Daniel.
It had been only a few days, but they’d been momentous. She’d gotten attached so fast and had come to think of this cabin as someplace special, even if it was a wreck. Daniel had helped her envision what her house could be. What home could be.
What being with him would be.
Because he was what truly made it home.
The heartbreak of losing it all—of losing him—would last forever.
Evan would tell them her story, if he hadn’t already. He’d say she hadn’t denied anything. Daniel would understand why she’d gone.
Staring at the puppies, she wanted to smile at their antics. But looking into a future without these loving, furry little creatures—without Daniel—she didn’t know if she would ever really smile again.
With every minute that ticked by since Evan had shared his discovery, she couldn’t stop asking herself—how could she possibly atone for her family’s sins? Three months alone up here hadn’t accomplished it. So what would?
She’d never told anyone about the resort scam, not a single one of her friends. She hadn’t needed to tell the investigators; they’d already known as much as she did. Even with Evan just now, she hadn’t been able to speak the words aloud.
Maybe, it suddenly hit her, part of true atonement was confessing what you’d done to people you cared about. Like a twelve-step program, where you had to state your problem before you could start to get better.
She’d run away from her friends, from her work, her life, because she feared they would blame her for her part in the scam. But ultimately, was hiding out here any different than what her father and brother were doing, lying low until they could strike again?
She’d been afraid of Daniel finding out, of what he would think of her. Of what his friends would think of her.
But telling Daniel, telling them all, finally coming clean—maybe that was atonement. Confession. Facing up to what you’d done. Admitting it aloud to the people who were important to you.
Was it possible that all along she’d been running from the one thing she really needed to do?
Yes, she realized. That was exactly what she’d been doing, running and hiding so that she didn’t have to face anyone at all.
She felt the rightness of her epiphany in the fear that clogged her chest. She was terrified of confession. And wasn’t that the very reason she needed to do it? Because she had to show she was not the same as her family, that she could face her mistakes.
She had to stop hiding out. She had to stop running from her past. From her family secrets.
No matter the cost to her pride.
Or to her heart.
Returning to the cabin, she was glad everyone was on the roof—including Daniel—so she could shower and change, not back into overalls and a baseball cap, but into the jeans she used to wear, jeans that had grown loose on her, and a purple top. She needed to make her confession as the woman she’d been when she stood in her father’s office, dressed the way she used to when she was the person who, no matter how unwittingly, had been a part of her family’s scam.
It was tempting to stay holed up in her bedroom, to delay facing the music just a little longer. But she’d been a coward long enough.
It was finally time to do one brave thing.
Hopefully, it would prepare her to keep on being brave, once she’d made it through today in one piece.
If she made it through today.
When she emerged from her bedroom, she was surprised to find Daniel standing in the living room. His eyes widened when he saw her in something other than work clothes for once. “You look beautiful.”
“Daniel—”
But he wouldn’t let her say what she needed to. “I tried to let you go, told myself to give you space, but every second I was up there hammering, I was thinking about you. About our kiss. And how you ran.”
“I’m finally ready to stop running.” Ready, yes, but still petrified of what he’d think of her.
A smile curved his lips. “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.”
She held her hands up to keep him at a distance. “Actually, I’m sure it’s not.”