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I want to share in her surety; I’ve already seen her do so many amazing things, after all, but a lifetime of disappointment can’t be forgotten in only a moment. It will take time even for me to reconcile that, as far as it seems, the worst is behind me. That I can finally start movingforward.

The rolling water stirs in the slight breeze as it sways over the surface of the loch, ever still, ever silent. It feels almost like a bad omen, how quiet it is. Like an answer to a question I’m too afraid to ask.

“He could be anywhere,” Key says. “Could have changed anywhere. It could take time to find him.”

“I know,” I answer. “Maybe we should have gotten the Rover.”

“There’s still time. We could go back for it and start searching. We have all night.”

My voice sounds too small for me when I say, “What if he’s not out there?”

“He will be,” she assures me.

I shake my head, frowning down at her. “But what if he isn’t?”

“Then we’ll deal with it,” she says. “If there was a solution for you, then there is a solution for him. And we’ll find it.Together.”

“I can’t ask any more from you.”

“You don’t have to,” she tells me, reaching out to cup my cheek. “You never have to ask me for help. I’ll always be here to give it.”

My eyes sting as I draw in a shaky breath, bending slightly so that I can rest my forehead against hers. Once again I think to myself that it’s possible I don’t deserve her. That it feels almost unreal that shewould not only stumble into my life, but want to bea partof it. For as long as I live, no matter what happens after this moment, I will always be grateful for it.

“Come on,” she says. “Let’s go get the Rover, and then we can—”

“Oi! Don’t s’pose I could ask for a wee bit of help, if you’d be so kind?”

My limbs freeze, my brain stuttering at the sound of his voice. For a moment, it feels like maybe I imagine it, like maybe it was only me who heard it, but when Key pulls back, a wide smile on her face—I know that isn’t the case.

We both turn to take in an approaching figure half stumbling down the shore, his legs shaky. Almost as if he isn’t used to using them. At first, I can’t move. I stare at the man getting closer and closer, frozen in place as my mouth parts and my eyes round. Words fail me, and I all but forget how to breathe, and it is only Keyanna’s touch that brings me back to the moment, that makes me remember how to use my feet.

I take a cautious step, taking in the longer hair, the same barreled chest, the smile that sometimes haunts my dreams. “Da?”

He slows only a few paces away, cocking his head as he looks me up and down, his brow knitting. I see the moment it clicks for him, his breath catching as his eyes go wide.

“It can’t be…”

I take another step, and then another, and then suddenly, he’s right there. Standing before me as if he never left. Even in the moonlight I can see the gray in his hair now, can see wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, but underneath that—he’s the same man who walked into the loch all those years ago and never came out.

“It’s me,” I choke out. “It’s Lachlan.”

His hands reach out as he clasps my shoulders, still appraising meas if he’ll be able to make sense of it. The last time he saw me, I was still a wean, after all. I can’t imagine the shock he must be feeling to come out and see me as a man.

He pulls me against his chest suddenly, his arms coming around my shoulders to hold me tight. I feel years melting off me in his embrace, and again my eyes sting traitorously as I return it, holding him tightly in the way I’ve wanted to for so many years. I close my eyes to fight against the sudden sting of tears as I revel in the moment; for so long I thought I would never have this, that it just wasn’t in the cards for us, but he’s here now. He’shere.

“Michty me,” he murmurs, pulling away to look at me again. “Look at you. How…” His eyes snap up to meet mine. “How long has it been?”

I feel an ache in my chest, and I wish I didn’t have to give him this news, preparing myself for what it might do to him. “It’s been twenty-six years.”

“Twenty-six…” His eyes drop to our feet, his lips moving wordlessly as he processes that information. “It feels like I just saw you yesterday.”

“I’m sorry,” I manage. “I’m sorry it took me so long.”

My da shakes his head. “None of that. You’re here. That’s what matters. Although you’ll have to tell me how you worked this out, because I sure couldn’t make heads or tails of it.”

“Well…” I glance behind me. “It wasn’t really me, if I’m being honest.”

My dad leans to peer behind me, and I turn in place as Key gives him a tiny wave. “Hello,” she says. “It’s nice to meet you.”