Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 131209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 437(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 437(@300wpm)
Ysabelle and Sebastian found their way back to each other, as I knew they would. They were happy, and I was delighted for them. They deserved there happily ever after. More than anyone I knew.
That’s why I held the invitation so tightly in my hand. It had been delivered that afternoon, and I had yet to read the letter that was attached. I was terrified of what it would say, but I imagined it couldn’t be half as bad as my mind thought it would be. I unfolded the piece of paper.
Dear Brooke,
I’m sure you’re thinking why am I sending you an invitation to Ethan’s birthday party. Plain and simple; our family misses you, and even though my son doesn’t say it, I know he misses you too. Forgiveness is a very tricky thing, because you never want to forget the past. Mistakes are made to make us better people, people we are proud to say we are. It has taken me a very long time to realize that…
I spent many decades blaming myself for my deceased husband’s choices; too much time. The truth is I wasn’t the one that hurt our family, he was. Devon has had to face the ultimate sacrifice for us all. My boy grew up too fast; too soon. But you brought life back into him. I saw a light that I never thought would be possible for him. He had seen too much, experienced too much. You. You put a Band-Aid on a situation that needed to be stitched and healed. And I will always be grateful to you for that.
I've learned that you can't change the past Brooke. However, the future is a completely different story.
That is why you are holding that invitation, and this letter in your hands. You both deserve a storybook ending. Ethan’s birthday party is in six weeks. I think that will give you plenty of time to think it over.
I trust that you will make the right decision, for the both of you. A mother’s intuition is always right. You’ll learn that one-day.
With love, Jasmine.
I read the letter fifteen times, and then I read it again four times every day for the next week. It got to the point where I knew it by heart. After the first few days I started to believe her words.
I’ve learned that you can’t change the past, Brooke, however… the future. That’s a completely different story.
So I turned the page.
To my story…
To his story…
To our story.
EPILOGUE
<>D<>
“Happy birthday, buddy, are you having a good time?”
“YES!” he shouted, making Christine and I laugh, and then he took off running.
“I can’t believe we have a four-year-old. How did time go by this fast?” she asked, looking over at him.
“I have no idea. It feels like yesterday that we were bringing him home.”
She nodded, smiling. “You think you will have any more kids? I think he needs some siblings,” she stated, looking behind me.
“Yeah… I’ll get right on that, seeing as I have so many possibilities at my disposal.”
“I think you have one.”
I cocked my head to the side. “What?”
She smiled higher, still looking behind me.
“What are you grinning about?”
She nodded behind me. I turned, and that’s when I saw her. She looked better than I remembered, wearing the exact same outfit I had bought her in New Orleans. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and completely swept away from her face. I watched all of her emotions roll into one through her Bambi eyes, as I stepped closer to her. She wore very minimal makeup; she looked like the girl I would wake up to every morning.
“Sneakers, huh?”
She giggled.
God, I missed that sound.
“Believe it or not… I dress like this all the time now.”
I grinned. “Liar.”
She held up three fingers. “Scout’s honor. Someone once told me I should be more comfortable in my own skin, and I agree with him now. My feet very much appreciate it. They were starting to hate me.”
I laughed. “Well you look great.”
“Thanks, you do too.”
“What are you doing here?” I blurted unable to hold in the question any longer.
She bit her cheek, and looked behind me, just as Christine had done minutes before. I took the subtle hint and turned around, I found my mother staring at us. She winked when she caught my gaze, and went right back to talking to one of the guests.
I turned back around to face her. “I see.”
“Yeah… but,” she hesitated, contemplating what to say next. “I was going to… I mean… I’ve been wanting to… I mean… shit I suck at this,” she breathed out.
Her nervousness was adorable, and it took everything inside me not to reach out and grab her. I wanted to hold her in my arms, just to feel her again; the intoxicating smell of her was all around me. I was drunk on it.