Marrying Daisy Bellamy by Susan Wiggs

conversation with him about the two of them. Their relationship was a series of encounters filled with a burning chemistry that thus far, had led only to yearning and frustration. Whenever she even thought of him, she felt a longing so fierce it hurt. Still, all the longing in the world didn’t add up to any kind of future together. For that matter, they’d never even declared their love aloud. They’d never had time or space for anything to grow and develop, knitting them together.
    They were stuck in the magic stage; they idealized each other, not knowing for certain if they were truly meant to be together. Maybe they had habits that would eventually annoy one another. Maybe they were sexually incompatible; she wouldn’t know, because they’d never slept together. Maybe they were on different paths and destined to stay that way.
    But in her heart of hearts, she wished this didn’t have to be the case. She loved him with so much of herself that she couldn’t imagine any other way to feel. To stop loving him would be to stop breathing the air.
    Still, all the love in the world couldn’t change the fact that she was tied to home, to Charlie and his dad, while Julian was bound for adventure. The only practical thing to do was to make their peace with reality. She tortured herself with the very real possibility that in his travels, Julian might meet someone, a woman who was free to follow him to the ends of the earth. For the briefest of moments, she fantasized about what it would be like to be that woman, unfettered, nothing keeping herfrom striking out on an adventure. Then she thought of Charlie and immediately felt guilty. How could she even imagine a life without Charlie?
    Somehow, she managed to steal a few hours of sleep. In the morning, they all gathered for breakfast. She sat next to Julian, watching him methodically eat his way through the buffet—an omelet, pancakes, cereal, fruit—like a starving man.
    â€œYou always did have a big appetite, boy,” Tante Mimi said fondly.
    â€œâ€™Member when we had that pie-eating contest?” Remy asked.
    â€œSure,” said Julian. “I was the winner.”
    â€œYeah, but you had a bellyache all night.” Remy leaned forward to catch Daisy’s eye. “Me and Jules, we went camping at the state park. What we call that park, Mama?”
    â€œI don’t remember,” said Tante Mimi. “It was by Lake Ponchartrain.”
    â€œYeah,” said Remy, “with our scouting group, and we had the eating contest. Learned stuff, too.” He handed Julian a plastic matchbox. “’Member this? I made it for you.”
    â€œThanks, Remy.” Julian slid open the box. “Strike-anywhere matches, a water purification tablet… It’s everything I need to survive in the wilderness.” He took out a small wire. “I don’t remember what this is for.”
    Remy beamed, clearly delighted to be the authority. “You rub it on your hair and set it on top of some water, and it’ll always point north.” He frowned at Julian. “You got enough hair for that, Jules?”
    Julian burst out laughing. “I guess I’d better check.” He demonstrated the makeshift compass on his water glass.The tiny filament swung gently toward Remy. “Look at that,” Julian said. “You’re my true north, Rem.”
    â€œEven in Colombia?” Remy asked.
    Julian’s smile stayed in place, though Daisy sensed the tension ramping up. “A compass works differently south of the equator,” he said. “Still works, though. Thanks, Remy.”
    His New Orleans relatives and his mother had a long day of travel ahead of them. Daisy would be driving back to Avalon with Connor, Olivia and baby Zoe.
    Soon, Daisy would be back with Charlie and the life she’d made for herself. A few times, she caught herself thinking, I wish… And then she would rein herself