Wednesday (Timeless Series #3) (25 page)

But please give it to me anyway.

I’ve done a lot of soul-searching and have been meeting with a therapist for a long time now. My past is where it belongs, and my anger has faded away. I’ve made my peace with the way things are. I’ve learned to let everything go, including my guilt.

Now I just need you.

I can be exactly what you need now. I’ll repair all the damage I’ve caused. I’ll be everything and anything you want me to be.

Please.

If you say no, I swear I’ll never bother you again and I’ll leave you in peace. You shouldn’t have to deal with me anymore, not when you’ve moved on with someone you care about.

So, don’t say no.

Muffin, marry me.

I stilled at that final sentence, unsure if I really read it. The words stared back at me from the page, bold and unmistakable. My bottom lip trembled and my eyes couldn’t contain all the moisture that had built up.

I turned the page, and realized there were no entries left. The final pages had been mutilated with a square hole. Inside sat a platinum ring.

“Oh my god…”

I stared at it for several heartbeats, unsure if it was real. Then I grabbed it with my fingers and examined it under the light of my bedside lamp. The platinum ring was similar to the locket he gave me. There were three cuts in the top of the ring, making three stripes. There were no diamonds like a typical engagement ring. When I turned it over, I saw the engraving in each bar.

We.

Are.

Forever.

I closed my fingers around the ring and felt the tears fall. The metal felt warm in my hand, like it belonged on my finger. My heart broke in half for all the pain he went through. I thought my heartache was worse, but I quickly realized how wrong I was.

I opened my palm and stared at the ring for a long time, falling in love with its perfection. I never told Hawke what kind of ring I wanted but this was exactly it. I wanted something I could wear to work without fear of tarnishing it. And flashy things never caught my notice.

It was perfect.

I stared at for several moments before I placed it on my ring finger. The second it was there, a jolt ran up my arm. It fit comfortably, the perfect size to keep it snug. My heart skipped a beat because it felt right.

It felt absolutely right.

The front door opened and Kyle walked inside. “Man, that was a long game.”

I panicked and looked at the time, unsure how he could be back so early. It was ten in the evening and I realized I’d been reading Hawke’s journal all day.

All day.

Kyle came into the bedroom and stopped when he saw the look on my face. “Everything alright?”

I closed Hawke’s journal and felt the leather under my fingers. The inevitable was staring at me right in the face. My lips didn’t want to move because the words they contained would inflict pain.

But I knew I had to do it.

“Kyle, we need to talk…”

Wednesday

Hawke

I sat on the couch and drank a beer. The TV was off and most of the lights were out. Stuck in a dark repose, I kept thinking about Francesca. I wondered what she was doing.

Was the journal forgotten?

If my journal didn’t bring her back to me, nothing would. That was my last hope, and if that didn’t work, I would have to force myself to let her go. Even though she was with Kyle, I still considered her to be mine.

But she wasn’t.

The future before me was terrifying. The idea of living the rest of my life without her actually scared me.

Horrified me.

And I wasn’t scared of anything.

I knew I would be alone all my life, and when I died, I’d still be alone. How could I ever love someone else when my heart belonged to her—now and forever? How could I ever move on without thinking about her?

I didn’t want to go on.

It was getting late but I didn’t go to bed. Sleep was a luxury I’d forgotten about. Without Francesca beside me, it was impossible to fall into my dreams. All I could do was lie awake and think about the woman I threw away.

Regret.

Anguish.

Desolation.

There were nights like this when I wanted to end it all.

A knock sounded on my door.

I was frozen in place, hearing the unmistakable sound echo in my apartment. It was nearly midnight and no one would just stop by at this hour, not even Axel.

My heart kicked into overdrive with the possibility. I slowly rose to my feet, my breathing unable to be controlled. I allowed my soul to relax, to feel the vibration around me.

Francesca.

She was behind the door. I was sure of it.

But what if I was wrong? What if I opened it and came face-to-face with anyone else?

It had to be her.

I walked to the door and stopped in front of it, afraid to look in the peephole. The disappointment would kill me. If it weren’t her, I’d die all over again. I grabbed the door handle and gripped it tightly, fearful of what waited on the other side.

Francesca.

I took a deep breath, the kind that hurt, and then I opened the door.

On the other side stood the woman of my dreams. Her green eyes were coated with heavy moisture, and they were bright like the summer grass. Her hair was pulled over one shoulder and she gripped my black journal to her chest. Her bottom lip trembled slightly.

I held my breath, hoping this wasn’t a dream. If it was, I never wanted to wake up. I wanted to stare at her forever and enjoy this moment as long as I could.

She gripped the journal tighter, clinging to it for dear life.

And that’s when I noticed the ring.

It was on her left finger.

She was wearing it.

My lungs automatically took a breath because I’d stopped breathing. Unwillingly, moisture moved into my eyes. Tears started to form deep inside. Everything hurt.

The tears pooled into droplets and fell from the corners of her eyes. “Yes.”

My hands started to shake. I could feel every heartbeat and smell the scent of her perfume. This was real. It had to be. I wouldn’t go on if it weren’t.

“Yes.”

Now that she was right in front of me, I didn’t know what to do. I’d always hoped this would happen but I never expected it to. She was just within reach, and she was giving me an answer I’d dreamed of hearing.

“I’ll marry you.” More tears fell down her cheeks and her bottom lip quivered.

So much emotion was hitting me at once and my body could hardly take it. My own tears formed in my eyes but didn’t fall. But they were growing in size, their weight enough to form a drop.

I finally snapped out of the shock and cupped her cheeks with my hands. I placed my forehead against hers and breathed with her, feeling my body come back to life. All the pain faded away, and I was being put back together, every passing second fixing something that was once broken. Our souls wrapped around each other, anchoring together permanently. Once they clicked, I heard it ring in my mind. My thumbs wiped away the tears streaked across her cheeks.

Her hands moved to my chest, the journal still held in one. Her free hand moved over my heart, feeling it beat through the skin. She continued to cry quietly, the emotion overpowering her. Francesca hardly ever cried, and I knew this instance was a good one.

I tilted her chin up and kissed the tears that continued to fall down her face. My lips felt her soft skin and trembled slightly at the touch. I’d never felt so much joy and pain at the same time. My body could hardly process what just happened. I’d wanted this for so long and now it was finally happening.

I couldn’t believe it.

I continued to hold Francesca because I never wanted to pull away. She was finally mine, wearing the ring I bought for her so long ago. She was an emotional mess in my arms, and my heart was just as wrecked.

But we were slowly putting each other back together. Our souls healed each other, and when we were combined like this, we were stronger. I held her on my doorstep and kept kissing her falling tears while she felt my heartbeat, waiting for it to return to normal.

We were getting our forever.

And it was starting now.

Bells

Francesca

Hawke lay beside me in his bed, his fingers interlocked with mine. His thumb brushed across the engagement ring, reminding him that it was real. His eyes never left mine, like he feared I would fly away without any notice.

I didn’t work the next day. Actually, I didn’t even show up.

He didn’t either.

We lay in bed together and held each other. We didn’t make love because our souls did that for us. All we wanted was to be together. His eyes drank me in like he was parched and his hands were always on me, feeling my soft skin.

I constantly felt his heart, needing to know it was still beating strongly. That vibration used to lull me to sleep every night. Now it was back, and I realized just how much I missed it.

We hadn’t spoken since yesterday on the doorstep. I told him I would marry him and we hadn’t said anything since. The only conversation we had was with our eyes.

“What changed your mind?” Hawke brought my hand to his lips and kissed my ring.

“Everything in your journal.”

He placed my hand on top of his heart and rested his hand there. “When I was going to propose, I was going to give you that journal with the ring inside—because you gave me your journal.”

“It was beautiful…”

“This is the last time,” he whispered. “I’m here forever. I’m not going to go anywhere ever again.”

I didn’t have any doubt. “I know.”

The softness in his eyes showed me how much that meant to him.

“We are forever.”

“And ever.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead and rested his face close to mine on the pillow.

I didn’t want to leave his place because it felt so right. I didn’t care about my apartment anymore. I never wanted to sleep in a bed other than his. All I wanted was to be there—all the time.

“Do you still want to get married in a field?” he whispered.

“Yes.” I’d always wanted something small and quiet. Marie’s wedding was beautiful, but a big party wasn’t my style.

“Are you busy tomorrow?”

“What?” The meaning in his words was unmistakable.

“I want to marry you now. You’ve been my other half all my life, even before I met you. I don’t want to wait any longer. I want to be husband and wife, to live together and spend every day together. I want forever. What do you say?”

It was rushed, spontaneous, and exciting. “Okay.”

He smiled for the first time. “Then we should get to work.”

***

Marie was sitting at her desk when I walked into her office. “Hey, girl. You want to get lunch?” She finished making a note on her iPad before she looked up at me.

“Actually, no.” I sat in the chair facing her. “I want to ask you something.”

“What’s up?”

“Will you be my maid of honor?”

Her eyes almost popped out of her head. “Whoa, what?” She jumped out of her seat. “Oh my god, Kyle proposed to you? This is so great—”

“Hawke did. And I said yes.”

She froze in place, taking in my declaration with a shocked expression. It took her several minutes to compose herself, to wrap her head around what I said. She stopped liking Hawke when he left me again, and her good opinion of him never returned. I figured she would try to talk me out of it, pushing for Kyle.

But she didn’t.

“Frankie, I would be honored.” She came around the desk and hugged me hard. “I’m so happy for you. I know Hawke…is the one.”

“He is.”

“You two will be just as happy as Axel and I.”

“I hope so.” I pulled away and couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

“So, we’ll get to planning this weekend. I still have my wedding binder—”

“We’re getting married tomorrow.”

“What?” she blurted.

“We’re doing it in a field outside the city, just family.”

She put her hands on her hips as she tried to take this in. “That’s quick.” She glanced at my stomach.

“No baby, Marie. But we want to start our lives together.”

She eyed her watch on her wrist. “I think I can take off early today. We’ve got a lot of shit to do.”

***

I called Axel on the way to Yaya’s. “Hey, Axel—”

“Hawke already told me.” The smile in his voice told me his feelings about it. “Congratulations.”

“Yeah?” His approval meant a lot to me, although I would never admit it.

“Yeah. I know that guy loves you despite his stupidity.”

“He does.”

“I’m sure he’ll get it right this time. He gave me his permission to kick his ass if I need to.”

I couldn’t picture anyone kicking Hawke’s ass so it made me chuckle.

“But I doubt it’ll come to that.”

“It won’t.” I kept the emotion out of my voice before I spoke again. “Will you give me away?”

There was a long pause over the phone. Axel didn’t say anything, obviously keeping the tears out of his voice just the way I was. “Francesca…I would be honored.”

***

When I told Yaya the news, she didn’t seem the least bit surprised.

“’Bout time.”

“What?” I grabbed the box from the closet and pulled it out.

“Kyle was a fine young man but he’s not Hawke. We all know that.”

I was glad Yaya was on board. Despite what Hawke did, everyone seemed to forgive him quicker than I did. “Thanks, Yaya.” I pulled apart the tissue paper until I saw my mother’s wedding dress. It was laid out perfectly, ready for me to use the day I needed it. It was more perfect than I remember.

“It’ll be a little loose on you,” Yaya said. “But I can take care of that.”

I gathered the dress in my hands and felt the material. I knew if Mom were there she would be happy. She would love Hawke just as much as I did. “Thank you, Yaya.”

“You’re going to be the most beautiful bride ever.”

“Thanks…” Yaya would say that no matter what.

“No, really.” She patted me on the shoulder. “Even more beautiful than your mother on her day.”

***

Outside the city, we found a meadow with freshly mowed grass. There were yellow dandelions in the field, and the world was alive with the approach of spring. It was a cloudless day and the sun was warm on our skin.

I stood behind the wardrobe changer even though my gown was already fastened. Hawke was just a few feet away with everyone else. We gathered our family, Axel, Marie, Yaya, and Logan. That was all we needed.

Axel stood with me, wearing his suit and tie. “You look beautiful, sis.”

“Yeah?” I hadn’t even stepped out and I wanted to cry.

“Yeah.” He stared at my dress and kept a smile on his face, hiding his true emotion.

“How’s Hawke doing?”

“He’s the most excited guy I’ve ever seen.”

I gripped the bouquet of fresh flowers that Marie picked from the field. It was a mixture of grass and dandelions.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

A question like that would normally suffocate me in doubt, especially after everything we’d been through. But all I felt was certainly. “Yes.”

He extended his arm to me. “Then let’s go.”

I hooked my arm through his and allowed him to guide me past the divider. There was no music other than the buzzing bees and the chirping birds. A slight breeze was on the wind, smelling of spring. Our feet crunched against the grass as we walked. I wore flats instead of heels because I knew it would be difficult to maneuver.

Everyone was just a few feet away, and when I looked up, I saw Hawke.

He stared at me intently, not a trace of a smile on his lips. He took a deep breath like the sight of my approach pained him with happiness. His eyes coated over, as if he feared his moment would never come to pass.

His eyes never left mine as he watched me come near. It was quiet enough to hear his breathing, which matched the rapid rate of my own. My long dress trailed behind me, slithering over the grass in an elegant way.

Axel walked me to Hawke and stopped before he handed me over. “Mom and Dad would be so proud of you, Francesca.”

My eyes never left Hawke’s. “They would be proud of both of us.”

Axel hugged me tightly, something that only happened once in a great while.

I hugged him back, thankful I had such an amazing brother.

He took my hand and placed it in Hawke’s. “I know you’ll be good to one another.”

Hawke’s fingers immediately clamped around my hand, telling me he would never let me go for as long as we lived. He pulled me toward him gently, looking into my eyes like he never wanted to blink.

The pastor gave us a moment to stare at each other before he began the ceremony. “Today, we’re gathered here to witness the holy matrimony of Theodore Taylor and Francesca Gibbons…”

I tuned out everything he said because I was infatuated with Hawke’s appearance. Without saying a word, I could feel every emotion running through his body. Gratitude was the most prominent emotion, because I was giving him another chance to be my forever. He loved me, I was certain of that. He told me every day just by looking at me.

I’d never loved another man in my entire life and I never wanted to. Hawke was it, the only person I could fall so deeply for. My children would have his eyes and his good heart. And when our lives ended, we would still be together, drifting on the wind as bare souls. Never again would we be alone—we would always have each other.

“Hawke, do you take Francesca to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, till death parts you?”

Hawke interlocked our fingers, gripping them with a gentle pressure. “I do—for eternity.” He slipped the ring on my finger, returning it to the place where it would remain forever.

“Francesca, do you take Hawke to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, till death parts you?”

Nothing would ever part us again, not life or death. When the world ended and there was nothing left but rock and ash, we would still go on. He and I were connected in a spiritual way, in a godly way. Forever wasn’t long enough for the two of us. We would watch the world change, the universe expand indefinitely, and we would be forever tangled together as it happened—as two naked souls. “I do—for eternity.”