Page 105 of The Edge of Summer
I hum. “You know what I want right now?”
“What’s that?”
I twist in his hold, throwing a leg over his lap until I’m straddling him. “You.”
His irises swirl, a heady mix of love and want. “You have me. In this lifetime and the next.”
Footsteps sound on the stairs, and then Parker comes into the room with a hand covering his eyes. “Just because I’m cool with you guys being in love or whatever doesn’t mean I should be forced to see this couple shit all the time.”
I laugh as I slide off of Luke’s lap. “Okay, you’re clear.”
Parker slowly uncovers his eyes. When he sees that we are no longer touching, he holds an envelope out to me. “This is for you.”
“What is it?”
Parker shrugs as he heads for the door. “Don’t know. It was in the mailbox.”
The envelope looks as if it has seen better days. Wherever it came from, it must have been on quite the journey to me. I hook a nail under the flap and tear into it. On top of a folded piece of paper is a pink sticky note.I hope this brings you peace, it reads. It’s signed by someone named Tanya.
I suck in a sharp breath. Reading that name brings me back to the day I received her call. It was months ago now. I completely forgot about this letter—so much has happened since then.
“What is it?” Luke asks, peering over my shoulder.
I swallow. “A letter from my father.”
Luke’s hand settles on my thigh in a comforting gesture. “Do you want me to stay while you read it?”
“Yes, please.” My voice comes out small.
With shaking hands, I unfold the paper. I expect to find a typed document with my father’s signature letterhead, but I’m met with a sea of black ink, smudged by his left-handed strokes. It isn’t some carefully-worded memo with his signature hastily scrawled on the bottom. He actuallywroteme something.
Delilah,
Words have never been my strong suit, at least not when it comes to you and your siblings, but I’m going to try.
At the end of the month, I will be announcing my resignation. It has taken me far too long to see that I have been neglecting my family in favour of my work. That stops today. When I look back at my life, I want to be proud of the man that I was. And I haven’t been proud of myself in a long time.
I’m sorry for the way that I acted. Youshould have felt safe coming to me, and instead, I let you down. I want you to know that none of this is your fault. I hope you’ll let me make this up to you.
Love, Dad
Tears cascade down my cheeks in unending streams. I knew this would hurt, but I didn’t know just how much
“Delilah,” Luke says, pained.
“He loved me,” I whisper.
Luke turns my face toward him, swiping at the tears staining my face. “‘Course he did, pretty girl.” He tips his forehead to mine. “How could he not?”
My lashes flutter against my damp cheeks as I close my eyes. “He was going to resign. He was going to quit for me, Luke.”
I pull back and bury my face in my hands as my lips begin to tremble. A sob works loose, wrenching itself from my chest. My father’s words pour into me as the tears pour out. I feel Luke’s arms wrapping around me, and then he cradles me on his lap. His lips press gentle kisses to my temple as I cry.
When I moved to Kip Island in May, I felt like I was numb. A shell of a person, only halfway existing, and all of it was for those around me. I thought I needed the lighthouse to pull me out of the fog, but the lighthouse simply brought me here. This island—these people—were the ones to stripme bare and rebuild me, piece by piece. They gave me space to feel after I had spent so long trying not to.
Loving Luke brought me back to life. Denying my feelings would be to deny all that I feel for him, and he makes that impossible. With every gesture—fixing my headlight, entering me into the photography contest when he knew I was too scared to—he cleared away some of the fog. He didn’t set out to rescue me, and he hasn’t. He simply shone a light so I could see in the dark. So I could find my own way. And I think I’m getting there.
“Photography has been my dream for as long as I can remember.” My voice is raw, still clogged with emotion. Luke holds me, listening intently. “Somewhere along the way, I got so caught up in not being a disappointment that I lost sight of who I truly am. I want to find her again.”
