that was sitting like a dead weight in my pocket had somehow helped me feel more free than I had in years. I pull up to Maracas and put the truck in park, knowing it will probably be over an hour until Caroline is ready to go.

Grabbing the letter, I read back through it a few times and realize that my mom is right. Before I had moved to Springside, I had been so consumed with grief, I had stopped living.

After sitting for a while, I see Caroline, Margaret, and Hannah walk out of the small restaurant. Caroline hugs them both as they walk toward her old apartment and her face lights up when she sees me sitting in the parking lot. She darts through the dark lot before jumping in the truck and leaning over to give me a long kiss. “Let’s go home, Cowboy.”

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

CAROLINE

The following Monday, the girls and I sip our margaritas and I can’t help feeling like there’s something I’m missing. We’ve been here less than an hour, but Margaret and Hannah have already scarfed down their quesadillas and are sitting across from me twiddling their car keys in expectation.

“Y’all are acting so weird. What aren’t you telling me?” I ask them suspiciously.

Margaret’s eyes widen slightly, just enough to assure me that they’re up to something.

The day started with Theo claiming something was wrong with my car, even though I haven’t noticed so much as a check engine light since the last time it was serviced. He insisted he needed to dropped me off at work this morning, and Margaret was waiting to pick me up from practice because he said he was caught up at work. Thankfully, I still had clothes at Margaret’s that we hadn’t gotten around to moving yet, so at least I’d been able to freshen up by throwing on an old pair of jeans and one of my favorite pink tops.

Hannah just rolls her eyes at me and shrugs. “I told you we have to get some of Margaret’s stuff from the farm. I don’t want to be moving shit at midnight tonight. Plus I drew the straw to DD tonight, and I miss tequila.”

“Alright, fine,” I say, finishing my margarita. “Let’s go then.”

We stand and make our way out to Hannah’s car where we jump in and she throws the car in drive. She cranks nineties country music the whole way to my new home so loud it’s impossible to have a conversation, and we laugh as we sing “Heads Carolina, Tails California” at the top of our lungs.

The lyrics die on my lips as we pull up at the farmhouse. The entire driveway and porch is covered in hanging lights, and I see Theo standing in the middle of the drive with a bouquet of flowers along Will and Seth on the porch waving at us.

“What–” I stutter, and I turn to the backseat where Margaret is wiping tears from her eyes. I look back in bewilderment at my best friend, and Hannah leans over to squeeze my hand.

“Well Caroline, I think you might have found your brighter days. Let’s go,” she says with a watery smile.

I get out of the car and slowly walk to Theo as Margaret and Hannah join the boys on the porch.

“Theo, what is all of this?” I ask when I am close enough to wrap my arms around him.

“Caroline, I never imagined I could love someone as much as I love you. You helped me realize that I don’t have to live in the dark anymore, and I don’t want to know another day on this earth without your light. I’ve already told you I’m yours for as long as you want me. And I was just wondering if forever felt like too long?” Theo asks as he drops to one knee and holds out the most beautiful vintage engagement ring I’ve ever seen. “This was my momma’s ring, and I know you never got to meet her, but I have no doubt she’d be proud to see you wearing her ring. Will you marry me?”

I wipe the tears from my eyes and stare down at the man who has completely transformed my life. “Of course, Cowboy. Forever sounds pretty damn good to me.”

With that, Hannah, Will, Seth, and Margaret cheer, and Theo kisses me hard. He slides the ring on my finger, and I choke back a sob when his mother’s ring fits my finger perfectly.

Margaret screams from the porch, “I told you we were gonna be sisters-in-law!”

All of us laugh at her outburst, and I walk over to take her hand. “Margaret, you know I love your brother. But are you okay with me wearing this ring?”

She wipes a stray tear from her eye before she leans over and hugs me hard, “Caroline, I hate that my Momma never got to meet you, but there’s not a doubt in my mind that your finger is where that ring is supposed to be. She would have loved you as much as Theo and I do.”

---