She may have fired him, but as far as he was concerned, this job was far from over. Until he knew exactly what happened and where their mothers were, he wasn’t going to rest. Shaun might not want to know, but I do.
This mission just became very personal to him. God, I hope I’m wrong. It can’t be what I think. Henderson really couldn’t be that fucking evil, could he? If he were, no family member ever would want to know that information.
Bennett made travel arrangements. He was lucky he’d made friends with people who offered assistance without question. This was something he couldn’t share, and didn’t want to either. As he raced up I-95 heading to Boston, he realized he’d totally forgotten about stopping at the piano shop. The music, the piano, her reaction that morning, none of it mattered anymore. It seemed so insignificant in comparison to what he’d learned from Jon.
His phone dinged with a texted message. Be safe.Damn, Zoey, I love you. He wanted to tell her and he would. When he got back and they were face to face. She deserves so much more than I can give her.
Zoey normally would’ve fallen into a dark place, feeling abandoned again. But even without him by her side, she felt him with her. It was something she couldn’t explain and didn’t want to question.
Closing her eyes, she sat at her piano and let her fingers do the talking. Playing as she’d never done before. Enjoying her new self, her newfound freedom. For the first time in her life, loving herself. She was no longer James Henderson’s daughter. She was Zoey Henderson, a strong woman capable and accepting of love.
It was wonderful not to be drowning with insecurities. Not that they’re all gone, but they’re not crushing me, ruling my every thought. She was filled with so much more now. If Bennett hadn’t come into her life, none of this would have happened. She wasn’t one who had believed in fate, but now she believed anything was possible.
Zoey knew Bennett was going to return to her. When he did, she wasn’t going to hold back her feelings any longer. Even if her love wasn’t reciprocated, she was going to tell him. She owed it to herself to say the words at least once in her life. And to mean them with my whole heart.
She never even noticed her fingers had stopped moving. What had been her only private outlet her entire life wasn’t where she needed to express what she couldn’t say. Music was still in her heart, but she was no longer afraid to verbalize her thoughts, her feelings.
Zoey sat there smiling for what seemed like an eternity. Then she got up, opened the bench, and pulled out a music book. She found a song composed by someone else and let her heart feel what someone else was trying to say. Fingers dancing across what had previously been her best friend, her confidante, she now found something else, something new. She tried to name it, but not many people would understand “fingers dancing across my confidante.” So, “fingers coasting over ivory” might be better or perhaps “Fingers: coasting over ivory.” And in the naming she found something she’d searched for since she was a child. Peace.