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Chapters (85)
  1. BOOKS BY LOUISE BAY
  2. ONE
  3. Rosey
  4. TWO
  5. Byron
  6. THREE
  7. Rosey
  8. FOUR
  9. Byron
  10. FIVE
  11. Rosey
  12. SIX
  13. Byron
  14. SEVEN
  15. Rosey
  16. EIGHT
  17. Rosey
  18. NINE
  19. Byron
  20. TEN
  21. Rosey
  22. ELEVEN
  23. Byron
  24. TWELVE
  25. Rosey
  26. THIRTEEN
  27. Byron
  28. FOURTEEN
  29. Rosey
  30. FIFTEEN
  31. Rosey
  32. SIXTEEN
  33. Byron
  34. SEVENTEEN
  35. Rosey
  36. EIGHTEEN
  37. Byron
  38. NINETEEN
  39. Rosey
  40. TWENTY
  41. Rosey
  42. TWENTY-ONE
  43. Byron
  44. TWENTY-TWO
  45. Byron
  46. TWENTY-THREE
  47. Rosey
  48. TWENTY-FOUR
  49. Rosey
  50. TWENTY-FIVE
  51. Byron
  52. TWENTY-SIX
  53. Rosey
  54. TWENTY-SEVEN
  55. Byron
  56. TWENTY-EIGHT
  57. Rosey
  58. TWENTY-NINE
  59. Byron
  60. THIRTY
  61. Rosey
  62. THIRTY-ONE
  63. Rosey
  64. THIRTY-TWO
  65. Byron
  66. THIRTY-THREE
  67. Rosey
  68. THIRTY-FOUR
  69. Rosey
  70. THIRTY-FIVE
  71. Byron
  72. THIRTY-SIX
  73. Rosey
  74. THIRTY-SEVEN
  75. Byron
  76. THIRTY-EIGHT
  77. Byron
  78. EPILOGUE
  79. A month later – New York City
  80. 14 months later - Star Falls
  81. MR. MAYFAIR
  82. Beck
  83. Beck
  84. Stella
  85. BOOKS BY LOUISE BAY

“Yes. I mean, no.” I sigh. “Kinda. It was tough to leave my sisters. But they’re all adults. They have their own journeys to take with my mom. I can’t force them to break free.”

He sighs and turns back to the stove.

“I can only decide what I want. What I do. And…” And what? I decide I want Byron? What if he doesn’t feel the same way? He has his reasons for not wanting anything serious.

He drops marshmallows into the two mugs and brings them both over to the couch. I take the cup from him and our eyes lock. I want to kiss him. I want him to hold me. I want to skip everything before the really good part. But I owe us both more.

“That sounds… logical,” he responds.

“And I want to stop running.”

His eyes widen slightly. “So you’re staying in Star Falls?”

I can’t read him. Is he happy? Disappointed?

“I don’t mean running away from Oregon. I mean running away from… everything. When I left Mom and Frank, I wanted my freedom. I thought geography would solve that problem, but of course, it’s never that simple. I thought if I could keep myself separate, stay on an island, I’d be okay. I’d be free. But the opposite happened. Being on an island is isolating. It’s lonely.”

Sadness shadows his face and he reaches for my hand. I realize that he cares. Really cares. About Star Falls and the Colorado Club. And maybe about me.

I glance up into his eyes. “Freedom doesn’t mean being on an island. It’s making decisions that feel good for me. Decisions that are right for my hopes and dreams for the future. I thought I had to shut down any vulnerability, stay on my island, so I didn’t fall back into the pattern of doing things for other people—so I didn’t end up marrying a man I didn’t love, or having a life I don’t want to please someone who doesn’t care about me. But I figured out that being vulnerable wasn’t the problem. The problem was—is—my mom.” I slide my mug onto the table beside the couch before I spill it. “I came to Star Falls thinking I had a choice: be alone or be controlled. But being with you… it’s shown me a new possibility.”

“Me?” he asks, his expression confused.