She sighed. “I know that. I loved Randall the way we do at a young age. I got pregnant and it wasn’t on purpose regardless of what his family thought. What he thought. Because at one point he asked me that. Or alluded to the possibility I might have done it.”
“Dick.”
“He was that. And a lot more. He was weak too. But I knew that and I was willing to be strong enough for both of us. It didn’t matter.”
Drew grabbed her hand and pulled her into her room, then shut the door. “I didn’t hear Bri leave and I don’t want anyone else to hear this. I thought I loved Cassandra too, but what she did to me was nothing to what Randall did to you.”
“You think because I took the money it’s just as bad,” she argued.
“No. My mother pointed out she would have done it too. She would have done everything you did. And that I need to look beyond your past and just focus on who you are today. I didn’t need her to tell me that though. I know the woman you are. The woman I fell in love with. What you did years ago doesn’t matter to me. It really doesn’t. Matter of fact, it shaped you into the wonderful woman you are today. What matters more is if you can forgive me.”
She started to cry. These were the words she’d hoped to hear from a man someday but never in a situation like this. The first time he’d said he loved her, no less. “You need to know everything, Drew. I don’t want any doubts in your head about me.”
“You don’t have to tell me anything else.”
“I do for me. I’ll always wonder if you don’t know it all. If there is a glimmer in your mind that you think I might have done any of the things that Randall thought I did.”
She pulled out a drawer and put the heart-shaped metal container on the dresser along with the ultrasound picture from her book and the death certificate.
“What’s that?”
“Proof that I didn’t kill my child. Not like Randall thinks. I could show him this but it will never change his thoughts on me and I don’t care what they are.”
“I don’t need to see those things.”
“I need you to see them.”
She handed over the ultrasound first. “This was the picture of my daughter. The day I found out it was a girl. And this is what they handed me when I left the hospital after giving birth to a stillborn. Her ashes are right here never far from me. That is the first thing I spent the money on. Having her cremated. My parents weren’t going to pay a penny for anything.”
He didn’t even look at what she’d given him. “I don’t even know what to say,” he said.
“I got to hold her before they took her away. She looked so peaceful. Like she was sleeping in my arms. But she never opened her eyes. I never got to see the baby blue that I thought they’d be. The nurse in the room with me was so sweet and understanding. She asked if I wanted a picture and I said no. I’ll take that picture with me in my head for life and sometimes I wish I wouldn’t.”
He pulled her into his arms. “I’m so sorry, Amanda. I remember how hard it was when my mother lost my sister. As she pointed out, she had a support system and three other kids. You didn’t have any of it. And when she couldn’t get pregnant again after that, she still said it was fine. She had a complete family.”
Now was probably the time to tell him the rest. To tell him before she said she loved him. She needed to know his reaction to it. “I don’t know if I can have any more children, Drew. I was just a kid. The delivery was hard. I had some complications and damage. I just don’t know.”
“If you can’t, then you can’t. There are other ways to have a family and you know it. And when you’re ready for it, we’ll deal with it.”
“What are you saying?” she asked.
“I’m saying that I love you again, even though you didn’t say it back. I’m saying that I want a future with you and don’t want to let you go but understand that you may need time. That I might have to earn your trust again. I can do that. I’m willing to do that.”
“You’d fight for me?” No one ever fought for her in her life.
“I’d fight every single day of my life for you. I’m saying it now and I’ll say it again in fifty years. The breath was knocked out of me when you opened the door the first time and I’ve spent the past few months trying to catch it. It’s not possible, I’m starting to realize that.”
She pulled one more thing out of her drawer and handed it over. “Look at that.”
“Is this a savings passbook?”
“It is. Look at it.”
He opened it up. “Geez, there’s ninety thousand dollars in here. One entry from almost fourteen years ago.”
“That’s the rest of the money. Randall’s mother gave me a check for one hundred thousand. I used ten thousand to cremate my daughter and move out on my own. I’ve never touched another dime of it. I don’t even know what the balance is right now. It’s blood money to me. It’s a reminder that I was never enough.”
“You’re more than enough and anyone who tells you otherwise doesn’t deserve to know you.”
She hugged him tight and started to ball her eyes out. “I love you, Drew. You know the right things to say and when.”
“For once in my life,” he said and hugged her back. “You weren’t thinking that a little while ago. Neither was I when I was trying to pull back the words I so carelessly threw out to you.”
When her tears were dried up, she leaned back and put the ashes of her daughter back in her drawer. “I need to put this all away again. I don’t take it out but I wanted you to know.”
Drew handed her over the death certificate, this time looking at it. “Bethany Ann. That was your daughter’s name? Are you kidding me?”
“Because that was the name my mother had picked out for my sister. The baby she lost. Same spelling and everything.”
She opened her mouth and closed it. “That’s...just weird.”
“No,” he said. “That’s this island. You want to ask what are the chances of things happening, I know you do. You run into Randall here. I find out what you might not have wanted me to know. You and my mother both lost a daughter with the same name. My little sister. It’s crazy, and it’s love, and it’s fate,” he said.
“It is. It so very much is.”
Epilogue
Two weeks later Drew walked up the front steps of Amanda’s. He knew no one was home because he’d planned it this way on purpose.
Bri had a date for Valentine’s Day and Sidney was working.
When Amanda opened the door he put a pastry box in front of her. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”
“What’s this?” she asked. “You brought dessert? We haven’t had dinner yet.”
“Spoken like the mature one in the relationship. Let’s go in the kitchen and sit down and enjoy it.”
She let out a huff. “Fine. But it will spoil our dinner.”
“I don’t think it will in the least.”
When they were sitting at the table, she opened the box and looked down at the dish of assorted cookies and started to laugh. “I thought I was the cookie lady.”
“You are. I’m the Cookie Monster, but I wanted to show you that I don’t just eat them, I give them. And that one right in the center, that’s my favorite.”
“The one shaped like a heart?” she asked, pointing at it. “I guess if it’s your favorite and you are giving them to me the least I can do is try that one first.”
Exactly what he hoped. When she picked the cookie up the diamond ring was flashing on the little paper at her. “I know it’s early,” he said, lifting it up. The cookie had fallen out of her hand to the table. “But I don’t care. We aren’t getting any younger. I know what I want. I’ve waited for what seems like most of my life for this moment and I can’t wait any longer.”
“Yes,�
� she said.
“I didn’t even ask you.”
“You don’t need to,” she said. “When it’s meant it’s meant. There is no thought to it then. Put that ring on my finger.”
He laughed and did as he was told, then picked her up, swung her around, and planted a kiss on her like he wanted to do the day he first met her.
“Now you’re mine. Forever.”
“Forever,” she said back.
The End!
Also by Natalie Ann
The Road Series-See where it all started!!
Lucas and Brooke’s Story- Road to Recovery
Jack and Cori’s Story – Road to Redemption
Mac and Beth’s Story- Road to Reality
Ryan and Kaitlin’s Story- Road to Reason
The All Series
William and Isabel’s Story — All for Love
Ben and Presley’s Story – All or Nothing
Phil and Sophia’s Story – All of Me
Alec and Brynn’s Story – All the Way
Sean and Carly’s Story — All I Want
Drew and Jordyn’s Story— All My Love
Finn and Olivia’s Story—All About You
Landon Barber and Kristen Reid- All Of Us
The Lake Placid Series
Nick Buchanan and Mallory Denning – Second Chance
Max Hamilton and Quinn Baker – Give Me A Chance
Caleb Ryder and Celeste McGuire – Our Chance
Cole McGuire and Rene Buchanan – Take A Chance
Zach Monroe and Amber Deacon- Deserve A Chance
Trevor Miles and Riley Hamilton – Last Chance
Matt Winters and Dena Hall- Another Chance
Logan Taylor and Kennedy Miles- It’s My Chance
The Fierce Five Series
Gavin Fierce and Jolene O’Malley- How Gavin Stole Christmas
Brody Fierce and Aimee Reed - Brody
Aiden Fierce and Nic Moretti- Aiden
Mason Fierce and Jessica Corning- Mason
Cade Fierce and Alex Marshall - Cade
Ella Fierce and Travis McKinley- Ella
Fierce Family
Sam Fierce and Dani Rhodes- Sam
Bryce Fierce and Payton Davies - Bryce
Drake Fierce and Kara Winslow – Drake
Noah Fierce and Paige Parker - Noah
Wyatt Fierce and Adriana Lopez – Wyatt
Jade Fierce and Brock James – Jade
Love Collection
Vin Steele and Piper Fielding – Secret Love
Jared Hawk and Shelby McDonald – True Love
Erik McMann and Sheldon Case – Finding Love
Connor Landers and Melissa Mahoney- Beach Love
Ian Price and Cam Mason- Intense Love
Liam Sullivan and Ali Rogers - Autumn Love
Owen Taylor and Jill Duncan - Holiday Love
Chase Martin and Noelle Bennett - Christmas Love
Zeke Collins and Kendall Hendricks - Winter Love
Troy Walker and Meena Dawson – Chasing Love
Jace Stratton and Lauren Towne - First Love
Gabe Richards and Leah Morrison - Forever Love
Blake Wilson and Gemma Anderson – Simply Love
Brendan St. Nicholas and Holly Lane – Gifts of Love
Paradise Place
Josh Turner and Ruby Gentile – Cupid’s Quest
Harris Walker and Kaelyn Butler – Change Up
Philip Aire and Blair McKay- Starting Over
Nathan Randal and Brina Shepard – Eternal
Ryan Butler and Shannon Wilder – Falling Into Love
Amore Island
Family Bonds- Hunter and Kayla
Family Bonds- Drew and Amanda
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