“And.…”
“And I’m coming home, Ryker!”
She had to spell it out for me. Or maybe I had understood the first time, but I was so delighted to hear she’d be returning that I wanted to hear the news over and over again.
“Do you mean you’re coming back to Appalachia?”
“Yes, Ryker.”
“Do you mean you’re coming back to North Carolina?”
“Yes, Ryker.”
“Do you mean you’re coming back to me?”
“Yes, Ryker.”
“Do you mean you’re coming back to us?”
“Yes, Ryker.”
“That’s the best news I’ve heard, ever! I’m so happy.”
“Me, too.”
“Things are going to be a little different, though, Holly. I’m starting back with my residency next week.”
“That’s great. Did you accept the offer in Blue Ridge?”
“Yeah, that’s the one. And I’ll be quite busy, insanely busy, most likely.”
“So, will I. I’m coordinating between ‘Medicine on the Trail’ and Angel Clinic for dental supplies, and I’ll be expanding the outreach with Claire.”
“Wow. That’s perfect. Looks like you’ll be insanely busy, too.”
“Plus the book.”
“The book?”
“Don’t you think our story would make an amazing book?”
I laughed. “I don’t know. People read the craziest things, sometimes. So, yeah, I guess maybe our story could make a good book. You might, though, have to leave out certain details.”
“What? I most certainly will not leave out certain details. The details are the best part.”
“If you say so.”
“I do say so. I know what people want to read. And our story, our whole story, is exactly what the people want. It’s going to be a huge hit. I just know it.”
“What about your privacy?” I said.
“Hmm. Maybe I’ll change the names, you know, to protect the innocent, and in my case, the not so innocent.”
I laughed. “Outreach in the day, writing a book by night. Is there anything else?”
“Well, there is one thing.…”I had a million things to do to get ready for Holly’s return. The first of which was to get a car to pick her up at the airport.
I was hanging out at Ted’s place, which was quite close to Will’s, and Carson and Shaun were there with us.
“Carson, can I borrow your car this Thursday?”
“You mean our car,” he said. “Of course, you can borrow it.”
“Thanks.”
“What’s going on this Thursday?”
“I need to go to Asheville to the airport to pick up Holly.”
He lit up. “Holly!”
I’d never seen someone give up their car keys so quickly. “Here you go. Take it.”
“Thanks.”
He stared at me expectantly. “What are you standing there for?” he said. “Go.”
I chuckled. “She’s arriving on Thursday.”
“Well, she could arrive early,” he said. “Planes do that sometimes. Go. Get out of here.”
“Can I at least drive you home, seeing as how you don’t have a car now?”
“No. That’s okay. Ted will take me back. But you go. Get out of here.” He pushed me toward the door. “There might be traffic. Best get an early start.”
I didn’t stick around to try to explain to Carson that Thursday was two days away, that there was no need to worry; I would leave early enough to miss any potential traffic. Instead, I drove back to the small apartment I’d rented in Blue Ridge, stopping off at the grocery store. I wanted to make sure the fridge and the cupboards were filled for Holly; I wanted to make sure she wouldn’t lack in anything.
The apartment was clean—by my standards—but I cleaned it again. Instead of relieving stress, as cleaning usually did for me, my anxiety only increased.
Man, this apartment is too small. She’s not going to want to stay here. I bet she has a nice house in San Diego. All houses in San Diego are nice. She’s going to want to go back as soon as she arrives and sees this place.
I was putting a lot of pressure on myself, and I thought of what Will had said to me when he and Owen came to get me at the cabin. We’ve already lost you once. I’m not going to let that happen again.
I called my brothers and told them the good news, and I made sure they were all free Thursday night for a welcome back party at the cottage. I didn’t need to twist any arms.The plane did not arrive early, as Carson had jokingly suggested it might. It arrived exactly on time. That meant that I stood at the arrival gate for three hours, pacing and checking the information panel every five minutes for an update.
When her plane finally landed, I ran to the bathroom to check myself in the mirror and make sure there wasn’t anything stuck in my teeth or that my hair wasn’t a mess, which it was from my constantly pulling on it.
When she came walking out of the gate, I played it cool—for about five seconds—then I ran to her and took her in my arms. I hugged her, lifted her, and spun her around.