Page 57 of Midnight Between Us (The Timberbridge Brothers #4)

Chapter Fifty-Two

Keir,

I wasn’t sure if I would write back.

However, the truth is that your letters have been sitting on my nightstand like unfinished conversations. And I’ve always hated silence when there’s still something worth saying.

So here it is:

I don’t know what’s next, what this is, or if we can fix anything between us.

The letters have been lovely. I’ve loved each and one of them.

Some I re-read, like the one where you told me about the last day with your mom.

How you almost didn’t make it to see her one last time because your anger and resentment didn’t let your love for her do the right thing.

I’m so glad you were able to say goodbye and hopefully forgive her for not being the mother you needed.

Adulthood changes the way you see things. Becoming a parent also changes your perspective on things. After Lyndon, I can’t understand why your mother didn’t defend her children. There has to be a reason. I just . . . maybe we’ll never learn what really happened between your parents.

I also understood why Nina didn’t give me the love a mother should. My grandparents used me as a weapon to torture her. At some point she just didn’t want to care because it was easier. It hurt a lot less.

Once she left our small town, she discovered that life could be quite different.

She worked, she fell in love—she has a family.

She’s happy. Does it suck that I’m not a part of it?

I’ve made my peace with everything and just hope that someday I’ll find happiness.

I definitely deserve it—and maybe one day I’ll stop working and give myself a chance.

You asked to know the version of me who survived you. She’s quieter now. She doesn’t flinch at loneliness, but she doesn’t invite it to stay, either. She knows how to build a life on her own. But she’s willing to open the door—just a little—to see what’s possible.

We’re not the same people anymore, but maybe that’s exactly why this could work.

So write again. Or don’t.

Come back when you’re ready. Or don’t.

But know this:

If you do come back, don’t come to fix the past.

Come to build something new.

Best,

Simone