“I guess so. I just don’t get it. They fought all the time, because she knew the shit he was doing. And she knew that I knew about it years ago. How could she think that was a good environment for us? It only showed me what I didn’t want.”
“Sometimes that’s exactly what you need to see, Myles.” She shrugged. “Knowing what you don’t want can show you what you do want.”
“That sounds like some Freudian shit right there.” I laughed.
“I’m serious. You saw a very broken marriage growing up. You saw a dad who was a bit of a bully to his kids. And you knew that wasn’t for you.”
“And what did you see?”
“Well, I didn’t see any kind of relationship because my dad never dated anyone seriously when I was growing up. I mean, he’d go on dates occasionally, but never anything long term. But I saw a really good father. I know what it means to be that person for a child. I also know what it means to have a parent who wasn’t there, and I’d never want to be that. So I had to kind of find my own footing in relationships, because I had nothing to go off of. But I know what kind of parent I’ll be. And I also know what kind of relationship I want. And honestly, Myles ...” She paused and interlaced her fingers with mine. “You’ve taught me that just in the time we’ve spent together.”
My heart pounded in my chest at her words. I was the last guy who should be influencing a relationship. Hell, I hadn’t had a serious relationship. Ever.
“How so?”
“Don’t panic. I’m not saying I expect that with you, but you showed me how good things could be. Even if for just a short time. It was never like this with Phillip, or with my boyfriend in college. It was sort of ... meh. You know? There wasn’t passion and excitement. You and I have only known one another for a few months, but we laugh, and we fight, and we have a friendship at the core of all of it. And not every relationship needs to last forever to be impactful. Ours is one I will carry with me forever, though. Because you showed me what it means to feel treasured and cared for. And even if we never speak again after you leave, you’ll still be with me, Myles. It’s a connection, you know? And maybe we were meant to meet, and we’ve healed one another in a way.”
Her words hit me hard. I didn’t expect that. “You think I need to be healed?”
She smiled up at me. “Yes, Moneybags. We all do. Because deep inside, there’s still a little boy who carried a secret for his dad and felt the pressure to choose a career to please his father. So yes, I think we all need to be healed sometimes.”
“I’m content with my life, Montana,” I said, my voice hard. I wasn’t looking to be fixed. Or saved. I’d worked hard to get where I was.
“You can be content and wounded all at the same time. Both can be true.”
“You sound more like a therapist than a wedding planner,” I said, my voice lighter now. Because I knew she was right.
“Most of the time I’m both. I swear, I’m dreading doing Tracy and Bryan’s wedding. I don’t know why people tolerate her.” She shook her head and shrugged.
I thought about my father because I’d wondered the same thing about him many times. Yet I hadn’t completely cut him out of my life either. “I think sometimes you have a history with someone, and you feel an obligation, you know?”
“Well, you know the saying, ‘You can love someone, but that doesn’t mean you have to like them.’”
“I haven’t heard that, but I get it.” I did not like my father, but I suppose deep down I loved the asshole. Even though I didn’t want to.
“Stick with me, Moneybags. I’ll teach you all the things,” she said with a laugh.
Walker’s voice came over the speaker to let us know that it was time to prepare for landing. Montana stared out the window.
I had a home in Banff, Canada, that I’d bought a year ago because I’d gone to Calgary to check out a business opportunity that I ended up passing on, but I’d enjoyed the small town of Banff. So I’d found a home there and made it a place I used whenever I needed to work without distraction. It had become an escape for me, and it was my favorite place to spend a few days to decompress.
I’d never taken a woman here with me. My brother and Brianna had stayed at the house one weekend when he took off work, but I’d never brought anyone there with me personally.
But I wanted to do something special for Montana before I left.
Enjoy this last bit of time we had together.
And then we’d go our separate ways.
I’d never thought so much about an ending the way I thought about this one.
This dark looming cloud that kept reminding me that this would end.
I didn’t know why it was such a thing this time around.
But everything about Montana Kingsley was different.
“Okay, where are we?” she asked once the plane had dropped its wheels and landed safely on the ground.
