Chapter 1 #2
Elle and Zane said they’re happy as a family of three, so they’re still staying in a two-bedroom with their little boy, Noel.
Finn and Hanna decided to stick with a two bedroom, as well, since they’ve decided—for now, at least—to focus their spare time on taking trips with their two dogs, Ansel and Porter.
And Nora and Jackson said they were just fine in the comfortable apartment they’ve shared since Jackson moved in several years ago.
So everyone’s happy. We have enough room for our growing Blade and Arrow family, plus two extra apartments to use when our clients need extra protection.
The guys—and Nora, of course—still have their offices on the first floor, so they can work from home except when they have to travel for a job.
And we’re still right here in Sleepy Hollow, a town I’ve grown to love in the six years I’ve lived here.
Would I have ever thought my life would end up this way when I first sent that email to Blade and Arrow, asking for help? Not a chance. But life works in funny ways. Sometimes a storm of coincidences brings a rainbow when we least expect it.
My gaze moves to the collage of photos hung above the fireplace.
In the center of it is a family portrait we had taken last month.
Cole has his arms wrapped protectively around us, me under his left, and Clara, his right.
James is sleeping peacefully on my lap. And the look on Cole’s face as he looks at us…
It makes my heart ache in the sweetest of ways.
There’s so much love there.
And that’s the proof I found my rainbow right here. At Blade and Arrow. With Cole, Clara, James, and the rest of my B and A family.
My nose prickles again.
A lump swells in my throat.
God, I’m just so happy.
“Everyone’s fine,” Georgia announces quietly as she comes back into the living room. “I got Lily back to sleep with the promise of watching The Nutcracker in the morning. Clara and James are still asleep. So I think we’re in the clear.”
“Good.” I reach for a stuffed bunny, already debating the best way to wrap it. “With Christmas only a week away, we need to get these presents wrapped. And once the guys get back, we’ll be busy with all the holiday stuff in town. Caroling and the Reindeer Rodeo and—”
A soft tap on the door interrupts me.
Georgia looks at her watch. “Oh. I bet that’s Elle. She said she’d stop by after her class to help. Since she’s done with her wrapping already.”
Chuckling, I say, “Of course she is.” Elle isn’t just brilliant; she’s incredibly organized. So it’s no surprise that on top of taking care of one-year-old Noel and teaching a full load of courses at Fordham, she somehow managed to get all her Christmas wrapping done early.
Though I’m sure Georgia’s right, I still grab my phone to check the security app. It’s silly, really, considering there’s no way anyone could get inside HQ without being invited, but being overly concerned about safety is a habit I don’t think I’ll ever break.
And anyway, there’s nothing wrong with being overly careful, is there? Especially when we all know firsthand how devious danger can be.
But the video camera positioned above my front door doesn’t show danger. All it shows is petite Elle, holding a large paper bag and smiling brightly.
“It’s Elle,” I confirm. “I’ll just go let her in.”
“Stay.” Georgia gestures for me to stay put. “I’m already up. I’ll do it.”
Long hair flowing behind her, she hurries to the door and quickly opens the three locks keeping it shut.
After years of practice, she can do it without thought, but I still have memories of fighting with those locks when I first moved here.
“Why are they so complicated?” I asked Cole in frustration one day, after spending nearly a minute trying to get them open.
“The whole building is secure. Don’t you think one lock is enough for the apartments inside? ”
Cole just gave me a earnest, solemn look. “When it comes to your safety, it’s impossible to do too much. Really, I’d prefer more locks. But when we were building this place, Zane reminded me that too many locks would be a fire hazard. So I settled for three.”
Once Georgia has the door open, Elle comes bustling inside. Her cheeks are still pink from the cold, and there are tiny flakes of snow melting on her coat. She looks at our mounds of presents and laughs. “I guess I’m not too late to help, after all.”
“Not quite,” Georgia agrees. She takes the bag from Elle, so Elle can slip off her coat. “I think we may have gone a little overboard with the presents this year.”
“Nah.” Elle takes the bag back, then carries it over to the coffee table and sets it down. “You should see how many presents I bought for Noel.”
She starts pulling items out of the paper bag as she continues, “Zane was giving me a hard time about buying too much. But he’s one to talk. I busted him coming home with bags overflowing with gifts. We’re going to need a bigger apartment for all of them.”
“That’s what I said!” exclaims Georgia. She peers at the boxes Elle is setting out. “Did you get macarons? And petit fours?”
Elle grins. “I did. From that gourmet bakery right near campus. I thought it might be nice to have a little sustenance while we wrap presents.”
“We should bring some over to Hanna and Charlie,” I suggest.
“Already done,” Elle replies with a smile. “I stopped by Charlie’s place on the way here. I figured it was the least I could do, since she was watching Noel for me.”
“How are they doing?” Georgia asks.
“Good.” Elle opens the box of petit fours and holds them out to me. “They were watching old Christmas movies. And—” She makes a little aww face. “Noel and Sam were both conked out on the couch with Rylan, one on either side. It was the cutest thing.”
“Awww,” Georgia and I echo.
“So.” Elle takes a petit four for herself, then plops down on the floor beside me. “Where do you want me to start?”
“Anywhere you like,” I reply. “This pile”—I gesture to my right—“is for Clara. This one is for James. And yes, I know he’s too young to unwrap them himself. But I don’t care. And that pile is for Lily.”
Elle gives the mounds of gifts an appraising glance. Then she laughs. “You definitely do need my help.”
For the next few minutes, we settle into wrapping in comfortable silence, only interrupted by the occasional crinkle of paper or the slice of scissors.
Surrounded by two of my closest friends, a feeling of contentment comes over me. Yes, I’m missing Cole while he’s away on business, just as I’m sure Elle and Georgia are missing Zane and Leo. But we have each other—for laughter, jokes, comfort, support—and that’s pretty great, too.
I’m just finishing up wrapping a science kit for Clara when a soft, unexpected clunk makes all of us jump.
My heart leaps into my throat.
My muscles draw up on instinct, poised to race to Clara and James to protect them.
Georgia half rises, alarm all over her face.
Elle sucks in a sharp breath. Her gaze darts to the door. “What was that?” Though she’s trying to hide it, there’s a nervous tremor to her voice.
My heart leaps in great bounds, slamming hard against my chest.
“Is someone at the door?” Georgia whispers. Throwing a quick glance at Elle, she adds, “Hanna didn’t say she was coming over, did she?”
Georgia shakes her head quickly. “No.” She stands, her attention shifting to the hallway, leading to where the babies lie sleeping. “I’m going to—”
There’s another soft thunk.
Elle lets out a tiny meep of fright. Then she scrambles to her feet. “I need to go to Noel.”
“Not if someone’s out there,” Georgia hisses.
“Noel’s out there,” Elle retorts.
“Wait.” With a trembling hand, I pick up my phone again. “Let me just check—”
With a few taps, the view of the hallway appears on the screen.
No one’s there.
From the kitchen, there’s a dull, scraping sound.
Georgia flashes me a fearful look. “What was that?”
For a moment, I cast my thoughts about, trying to figure it out.
With the main living space set up in an L shape, I can’t see the kitchen from here.
But it would be impossible for someone to get inside, not without breaching all the security, somehow getting over the unscalable perimeter fence, and then climbing up to our second-floor apartment.
Then, a beat later, it clicks.
Not an intruder.
Not some malicious entity coming for us.
With a nervous laugh, I say, “It’s the ice machine. Making ice. That’s what we heard.”
Elle jerks her gaze away from the door to look at me. “The ice machine?”
“Yeah.” I stand and walk into the kitchen, feeling more foolish by the second. I scan the empty room, then turn to go back. “We’ve been talking about replacing the fridge. It’s getting—”
Georgia and Elle are right behind me, so I almost slam into the two of them.
“The ice maker?” Georgia asks, sounding both annoyed and disbelieving. “I was in a near-panic over some ice?”
We all giggle, the relieved sound of three women who let their imaginations get away from them.
“I was ready to call Zane,” Elle says. “And he would have freaked if he thought we were in trouble.”
“Same,” Georgia agrees. “Leo would lose it.”
“Cole would have commandeered a flight home,” I add. “Can you imagine? They all come storming back into HQ and we have to tell them—”
“We were terrorized by some ice?” Elle laughs. “I should have realized. We have the same stupid fridge in our apartment.”
“It’s okay.” I pat her arm. “Even after this long, I still get a little anxious when Cole is gone. Even though I know Rylan’s here to keep an eye on things.”
“And we’re more than capable of protecting ourselves,” Elle adds. Her chin lifts. With Zane being a black belt in at least six different martial arts, he’s taught her plenty of self-defense techniques. And I know for a fact that he still practices with her every week.
“Yeah.” Georgia loops an arm over each of our shoulders. “I still get a little uneasy, too. Even though I know we’re perfectly safe.”
“We are,” I agree. Although my still-racing heart is taking a little longer to believe it. “So. Now that we’ve solved the mystery, how about getting back to wrapping and those goodies Elle brought?”
“Sounds good.” Georgia replies. With her arms still around us, she starts back towards the living room before adding definitively. “And no more getting scared over nothing.”