Dad nods. “Thank you, Palmer. But your strength to become something of your own is exactly what we would have dreamed for you.”
“But that’s not what I wanted.” I shake my head. “I wanted to be here, with you, help with the store. Stay where I grew up, where I’ve been comfortable. But instead, I ran. And I’m not going to line my apology with excuses, reasons why it happened. I’m just going to take the blame because the blame lies fully on me.” I take a deep breath. “I haven’t been honest with you for a while, and it’s because I’ve been trying to prove that I didn’t need this family to make it on my own. But really, I’m lost without this family. I didn’t come here for a blog piece—I came here because I have no place else to go. I don’t have any money, I’m out of a job, and I don’t have an apartment anymore because I couldn’t afford rent. You shouldn’t be proud of the person I became, because I’m at rock bottom.”
“Palmer—”
“No, Dad.” I shake my head. “Coming back here was my last resort. I freaked out about the house because yes, it means the world to me; the prospect of it being sold also scared me to death. I had no place to go, and my pride got in the way of telling the truth, so I went on a rampage to make everyone’s life hell instead.”
“Palmer, you know you can always ask for help,” Dad says.
“I know, but I didn’t want to at the time. I saw that as a weakness, but I’m realizing pretty fast that’s not the case. After last night, I was reminded family is pretty much the only thing you can count on to be tried and true in this world. Family is what I need.” I twist my hands together. “And that was evident last night because come to find out, Ford needs some help with social media and the store. He offered me a job.”
Both their eyes widen in surprise.
“Really?” Mom asks.
I nod, unable to hold back the smile. “He hired both me and Cooper. Ford said he can’t run the business without us, but he wants me to say here, on Marina Island, and really focus on using the original store to market the brand.”
“Very smart,” Dad says, a large smile on his face. Pride beams from his eyes, and I can tell he could not be happier with his decision to lay down the law last night. It worked, and it worked well.
“Which leads me to this.” I close my eyes, take another deep breath, and then look at my parents. “I don’t want you to sell the house.”
“Sweetie, we can’t stay here,” Mom says.
“I know.” I grab both their hands. “But this house means so much to me and the boys. There’s history here, there’s safety, and there’s room for future generations to grow. It might take me some time, but if you can trust me—which I know might be hard, given my record—I want to buy it from you.”
“You want to live here?” Dad asks.
I nod. “I do. You see, there’s this boy I like. I can see myself starting a life with him, and I think I can make it work if I stay here, on the island. And what better place to start a relationship than in the very place my parents fell in love?”
Mom’s eyes fill up with tears as Dad leans forward and grabs my hand. “Is this a boy who keeps changing your cast for you?”
I laugh and nod. “Yes. Dr. Beau—I seem to be infatuated with him.”
“I called it.” Mom waves her hand in front of her face. “I just knew you two would end up together. I didn’t think it would take this long, but I knew it. You always had a thing for him.”
“I did. And I’d love to see if we have a future together, which I think we do, and if all goes as planned, I’d love to start a family, right here in this house, where you raised us all so well. Where you blessed us all with a roof over our heads and love in our hearts.”
“We’d be honored to pass the house over to you,” Dad says.
“It would be an actual dream,” Mom says before they both pull me into a hug. “You’re not just doing this so you don’t have to clean out your room, are you?”
I laugh into her embrace. “I love you,” I tell them as tears fill my eyes. “I love you so much.”
CHAPTER SIXTY
DR. BEAU
“Where’s Palmer?” Larkin asks, walking up to me, Ford in tow. He has his arm around her, and she’s snuggled into his embrace. I smile to myself. We really can’t resist the Chance siblings, can we?
“No idea.” I glance around the tent. Nora and Cooper are in the lake, fully clothed, making out. I guess that’s part of the “fun” Cooper boasted about as well. “Looks like you two were able to get it together.”