Page 86 of Halloween Town

It took a while for the penny to drop—or a bank load of them—to realize he’d chosen to believe Poppy was leaving him. Her walking away hadn’t been her walking away from him, but her walking to herself. He’d been so caught up in protecting himself, he’d automatically assumed Poppy was out to hurt him and mess with his head.

He’d made so much more of her leaving than it needed to be, all because he was still caught up in the past, still holding on to bitterness, pain and resentment. He’d risked losing Poppy again because he’d been so busy protecting himself that he’d hadn’t seen her actions for what they were: a simple request for understanding. His actions lately showed him that, for a relatively intelligent guy, he could be, when it came to matters of the heart, as dumb as a rock.

He’d always instinctively got Poppy; from the time she was little, he could read her eyes and moods, and sense what she needed. But when his heart got involved, when he was at risk of getting hurt, he’d retreated and protected himself, scuttling back behind his emotional armor, keeping his head down. And in the process, he hadn’t looked at or considered her. As a result, he’d hurt her. That was unacceptable.

Nobody got to hurt her, ever.

Truth was, Poppy wasn’t the same, heart-bruised, runaway bride who’d arrived in H-Town in a grubby dress a month ago; she was stronger, more confident, settled and secure. And that security had nothing to do with him or being back at the inn or her being in H-Town. It was all about her.

A part of it was finding a way to earn money from her art, but it also felt like she’d grown taller lately. Emotionally, mentally…

She’d stopped watching to see how people reacted to her words and her opinions, and was more relaxed when she interacted with pretty much anybody, as if she’d realized that other people’s opinions had nothing to do with her. Her leaving Solstice Deep showed him—now that he’d pulled his head out of his ass—that she didn’t need constant company, or assurances. And that she was happy to be on her own. And content with her own company.

Poppy no longer needed other people’s validation. She’d started to see her own value by herself. He, on the other hand, adored her, loved her with an intensity he didn’t think he was capable of. He hadn’t understood what life would be like without her until she left, and then it’d hit him—it was fucking intolerable. Bland. Lacking light and color and laughter. He thought he’d made progress, that he wasn’t the same grumpy, miserable bastard he’d been, but he’d been conning himself. It’d taken Poppy dropping into his life and then leaving, for him to see that he’d been living life at half-power before she arrived and even less after she left.

In Hayes speak, Poppy was the battery that powered his life…

And God, he needed her. She softened his edges, filed down his spiky attitude. She turned Solstice Deep into a home, and her smile filled him with—he couldn’t believe he was thinking this—sunshine. She made him, and his world, better.

So, what the fuck had he been thinking when he’d pushed her away? Why did he believe that a life without Poppy was better than a life with her? Nothing about that made sense, and his only explanation was that he was a freaking coward, scared to love, scared to get hurt.

He’d risk anything to have Poppy back. He didn’t want to live his life without her.

Lifting his head, he looked around and realized he was the only person left at the fire, which was a quarter of the size it was before. Turning, he took in his surroundings, his eyebrows lifting when he saw that the beach had all but emptied. He looked at his watch; he’d been standing here for more than ninety minutes, and while his front was toasty warm, his back felt like he’d been resting against a glacier. The wind skimmed through his hair and slapped his face with its icy fingers. The temperature had dropped by quite a few degrees.

Jamming his hands into the pockets of his coat, he rolled his head, feeling the muscles in his neck protest. He was glad to be alone, for a moment or an hour. The seismic revelation that he loved Poppy and would do anything to have her back in his life again needed quiet, reverence and a great deal of self-reflection.

He’d always loved Poppy more than she loved him, and that was okay. Vulnerability wasn’t a weakness, and the only thing worse than risking his heart was losing her for good…

Now he had to figure out how to get her back.

Ruby

Ruby, standing behind and to the side of Thom, sensed Millie McMaster’s presence before she’d even fully formed. When she turned, she took in her lovely, serene face, the calm smile that radiated so much love.

“You’re here,” she whispered, wishing she could take her hand, step in for a hug.

Millie lifted her hand, as if wanting to touch Ruby’s cheek. “I don’t have much time. They only gave me five minutes as a very special dispensation.”

Who did? Why only five minutes? Ruby had questions about the place beyond this and wanted to grill Millie about it. Millie shook her head. “That’s not important, Ruby.”

No, she guessed it wasn’t. Ruby wanted to know about her granddaughter Poppy. “I did as you asked, Millie.”

Millie nodded and looked at Thom, who was walking away from the bonfire, his head and shoulders drooping. “What exactly did you do, Ruby?” she asked, with not a shred of judgement in her voice.

“I got Poppy to leave the wedding, and I helped her leave Thom.”

Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but she’d cheered her on.

“Honey, I only asked you to persuade Poppy to run from the wedding; I didn’t ask you to become emotionally invested in their relationship.”

“I’m not emotionally invested!” Ruby scoffed, rocking on her heels. “That’s ridiculous!”

Millie shook her head. “Ruby, the way you watched over them, slammed doors when you were cross and knocked over beer bottles, the way you eavesdropped—not to mention making her pie bubble over—was all about you, not her.”

“I don’t understand,” Ruby said, shifting from foot to foot. Why were they discussing her when Millie only had five minutes?

“You were trying to understand yourself through Poppy.”