Chapter 10 - The Horizon at Arrival
Eighteen months later, a warm summer afternoon bathed the backyard of our new home in Batavia in golden light.
The historic farmhouse sat on three green acres overlooking the rolling hills of Clermont County, framed by century-old oak trees whose leaves danced in the gentle breeze.
Under the wide shade of the timber-frame pavilion we had built together, thirty long wooden tables were covered in white linen, mason jars of wildflowers, and warm flickering candles.
The sound of acoustic guitars and joyful laughter filled the summer air.
Daniel stood by the open-air bar, wearing a navy suit with his tie slightly crooked, passionately arguing with our uncle about the upcoming football season while holding a plate piled high with pulled pork.
Mrs. Carter was dancing on the stone patio with her husband, her face radiant with pure, unburdened happiness.
I stood at the edge of the pavilion, holding a glass of iced cider, wearing a linen suit with the sleeves rolled up to my forearms.
Soft arms slipped around my waist from behind, followed by the warm, sweet press of Emma’s cheek against my shoulder blades.
She wore an ethereal, flowing lace wedding gown, her dark hair braided with tiny sprigs of baby's breath, barefoot on the soft green grass.
I turned in her arms, wrapping my hands around her waist, pulling her close as the setting sun painted the sky in shades of amber, violet, and rose.
"Are you happy, Mrs. Cole?" I whispered, repeating the question she had asked me in the dark airport café so long ago.
Emma looked up into my eyes, her smile bright enough to outshine the stars beginning to prick through the twilight sky.
She reached up, her fingers tracing the jawline she had known for half her life, her gold wedding band catching the dying sunlight.
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"I’m home, Ryan," she whispered softly, resting her forehead against mine as the summer wind rustled through the trees. "I’m finally, perfectly home."
I leaned down and kissed my wife beneath the wide midwestern sky, knowing that no matter where the roads of this life led, the only arrival that had ever mattered was the one that brought her back into my arms.
