They turned the corner and walked toward the water. Louisa noticed the sun had begun to dip lower in the sky. Her mind wandered across the island to the lighthouse. It pained her to think that after all this time, after all this buildup, after their almost second chance, neither of them was there at this precise moment.

“I had forgotten about your birthday wishes,” Marissa said, nostalgia coming through in her voice. She started rummaging through her bag. “Then I found this. He left it behind when he stayed with me this week.” She handed over a sheet of folded paper.

Louisa slowly opened it. On it, in Cody’s familiar scrawl, was written:

Birthday wish for my thirtieth year:

I wish my mom would learn to forgive. And I wish Louisa and I could be together.

Louisa’s heart caught in her throat. She glanced at Marissa, who was staring straight ahead.

“I was cleaning after he left, and it caught me off guard. I didn’t realize I was one of the reasons the two of you weren’t together.”

“I didn’t want to be the reason he lost his family,” Louisa said sadly.

Marissa shifted. “Obviously I have a reason to be angry.”

“Of course,” Louisa said quietly.

“But not enough of a reason to ruin the rest of my son’s life.” Marissa faced her. “You make him happy. You always have.”

Tears sprang to Louisa’s eyes, but she didn’t even bother to blink them away. “I love him, Mrs. Boggs.”

Marissa reached over and took Louisa by the arms. “I know you do. And I think your love has taught me a lot about what I need to work on.” She stilled. “I called your mom.”

Louisa stared at her with wide eyes. “You did?”

“We’re going to have coffee.”

Louisa couldn’t keep a laugh from escaping. “You have no idea how happy that makes me.”

“Forgiveness is a powerful thing, I’m starting to see. Daniel was so good at it, I think I almost resented him for it.” Her face turned sad. “It came so easy to him, just like everything else.”

Louisa understood, at least partly. The day Cody forgave her, she felt like she’d been set free. She studied the older woman for a moment, then dared the question she’d been turning over in her mind. “Mrs. Boggs, do you forgive me?”

Marissa reached out and put a hand on Louisa’s face. “I forgive you, LuLu.”

Tears streamed down Louisa’s face. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“Thank you,” Marissa said, “for loving my son.”

Louisa wiped her eyes. “I do love him, but I pushed him away. I always find ways to lose him, don’t I?”

Marissa squeezed her arm. “I don’t think you’ve lost him, dear. Your birthday isn’t over yet.”

Louisa smiled sadly. “If only that mattered. I don’t even know where he is.”