I’m not one to give in to sentimentality too much, but today of all days, I wish one of my parents were still alive so I could talk to them about this. The water of the lake is cold as I swim to the Goodman cabin, the one where it all began. The cabin is empty now, most of them are. Another summer is behind us, the days are getting shorter and shorter, and as I ignore the cold sting of the water on my skin, and take a breather at the jetty leading to Ella’s parents’ cabin, I wonder if I have made a terrible mistake.
Ella will always be Ella, I know that. I don’t expect her to change, not for me or for anyone, but I believed our love would have been enough to make her say yes. I genuinely believed that Ella Goodman would have wanted to marry me, despite her parents’ screwed-up relationship
