“Every version of her is the one that I love. If this is her, then I will love that version. But I just wish she could do her artwork. I wish she could still talk to the ocean.”
It had been weeks, and Stella hadn’t gone to the ocean.
I’d asked her each morning if she’d like me to join her, but she denied the invitation.
“The water healed her in the past,” Maple said, stirring her tea. “She feels as if the world has betrayed her. Either that or she feels as if she doesn’t deserve to heal. If I know Stella, then I know that she blames herself.”
“What can I do to help her?”
“Oh sweetheart, that’s easy. Just stay. Trust me,” she said, growing somber and looking out of her window toward the water. “She’s going to need you for this next chapter.”
“What is it?” I asked, not speaking about her words but about her stare. It was clear that something was sitting heavily on Maple’s chest. “Remember? I’m good at reading people.”
“It’s just…I worry, too. There will be a day when I’m no longer around, and I worry about Stella’s heart. So, if any part of you feels as if you might run…if any part of you that thinks you can’t handle this, I need you to speak up now. Otherwise, I’m fearful that Stella may end up alone, and I’m not certain she can handle that.”
My brows knitted as I took in her words. “Did you know? About the will?” I asked, breaking into the subtext behind her words. “Did you know about the arranged marriage?”
She looked at me and nodded. “Yes. I did. Kevin asked me to help once he found out about your existence. We both knew that Stella struggled with trusting her own voice, and when she found out Kevin was sick, I was watching her mind decline. Then Kevin came up with the idea of the arranged marriage, so she would have someone good in her life, unlike Jeff.”
“That’s ridiculous, though. How could you both know that I would be any good for her?”
She smiled, took my hand into hers, and patted it. “Kevin was unable to travel last year. So, when we tracked you down, I flew out to New York and found you. You were looking after your friend Aaliyah, and I saw it, the softness in your soul. I remember thinking to myself that if Stella ever found real love, I’d hoped it would be with a man like that. A man who stayed even when it was dark outside. Yes, it’s easy to love and care within the sun, but real love shows up strongest when the clouds move in and fear is ignited. Real love shows up during the highest of tides, and still, it stays.”
I grimaced, taking it all in. I felt so much confusion as Maple revealed this news to me. I felt lost in my spiraling thoughts. “So…you were behind all of this? Putting Stella and me together?”
“Yes. And I’m sorry if this is a lot for—”
“Maple.”
“Yes, Damian?”
I cleared my throat and fought the tears trying to showcase. “Thank you.”
It was because of her that I discovered love.
She smiled and patted my hand in hers. “Always.”
“I’m going to go check in on her, see if she needs anything,” I said, standing from the table. As I began to walk away, I paused, and looked back at Maple. “I do have one question, though.”
“Shoot.”
“If you helped Kevin set this arrangement up, does that mean you know who my mother is?”
“I do, and I was instructed to tell you after the six months were up, but sweetheart,” she gave me that warm Maple smile that she was known for, “I think you truly already know, too. You know, I’m good at reading people with all of this, as you called it, mumbo jumbo, but you’re good at reading people, too. How do you do it, Damian?”
“What do you mean?”
“How do you read people?”
I lowered my brows as I brushed my hand against my chin. “It’s their eyes,” I said.
“Yes.” She nodded. “You see their souls through their eyes.”
I’d only gone into the office when I was forced to or when I had clients to take to real estate properties. Most of the time, I tried my best to work from home, but it wasn’t always a possibility. When I showed up to my office one Thursday afternoon, I was faced with three individuals that I didn’t have the time or the energy to deal with.
“What are you ladies doing here?” I asked Denise, Rosalina, and Catherine as they stepped into my office, uninvited.
“I’m sorry, Damian. I told them you were busy, but they crashed in,” Peter, my assistant, told me as he rushed in behind them.
“It’s fine, Peter. I got this,” I replied. I was almost certain he wouldn’t have been able to fight off the three trolls of Stella’s life.