Chapter Six
Grant stood there like a statue, staring at the set of doors through which Amelie disappeared.
For the last hour, he had imagined several scenarios for his reunion with Amelie. And her bolting hadn’t been on his bingo card.
“Well, that wasn’t the reaction I had been expecting,” Grant said, running his hand through his hair.
Across the table, Tyler and Trevor had gone from looking triumphantly pleased with themselves to visibly worried.
Trevor glanced toward the doors. “Do you think Mom’s okay?”
Grant felt his heart squeeze. He walked over to the table and looked at both Trevor and Tyler, who also looked nervous.
Grant honestly had no idea how to answer Trevor’s question.
Finding out he had two sons had nearly knocked him on his ass.
Finding out the woman he had spent twelve years loving and searching for was standing ten feet away had nearly sent him to the grave.
So, he could only imagine how Amelie was feeling.
Still, the last thing the boys needed right now was to see how nervous he actually was.
Grant offered them a small smile.
“Yeah, I think she will be.”
Trevor frowned. “You don’t sound very sure.”
That earned the faintest laugh from Grant. “That’s because I’m not completely sure.”
The twins exchanged a glance.
Grant leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on the table.
“What happened just now was a pretty big shock for your mom. Hell, it was a pretty big shock for me too.” His smile widened a little.
“I found out I have two sons and reunited with the woman I’ve been in love with for most of my life, all in the matter of a few hours.
But I had at least a little time to prepare.
So, I think we’re all entitled to be a little overwhelmed. ”
That got a reluctant smile from both boys.
“Your mom is probably doing what she always used to do when something huge happens,” Grant continued. “She’s finding somewhere quiet so she can think. Once she has a chance to process everything, I think she’ll be okay.”
“You really think so?” Tyler asked.
Grant nodded, hoping he looked more confident than he felt. “I do.”
Because, despite everything, he knew Amelie. Or at least he hoped he still did. She wasn’t someone who ran because she didn’t care. She ran because she cared too much.
“So, what do we do now?” Trevor asked.
Grant stood and glanced toward the patio doors.
“I’m going to go talk to her.”
Tyler’s eyes widened. “Alone? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
Grant grinned. “Yeah, buddy. Trust me. Your mom and I have twelve years’ worth of things to talk about.”
“And you think she’ll listen to you?” Tyler asked.
Grant considered that for a second.
“Honestly?” he said with a grin. “I have no idea. But I hope so.”
Grant looked up at Mac. “Would you mind keeping an eye on the boys while I go find Amelie?”
“We got them, don’t worry. You go find Amelie.”
Grant was halfway to the patio doors when Jessie stopped him.
“Grant.”
He turned. “Yeah?”
She smiled softly. “Earlier, when Amelie and I were talking, I asked her if there was anyone special she had, and she told me that her heart belonged to someone a long time ago, and that she never quite got it back.”
Something in Grant’s chest tightened.
Jessie held his gaze for a moment before adding, “It’s you, Grant. You still hold her heart.”
For several seconds, he didn’t know what to say. Then again, after hearing that, there probably wasn’t anything to say. But he knew what he needed to do.
He nodded. “Thanks, Jess.”
Then he headed for the doors with a little more hope than he’d had a minute ago.
As soon as he stepped outside, he spotted Amelie at the railing overlooking the village. She had her back to him.
For a second, he stood there looking at her. He couldn’t keep the smile off his face. His Amelie was standing just feet from him.
“Still running away from me, huh?” he asked softly.
He saw her shoulders tense the moment she heard his voice. A few seconds passed, then she turned. He felt a sharp pain in his chest when he saw her tear-streaked cheeks. If there was one thing he hated the most, it was seeing Amelie cry.
“Grant...” she whispered.
That was all it took. Every instinct inside him took over, and before either of them could talk themselves out of it, he crossed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her. For half a second, he wasn’t sure what she would do, but then she slipped her arms around his waist.
Nothing could have prepared him for this moment. Grant closed his eyes as he held her, his face buried in her hair. She still fit perfectly against him, as though the last twelve years had never happened, and she had always belonged right here in his arms.
Amelie’s face was buried against his chest. He could feel her body trembling as she cried. He just held her, one hand moving gently through her soft hair while the other rested against her back.
“You’re really here,” she sputtered out between sniffles and hiccups.
Grant wasn’t sure if she was just talking to herself or asking a question.
“I’m really here, Mel,” he said, using the nickname he had given her back when they were dating.
She continued to cry, and he rubbed her back.
“It’s okay,” he murmured.
Her head shook against his chest. “It’s not okay,” she said.
Despite the ache in his chest, the response almost made him smile.
That sounded exactly like Amelie.
Twelve years could pass, entire lives could change, and somehow she was still the same woman who had never believed in pretending everything was fine when it wasn’t.
Grant rested his cheek against the top of her head and tightened his arms around her. “Okay,” he said softly. “Maybe it’s not okay yet.”
Her fingers curled tighter into the back of his shirt.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
The words were barely audible, but he heard them.
Grant closed his eyes. Whatever conversation they were about to have, whatever explanations or questions waited for them, the last thing he wanted was for her to stand here carrying the weight of everything by herself.
“Hey.” He pulled back just enough to look down at her. “We’re not doing that.”
Her watery brown eyes lifted to his.
“Doing what?”
“Taking all of this on yourself,” Grant said softly.
His thumb brushed across her cheek, catching another tear before it could fall.
Seeing her standing there apologizing, carrying the weight of twelve years on her shoulders, stirred something protective inside him.
Whatever had happened back then, whatever misunderstandings and missed chances had led them here, he refused to let her shoulder the blame alone.
A shaky breath left her as she looked away for a moment before meeting his gaze again. “You’re a dad, Grant,” she whispered.
Grant smiled. “I know.”
“How?”
“That is a very long story,” he said. “The important thing is that I found you.”
Her brow furrowed. Confusion crossed her face.
“Found me?”
Grant nodded slowly.
“Amelie, I’ve been looking for you for almost thirteen years. Ever since you disappeared the night of my brother’s wedding rehearsal.”
“What?”
He let out a slow breath. There was no point easing into it now.
“Everyone I talked to had no idea where you went. I tried looking for you that night and the following days. I had no idea what happened.” He shook his head, remembering how worried he had been. “But I had to get back to base. Even between deployments, I never stopped looking for you.”
He watched her eyes widen as he spoke.
“I tried calling you. At first, it just rang, but then, days later, it was disconnected. I asked around. Talked to anyone who might know where you would’ve gone.” He laughed softly, though there was no humor in it. “Hell, I probably drove half the people I knew crazy asking questions.”
“Grant...”
The emotion in her voice nearly undid him.
“For a while, I thought maybe you didn't want to be found.” The admission still hurt, even after all these years. “I hated that possibility, but eventually I started thinking maybe it was the only explanation.”
He paused, studying her face.
“But something never felt right about it.”
Because it hadn’t. Not with Amelie, not with the woman he had loved. Nothing about her disappearance had ever made sense, and no matter how many years passed, he could never shake the feeling that there was more to the story than he had been able to see.
A tear slid down her cheek.
“Grant, I tried to find you, too.”
The words hit him like a physical blow.
“What?”
“After the boys were born, I tried calling the number I had for you. But it didn’t work. I wrote letters but never got a response.”
For a moment, Grant could only stare at her.
“My number changed,” he said finally, dragging a hand through his hair. “There was a security issue with work, and I had to get a new one.”
Grant closed his eyes briefly and shook his head.
“Jesus.”
A watery laugh escaped her.
“Yeah.”
When he opened his eyes again, he reached for her hand and threaded their fingers together. The simple contact grounded him, reminding him that this wasn’t another dead end or another lead that went nowhere.
Amelie was here.
“I think we have got a lot to talk about,” he said.
A small smile touched her lips.
“That might be the understatement of the century.”
His gaze held hers as a thousand questions crowded his mind. Questions about the boys. About Norway. About everything she had been through since the day she had walked out of his life. But those questions could wait a little longer.
The only thing that mattered right now was the woman standing in front of him.
He wasn’t sure what happened next. Maybe it was the tears shining in her eyes. Maybe it was the way she looked at him, standing so close he could feel the warmth of her. Or maybe it was simply the fact that after nearly thirteen years of searching, wondering, and missing her, she was finally here.
Whatever the reason, his restraint slipped. His gaze dropped to her lips, which was a mistake because once he looked, he couldn’t seem to look away.