Chapter 191: Dawson

Seven Months Later

May, 2018

Dawson made the last turn of their journey, knowing that they were almost there, and that neither Chloe nor Tommy knew where they were going. He was part nervous, part excited, part ready to throw up.

God, please...

He left the prayer unfinished as the farmhouse came into view. He looked over at Chloe, grinning. "We're almost there," he told her.

"Oh, good!" she said, starting to take off the blindfold.

"No, no, no!" he said, slapping her hands away from the fabric. "No cheating!"

Tommy was bouncing ecstatically in the back seat. "C'mon, Dad," he said cajolingly, "can't we just peek?"

Even as Dawson's heart contracted with love over the word "Dad" – he would never tire of hearing his son call him that – he held firm. "Nope, no peeking for you!" Tommy groaned in pain, but Dawson ignored it.

He wasn't going to screw this up. After all this time, he was going to get it right.