Eleanor listened quietly, a thousand emotions swirling within her. "Well, you certainly threw a lot of it."
"If you needed it, I would have sold thepany to fund you,"n said with a smallugh.
"Who asked you to sell yourpany to invest in me? If you lost every penny, I could never repay that kind of favor," Eleanor retorted, ncing at him.
"Wouldn''t that be just what I want?"n''s gaze burned into her. "Then I''d bring Evelyn to you, and you''d have to take care of us while you pay me back."
Eleanor was at a loss for words. She shot him an exasperated look, but her cheeks grew warm under his stare. "In your dreams."
Seeing her yfully annoyed expression,n''s smile deepened. Just a few days ago, he wouldn''t have dared to hope for this kind of easy banter with her.
"Later, I realized that throwing money at the problem wasn''t a cure-all. You were still so independent, so cold to me. So I had to shamelessly keep pestering you at work, inserting myself into every meeting you had. It didn''t matter if I understood a thing. I just had to be there. I was going to be there even if you hated me for it."
Eleanor thought back to all those unnecessary meetings he had attended. At the time, he had put on such a profound and mysterious act, as if he knew exactly what was going on.
"Well, you don''t have to put yourself through that anymore," Eleanor said.
"Why? Is it because I can ask you out for a meal or coffee privately now?"n asked with a low chuckle.
Eleanor met his gaze and raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I won''t be free."
"Then I''ll just have to keep funding you. At least in our work, we''ll have a connection, and you won''t be able to get rid of me,"n said with a smirk.
Eleanor looked at the lighthouse in the distance, its light shing rhythmically, as if guiding the way forward.
n," Eleanor said softly, "let''s just turn the page on the past. We''ve both paid a price, and we''re not the same people we were back then."
"Tired of talking about the past? Then on the way back, let''s talk about the future,"n said, his eyes fixed on her face. "There''s still a long way to go."
Eleanor looked at him, her gaze clear and calm. "I hope we can have a rxed and respectful rtionship moving forward. We can see each other, we can talk. For Evelyn''s sake, we can be good parents. There doesn''t need to be any pressure on either of us. Do you agree?"
Her voice was crisp and clear, showing how much she had matured in her thinking.
What she was proposing was afortable framework for their rtionship going forward.
Just being able to stand by her side and talk to her again was the result of so much effort. He couldn''t ask for more.
"Then it''s settled," Eleanor said, smiling at him.
"Settled,"n echoed with a smile of his own, one filled with a long-lost ease and genuine joy.
"Let''s go. The tide''sing in, and it''s getting a little chilly," Eleanor said, turning to walk back toward the hotel.
She hadn''t realized how much time
had passed. They had been talking Dach for nearly three hours
It was already past eleven.
On the way back,n suddenly asked, "Do you and Mansfield Ellington... still keep
in touch often?"
This was the one personn had been hesitant to bring up, because he knew Mansfield was a man who had truly gotten close to Eleanor''s heart.
He had a clear picture of where Xavier and Joel stood with her, but
elget
he had never been able to figure out her rtionship with Mansfield.
Eleanor shook her head. "I just need to know that he''s healthy and safe. That''s enough."
"No. We''re better off as friends." Eleanor looked up at the stars, each one shining brightly in its own ce in the sky.
Just like her and Mansfield-they could shine in their own fields.
Eleanor didn''t notice the man beside her, whose expression had softened into a gentle smile.
"You should get some rest. We have a flight to catch tomorrow," Eleanor said.
He was starting to look forward to life after they returned home.