Chapter 16 Maya
MAYA
The knock at the door jolted me awake.
I groaned, burying my face deeper into the pillow. My mouth tasted like regret and wedding champagne, my head a sluggish swirl of exhaustion. Too much wine, too much laughter, too many stolen glances at a certain cowboy. And now? Way too much sunlight streaming through the curtains.
Another knock came. More urgent this time.
I fumbled upright, squinting as the world came back into focus. My dress from last night was draped over a chair, my shoes kicked off haphazardly near the door. Shit. What time was it?
A glance at my phone sent my stomach plummeting.
10:07 a.m.
The knock came again.
I jerked upright, my pulse spiking, every muscle tensing.
Shit.
I grabbed the bedside lamp before my brain could fully catch up. Weapon of choice? Not great, but better than nothing.
With my feet silent on the motel floor, I padded to the door, holding my breath.
Another knock came, firm but not threatening. Then—
“Maya, open up!”
Sheryn.
Not a threat.
The tension in my chest eased, but the residual adrenaline left my fingers clenched around the lamp.
I cracked the door open, blinking against the sunlight, and found Sheryn looking annoyingly well-rested for someone who’d just had the biggest night of her life. Nick stood beside her, looking like he’d been expecting whatever ridiculous scene he just walked into.
Sheryn’s gaze immediately dropped to the lamp in my grip.
“Whoa, it’s just us,” she said, lifting a brow. “Did you…sleepwalk? Or were you trying to redecorate?”
I glanced at the lamp, still clutched like a makeshift club.
Right. Totally normal behavior.
“I, uh—” My voice came out croaky. “Had too much to drink.”
Sheryn smirked. “Pretty sure the bartender’s still icing his wrist.” Then, she stretched up on her toes, peering over my shoulder.
“Is he here?”
My heart slammed against my ribs.
Shit. Is he?
No. Right?
“No one’s here,” I said quickly, pushing the door open wider so she could see for herself.
She didn’t look convinced. Nick chuckled beside her, his hands tucked into his pockets, clearly enjoying whatever drama he thought this was.
My mind spun, trying to piece together anything I might’ve done last night that could make her think Noah had stayed over.
Nothing came.
Maybe that was for the best. He’d be in my rearview mirror soon enough.
God, that thought hurt more than I expected.
I’d let it slip into my mind once or twice.
Staying. This town had a pull that worked like a slow drip, gentle yet impossible to ignore.
I could work with Mrs. Appleby at Butterberry Oven, my days filled with genuine smiles from getting something as sweet as the place where people remembered your name. Maybe even—
No.
Maybe even letting someone like Noah mean something more.
“Hey, don’t look so panicky. What happens in Buffaloberry, stays in Buffaloberry,” Sheryn said with a giggle, her eyes sparkling from more than just champagne.
Then her voice caught just slightly. “I just wanted to say thank you,” she added, glassy-eyed as she pulled me in for a hug. “You made my wedding perfect.”
Damn her and her sentimentality. It cracked my heart wide open because for the first time in forever, I wanted to stay exactly where I was.
“Thanks, Maya,” Nick added, his voice warm.
Sheryn sniffed, regaining her composure. “We’re off to our honeymoon! Bozeman to LA, then straight to Baja, baby!”
I squealed in excitement. “Amazing! No felony-level trouble, okay?”
She cackled and pulled me into a chaotic three-way huddle, her arms wrapped tight around both me and Nick. I laughed without meaning to, pressed between the two people who’d somehow turned this town into something that almost felt like home.
Then she let go, but not before giving my arm one last squeeze.
“Oh! I almost forgot,” she said, wriggling one hand free to dig into her clutch. “Saw this earlier. You’re gonna scream.”
She shoved the screen in my face. At first, all I saw was a massive diamond flashing, then the face came into focus.
Annamaria Belrose.
Internally, I was buffering.
“If she can get engaged, you can too!” Sheryn crowed, totally in bestie mode. “Okay. Maybe you won’t land a billionaire who can afford a Cartier vintage whopper or a wedding planner in a Swarovski cape, but you’ve got a maybe-groom, don’t you?”
The corners of my mouth lifted, but everything else stayed still.
Because the next photo made my stomach tilt—Napoleon, with his arms around Annamaria. The warm haze of the wedding cracked, dreams fizzled, fantasies aborted.
I still believed no one had noticed the necklace was missing. Otherwise, Buffaloberry Hill would’ve been crawling with cops.
That left me with two possibilities.
One—now that her world was all billion-dollar addresses and Cartier-grade rings, the necklace didn’t matter. It’d been shoved in a box with all the other things she’d outgrown.
Two—her wedding was about to flip the status quo faster than I’d expected. If her teenage dream was still alive, she might start caring about that necklace again.
I couldn’t take a risk.
Whatever this was with Noah? Temporary. Whatever that was with Napoleon and Annamaria? A reminder. The necklace was still out there at The Lazy Moose. And I still had work to do. I had to get it, then get the hell out of Buffaloberry Hill.
Sheryn studied me, her brow knitting. “Yeah, thought you’d give me that…I don’t know, cavegirl expression or something.”
“Cavegirl expression?” I echoed, managing a laugh.
She winced. “You okay?”
“Jealous, maybe,” I lied breezily. “But that wouldn’t fast-track anything, my dear.”
“Mmm-hmm,” she said, twisting her lips, not buying it.
Nick nudged her from behind.
“Anyway, we’ll talk after I come back,” she said, hugging me hard again. “Love you.”
“Love you too,” I said, squeezing back. “Go have the time of your life.”
A few more words, another round of hugs, and then they were gone.
The second the door clicked shut behind them, my stomach bottomed out.
I should’ve seen it coming.
After the first heist, I’d joked that Annamaria wouldn’t notice the necklace missing until her wedding day, an eternity away back then. But now the day had arrived. She knew. She had to know it was gone again.
And me? I’d overslept. Thanks to the brilliant idea of trying to drink away the truth that I was about to break Noah’s heart.
Of all the damn mornings.
I was supposed to grab the necklace while it was still dark, when no one was around.
Now? I’d have to do it with the cleanup crew swarming The Lazy Moose, pulling down bunting, and folding up chairs like it was any other day.
Brilliant. Just brilliant.
Maybe I could play it off by saying I lost an earring. Something small and believable. If anyone spotted me near the barn, I’d slap on a sheepish smile and pretend I was searching for a sentimental trinket.
I raked a hand through my hair, already regretting the sleep.
Okay, no more stalling. Time to fix this.
By the time I pulled into The Lazy Moose, the cleanup was already well underway. Tables were being folded, decorations boxed up, and the once-magical wedding setup was now a graveyard of floral arrangements and half-dismantled fairy lights.
Which meant too many people.
I scanned the area, trying to get a clear shot at the oak tree. Just a few more steps and—
“Well, well, well.”
That voice.
I turned, already schooling my expression into absolute innocence.
Noah stood a few feet away, his smirk locked in place. But he wasn’t alone, and thank God, because the dog padding beside him might’ve just saved me from having to face him head-on.
It was big and fluffy. Like a dog in a musk ox costume on Halloween, except this one hadn’t taken it off.
“Look who decided to show up,” Noah called out. “And looking remarkably upright, considering how you made it home last night.”
I placed a dramatic hand over my chest. “This Blue Storm pleads the fifth.”
His eyes sparked, full of something volatile yet delightful. “No? So that wasn’t you downing drinks like it was the county fair finals?”
“I was celebrating,” I shot back. Then I dropped into a crouch, letting all my attention shift to the dog. “Hey, handsome. Look at you. Stealing the show already.”
“Name’s Reko,” Noah said.
I raised an eyebrow, brushing the dog’s thick coat. “That’s a name with mystery. You sure he’s not royalty?”
“Could be. He sure acts like it. And you’re lucky I gave him a bath this morning…well, let’s call it a bonding ritual.”
Noah glanced at Reko with a smile that said he was still recovering from the ordeal.
“You had energy for that? After a whole wedding day?”
“Weddings don’t knock me out, Blue. Besides, I had a furniture delivery at the new place, though it didn’t go to plan.”
I slanted my face. “New place?”
“Didn’t I tell you? I just moved here.”
That landed with a quiet thud.
“No wonder,” I murmured. “Sheryn told me when I first arrived that Elia didn’t have a brother.”
His smirk widened. “So you asked about me?”
I pretended to be fascinated by Reko’s ears. “I was just being thorough.”
“Careful,” Noah warned as I gave the dog’s face a playful squeeze. “I’ve only known him for a few days. He might bite.”
“Oh yeah?” I let go, but Reko leaned right back into me, his big eyes begging for more. He was basically a weighted blanket with paws.
“He wandered up to my porch,” Noah added. “Guess he figured out where home was.”
“Thanks for the heads-up,” I said, scratching under Reko’s snout. “But if this guy bites, then I’m the Queen of Montana.”
“So, what brings you back here? Sheryn and Nick are long gone.”
“I know.” I waved a hand casually, like I wasn’t plotting my way to the oak tree. Finally, I got up. “This Blue Storm lost her earring.”
His brows lifted. “Oh no. That’s terrible. You want me to help you find it?”
Well, hell. That wasn’t part of the plan.
“If you insist,” I said, trying for helpless and trying not to notice how he always offered help before I even knew I needed it.