Page 102 of Delicious (Delicious #1)
Chapter Six
Kelly
Epilogue
T he kitchen is warm, filled with the scent of butter and potatoes, of melted cheese crisping at the edges of a dish that has been made in this house for decades. Rumbledethumps. A meal of comfort, of love. A dish that had soothed old wounds and spoken apologies when words had failed.
I stand by the kitchen counter, smoothing the creases in the tablecloth as my fingers tremble slightly. The candlelight flickers, casting long shadows across the stone walls. The soft hum of music plays in the background, a melody from a life we once shared. And then, the door creaks open.
David steps inside, his silhouette framed against the night air, his eyes scanning the room. His gaze lands on the table, on the flowers, on me. His expression is unreadable, but his voice is steady when he finally speaks. “What’s going on?”
I take a deep breath, gripping the back of the chair for support. “Bertie, you are a lifesaver,” I whisper to no one. “I need to talk to you,” I say, my voice softer than I’d like. “Really talk to you. No misunderstandings. No running away.” David exhales, stepping further into the room. His gaze flickers toward the dish on the table, and something passes over his face. Recognition. A memory.
“I see you remember,” I say, attempting a small smile. “Rumbledethumps. Your grandfather told me once that this dish was like a cupid’s arrow straight to his heart. And now… it’s my turn to use it.”
David stays silent, waiting. He’s always been good at that, giving me space to say what I need to say. I pull out the letter from my pocket, the red wax seal broken, the words inside now permanently etched into my heart. “Your grandfather left me this,” I say, unfolding the paper. “And I think you should know what it says.” David’s throat bobs, but he nods. I take a steadying breath and read:
Kelly,
The greatest regret of my final months was not standing up to Carrick and Lucinda when I had the chance. I watched my grandson lose the love of his life because I was too old, too tired, too broken by grief to fight the way I should have. But I see now that love is worth fighting for, no matter how hard, no matter how complicated.
Rumbledethumps has been a part of this family for years, the one thing that has carried Moira and me through countless storms. It is the dish of reconciliation, of forgiveness, of love.
So here is my gift to you: the recipe, the same one Moira used, the same one that always brought me back home to her.
Use it well. I hope it brings you and David back to where you belong.
With love,
Liam McCraig.
Silence fills the room when I finish reading. The only sound is the soft crackling of the fire and the distant call of the wind outside.
David swallows hard, his jaw clenched, his hands gripping the back of the chair in front of him. When he finally speaks, his voice is rough. “He regretted it.”
I nod. “Yeah. He did.”
David closes his eyes for a moment, as if absorbing the weight of it. And when he opens them, I see something else there, something deeper, something raw.
“I love you,” I say before he can speak. The words pour out of me, unfiltered, unguarded. “I never stopped. Not for a second. I let other people decide what was best for you, and I didn’t trust you to decide for yourself. And that’s my biggest regret.”
David takes a slow step toward me, and then another. “Kelly…”
“No,” I interrupt, shaking my head. “Let me finish. If I have to give up everything, if I have to walk away from my life, from whatever future I thought I had planned. I will. Because none of it matters without you.”
David’s eyes burn with something fierce, something untamed, and I know that if he lets me go now, if he walks away, I won’t stop him. Not this time. This time, it has to be his choice.
A muscle in his jaw ticks. He looks at me like he’s trying to memorize every inch of my face. And then, finally, he speaks. “It was never about money. Never about the estate, or the inheritance, or anything else.”
I nod, my throat tight. “I know.”
His hands clench, then release. “The only thing that mattered was you.”
I bite my lip, willing myself not to cry. “David…”
“My parents,” he says suddenly, shaking his head. “They’re not a good force in my life. They never have been. They twisted everything, made me think that if I didn’t follow their rules, I’d lose everything. But the only thing I lost was you.”
I step closer, close enough that I can feel the warmth of him. “And now?”
His fingers brush against mine, tentative at first, then firmer. “Now… I don’t want to lose you again.”
My breath catches. His grip tightens. And then, before I can say another word, he pulls me into him, crushing his mouth against mine.
The kiss is desperate, full of everything unsaid, everything we lost, everything we’ve fought so hard to ignore. His hands slide into my hair, his body pressed against mine as if he’s afraid that if he lets go, I’ll disappear again.
But I won’t. Not this time.
We break apart, just enough for me to whisper, “Then don’t.”
His forehead rests against mine, and for the first time in what feels like forever, I hear him laugh, soft, breathless, full of relief.
“Stay,” he murmurs, his voice a plea, a promise.
"Always."