Page 61 of The Cinnamon Spice Inn (Maple Falls #1)

FIFTY-FOUR

MADISON

Madison drove away from the farmhouse, her hands gripping the steering wheel. She felt like crying, yelling, and turning back around all at once.

Seeing calm, steady Zach that torn up, seeing the pain on his face, had broken something open inside her.

She’d come there with so much to say, things she needed him to hear.

And his pain had struck the words right out of her mouth.

She didn’t know how to fix this, and yet she couldn’t bear to hurt him anymore.

Madison drove around the lake once, then twice, before pulling over in one of the scenic overlooks. She stared out across the water.

“How did I end up back here,” she whispered, “feeling like a kid again, staring at the same lake, still looking for answers?”

It was quiet, almost too quiet, but she didn’t mind it. It was the kind of quiet that allowed her to think or at least try. She rested her arms on the steering wheel and closed her eyes.

She couldn’t believe Zach had even considered coming with her. But she knew in her heart that would never work. She couldn’t see him ever being happy in New York. He wasn’t a city man and never would be. Madison loved him too much to do that to him.

Her mind wandered to the inn—baking cinnamon rolls, learning how to ride a bike in the circular driveway, taking pictures in front of the maple tree.

The inn had never been just an inn. It was her family’s home.

And Zach had never been just a guy. He was the one.

Madison mentally weighed her two futures. New York City was fast-paced, filled with awards, travel, and recognition. Maple Falls was quaint, charming. It had Zach, cozy mornings, and her family.

One had everything she’d ever wanted. The other had everything she hadn’t known she needed.

Madison smiled, thinking of the inn’s grand front porch, the smell of apples baking in Kit’s kitchen, and the sound of her dad laughing while Cocoa snored at his feet. She thought about Zach’s hands, rough and steady. The way he’d built that house for her without ever saying a word.

It wasn’t just that she loved him. It was that she loved the life she was starting to have with him, right here in Maple Falls.

Madison rested her head against her arms.

Maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t too late.

There had to be a way to have both.