The Memory Keeper: A Heartwarming, Feel-Good Romance(70)

His gaze flickered to the dusty shorties and then up to her face. “Well, I ain’t gonna do it.” His lips were set in a defensive pout, but his affection for his best friend showed in his eyes.

“I’m not getting out of this driver’s seat until you tell me yes.”

“Looks like you’ll be doin’ a lot of drivin’ then. I need to be at work in five minutes. Better put those old boots on the gas pedal.”

She swung her legs down to the ground and twisted toward him. “If this is about me leaving all those years ago, you don’t need to punish Gran for that. I’ll take the full brunt of it.”

Unsaid thoughts flashed across his face.

“It’s my fault, Ethan. Not Gran’s,” she pressed.

“It’s bigger than you leavin’,” he said.

“What is it then?” She stood up to face him. “Tell me. I’m your best friend.”

He shook his head, walking off, but then stopped and turned back.

She walked over to him. “Tell me, please.”

He tipped his head back as if the answer were above him. Then he looked her straight in the eyes. “Growin’ up, you gave me hope that my life could be different, that I could be somethin’ more than a small-town guy in my dad’s shop—I loved the way you thought. I’d never met another person in this town who had that kind of fire for life. Your dream was New York but mine was even bigger than that. And yes, when you left, it took the wind out of my sails. My boat stopped, Hannah—dead in the water. But I still held on to that possibility. And when Christie got pregnant and I had to be able to support my family, my future was laid out in front of me. Paintin’ reminds me of the life I’d hoped for but didn’t get to live. I know I can still paint. I get that. But if I paint, I’m worried I’ll resent the life I’ve got, and Christie and Wesley don’t deserve that.”

Without warning, Hannah pressed her hand to his chest as he looked on curiously. “I still feel that heart of yours beating,” she said.

“I hope so,” he said.

“If your heart’s still beating, then you’re definitely alive, and whatever life you want is out there for the taking. You’ve just gotta make it happen.”

“Easy for you to say,” he said, clearly frustrated. “This ain’t the shiny land of opportunity like that big city you come from. You waltz in here with these grand ideas with no one to worry about but yourself. Sure, it’s easy as pie for you to change your life. But what if I can’t put food on the table for Wesley? That would kill me.”

“What if you can provide for him?” she challenged. “You’re choosing the safest route, which is commendable, Ethan. But you’re also ignoring your God-given talent. You owe it to yourself and your family to explore that. You don’t have to quit your job. Just do what you love as often as you can, and your path will be made clear.”

That last sentence gave her pause. She sounded like Gran.

“You done?” Ethan asked, reclaiming her focus. “At this rate, I’ma throw you in the back and take you with me, so you can explain to my father why I’m late.”

“It’s your choice, Ethan, but you could agree to do this one painting and then decide if it’s something you want to keep doing.”

He didn’t answer, so she upped the stakes. “I’ll tell you what. If I can get Christie to do dance lessons, will you paint The Memory Keeper for me?”

“What?”

“I’m serious. I want to try to convince your wife to dance.”

“Good luck,” he said with an indignant chuckle.

“Deal?”

He blew air through his lips. “Deal, I guess.”

Hannah threw her arms around him, and squealed, “I love you,” making him laugh.

“Don’t love me until I paint somethin’ decent,” he said. “And I need a firm yes from Christie before I even pick up a paintbrush. I ain’t agreein’ to your harebrained ideas unless she does too.”

“Absolutely.”

“Now, can I go to work?”

“Yes,” she said with a giant grin.

“Want a ride to the flower shop?”

“I’d love that.” She gave him one more quick squeeze, and then got in on the other side of the truck, putting her old boots on the dash like she had when she was a girl.



“Those look amazing!” Hannah said, as Georgia switched out the old silver buckets for the baskets they’d bought.

“I’m glad you like them,” Georgia said, turning her head to the side and squinting one eye to examine the display’s straightness.

“I’ll check with Liam after work to see if he can do anything with that ladder,” Hannah offered.

“I love coming into this shop with you,” Georgia said, as she placed a container filled with water in the bottom of each basket. She grabbed a handful of red roses and placed them inside it. “Look how great that looks!” She stepped back and admired her work. “I feel like I have purpose here.”

“I’d love to talk to Gran about giving you a job if you’d want it. But we have to become profitable first.”

“You would? Oh, I’d love that.”