Nicole closed her eyes and turned her face to the morning sun. Its warmth sank into her cheeks and traveled through her whole body, filling her up from the inside out, giving her energy and life.

“You really like it here,” her dad commented.

She opened her eyes and glanced at him across the back porch’s table. “Yeah. I love it. New York is too dreary. Even in the summer there’s not enough sun.”

Nicole exhaled heavily, looking at the shimmering pool. It was her third morning in Miami and she still hadn’t gotten a chance to swim in the stunning, infinity pool yet. The three of them had spent her first day there walking around downtown and her second day at museums. After they finished the second night with dinner at a rooftop restaurant, Nicole had been so exhausted she went straight to bed.

Her dad leaned back in his chair. “I wish you’d come and visited me here sooner. Or anywhere. You know, I’ve had a bedroom set aside for you since I bought this place.”

Nicole looked at her lap. “Yeah, I know. I wish I had, too.”

He glanced at the house, where Lizzie was making them all a ‘special breakfast.’ “She’s been wanting to see you, too,” he said.

“Lizzie’s nice.”

He cocked his head. “How’s your mother?”

“She’s okay.”

He nodded, saying nothing, maybe knowing it was a dangerous subject to broach.

“She misses me,” Nicole said, thinking out loud. “I feel a little bad about being here.”

“Don’t. It’s not your job to take care of her.”

Nicole sharply looked at him, and she knew they were thinking the same thing. Wasn’t it his job?

He lowered his face, not meeting her eyes. Nicole kept looking at him, dissecting him. Ted Carson. Powerful celebrity attorney. He had more money than one person could ever need. A beautiful, sweet girlfriend. But was he happy?

For years, she’d hoped he wasn’t. She’d wanted him to suffer; wanted him to feel at least a shred of the pain he had put her and her mother through.

It wasn’t until recently that Nicole understood all she’d been doing was putting herself through more and more pain. Her dad was right there, always extending a hand, always waiting for her to come his way. Yes, they’d never really talked about what happened. But had she wanted to?

“Nicole.” He rubbed his palms together, still not meeting her gaze.

The wicked part of her wanted to let him sit there with no response coming from her. She was bigger than that, though. At least now she was. Aidan had helped her realize there was no point in holding onto grudges and years of pain. They ate a person up from the inside and hid the reality of life—and the reality was that things could have been much better between Nicole and her dad all these years. And perhaps even between her parents themselves.

“I used to be so mad at you,” Nicole whispered hoarsely. “So mad.”

He looked up, and the pain in his eyes couldn’t be missed. “I know and I understand you. What I did was horrible.”

“And I don’t mean years ago. I mean, like, two weeks ago.”

“What changed?”

“Since you left us, I’ve been living in fear…in fear of pain and suffering.” She felt her chin tremble. “But I’ve recently met someone who showed me how empty and joyless my life would be if I let my heart harden. I realized that if I want to change my present and my future, there’s no point in holding onto the past. I’ll never be completely happy again if I don’t find the strength to forgive you.”

“I don’t blame you if you can’t, Nic. I don’t forgive myself.”

“What?”

Nicole could hardly believe her ears. Her dad always looked so immersed in his new life that she never even considered the possibility that he was struggling himself with the implications of his actions.

“Even when I left, pumpkin, I knew I was making the wrong move. Things hadn’t been good between your mom and me for a long time. We kept that hidden from you the best we could. But that’s no excuse. I could have faced my problems the adult way. Instead, I ran. I was afraid.”

“How come you never told me that?” Nicole asked.

“I figured you didn’t want to hear it. You wouldn’t come and visit me. I could hardly get you on the phone.” He winced.

“I was wrong, Dad. I’m sorry.”

The words took her by surprise. She hadn’t even realized she felt partially responsible for the chasm between them. She’d been way too busy blaming him for everything to ever pause to think whether there was anything she could do to contribute to recovering their relationship.

“We both messed up,” he said, “but I messed up more. I was the adult. I should have done better.”

Tears burned Nicole’s eyes. “Nobody’s perfect.”

He ruefully smirked. “You’re sure you don’t expect your old man to be?”

“I guess I used to,” she said, brushing tears away. “What happened between you and—” Her. The woman he’d left Nicole’s mother for, the woman Nicole couldn’t bring herself to mention.

Her dad sucked in a breath. “What I thought was there really wasn’t. It turned out I was seeing what I wanted to. Like I said, I needed a reason to run. I took the first excuse I could get. I’m so sorry I hurt you and your mom. I really am.”

“I’m sorry, too. For never…talking about any of this. For being so arrogant in my pain.”

“You weren’t arrogant, sweetie. There’s no life manual about how to deal with these things. You were just a kid. So much burden fell on you. I know how much you helped your mother. I should have been there for you. I failed her as a husband and you as a father. I’ve always wanted to apologize to you. To your mother, too. I didn’t think you’d want to hear it, though.”

“I didn’t.” Nicole took a deep breath. “But that’s why I came here. I forgive you, Dad. We all make mistakes and I don’t want to be mad anymore.”

The man rose from his chair and knelt in front of his daughter, taking her hand. “Thank you, baby.” His eyes shone with tears.

Nicole nodded, her voice lost and her heart buzzing. She wrapped her arms around her father’s neck. She’d done it: let the past go. She finally felt that forgiveness was not just a word. The change was in her heart.

She couldn’t wait to tell Aidan.

A knock on the kitchen window made them look at the house. Through the glass, Lizzie waved them inside.

They both stood up, and at the door, Nicole’s dad paused.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said.

“Me, too.” Nicole smiled, the warmth from the moment sinking deep into her.

Side by side, they went down the hall and to the breakfast nook off the kitchen. A full spread waited there, the savory smells of everything from fresh biscuits to bacon to pancakes filling the air.

“Wow, Lizzie, you really went all out,” Nicole said, stopping to take it all in.

Lizzie squeezed her shoulders from behind. “It’s nothing.”

“Lizzie loves to cook,” Nicole’s dad said, taking his seat. “And she’s great at it.”

Nicole looked at her father glowing at his girlfriend, and she knew she’d truly forgiven him when she realized that the idea of him being in love again didn’t fill her with resentment any longer. She only wished with all her heart that her mother would also have a second chance to get her own happily-ever-after.

The only image that came to her mind when the words ‘happily-ever-after’ resounded in her head was Aidan’s face. She took her seat, tucking her chin and smiling to herself.

“Let’s see,” Lizzie said, rushing from the table to the kitchen counter. “We need cream...orange juice. How do you like your coffee, Nicole?”

“Black. Thanks.”

On the other end of the kitchen, a muted television on the wall played the news. Nicole glanced at it, then did a double take at the sight of the name ‘Aidan Coleman’ scrolling along the bottom.

“Oh, I’ll turn that off,” Lizzie said, reaching for the remote.

“Wait!” Nicole cried. “Hold on. Will you turn it up? They’re talking about someone I know.”

“Really?” her dad asked. “Who?”

“Um, a friend.” Nicole looked back at the TV, leaving it at that. She hadn’t told her parents she was dating someone. Hopefully, soon she’d get to do more than tell them about Aidan. She’d get to have them meet him.

Lizzie took the TV off mute. A female anchor was sitting behind a desk, a picture of Aidan in the corner of the frame. At the sight of his face, Nicole’s stomach did a flip. They’d texted a lot and had a few long phone calls over the last few days, but it wasn’t until then that she missed him in an aching way.

“Aidan’s manager and father, Rick Coleman, made the announcement this morning,” the anchor was saying. “The tennis star will join a long list of celebrities moving to reality television.”

Nicole gasped. Reality television?

“You know Aidan Coleman?” her dad asked. “The tennis player?”

The anchor was going on, but Nicole couldn’t hear what she was saying. The story had ended and she was on to something else. Nicole’s ears buzzed and her hands shook.

Aidan was doing the reality show. But, no. That didn’t make sense. He’d told her he wouldn’t. When they talked about it, he made it sound like it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Lizzie turned the TV off and set a cup of coffee in front of Nicole. She stared at the black liquid, feeling her stomach sink.

“Nic? You okay?” Her father touched her shoulder.

“Yeah,” she croaked. “I just—” She swallowed and tried again. “I’m not feeling that great.”

“What hurts?” Lizzie took a seat next to Nicole.

“Everything,” Nicole said, not looking at them. At least that was kind of the truth. Every part of her—body, heart, and soul—felt as if it had been set on fire.

“If you’re having aches, you could be coming down with a flu,” Lizzie said. “It can happen in the summer.”

“Maybe I should go rest.” Nicole stood up.

“Here.” Lizzie handed her a glass of orange juice. “Vitamin C.”

Nicole dumbly nodded. The room was all blurry, and she had trouble putting one foot in front of the other. Somehow, though, she made it upstairs and into the guest room.

Setting the orange juice on the nightstand, Nicole sat on the bed. The empty wall glared back at her, spinning like everything else in existence.

Aidan had lied to her. He went back to Los Angeles and he couldn’t resist the temptations of his old life. Nicole didn’t want to believe it, but if he’d lied about that show, that meant she didn’t know him at all. Her heart ached at the memory of the intensity of his gaze, the warmth of his touch, the sweetness of his kiss. Over the last couple of weeks, she’d overcome her old fears to the point that she allowed herself to dream of a quiet family life with Aidan.

“I’m so stupid,” she whispered into the quiet room.

Dropping her face into her hands, she let her despair loose. She cried until her lungs felt as if they were bursting. The only thing that could calm her down was prayer.