Chapter 29
Ella
Mikhail looked stunned. “Wolfcreek? But after everything that’s happened—”
“It’s our home,” I said, my tone brooked no argument. “Nora’s home. Her school is there, her friends. I’m not uprooting her again.”
“And what about safety?” Mikhail challenged. “My father may be dead, but his organization is vast. There could still be people loyal to him.”
“Then we’ll take precautions,” I insisted. “Whatever’s necessary. But I won’t live in fear anymore, and I won’t teach Nora to either.”
Jake’s hand found mine under the counter, a silent show of support that gave me strength.
“Besides,” I continued, “we have help.” I glanced at Jake, who nodded slightly. “Jake’s right next door, and Kane, Kori, Lana, and perhaps Caleb are nearby. We’re not alone.”
Mikhail’s gaze shifted to Jake, something unreadable passing across his face. “I see,” he said finally. “And what exactly is your role in all this, Brennen?”
The question hung in the air, loaded with implications. Jake didn’t flinch.
“Whatever Ella and Nora need me to be,” he answered.
Mikhail studied him for a long moment, then turned back to me. “And what do you need him to be, Ella?”
I felt heat rise to my cheeks at the directness of the question. “That’s between Jake and me,” I said, my voice steady despite my racing heart. “And whatever it is will be something you will have to accept.”
“I see,” Mikhail repeated, though his tone suggested he didn’t like what he was seeing. He sighed, running a hand through his hair in a gesture I remembered from so long ago. “Very well. If you’re determined to stay in Wolfcreek, then I’ll find a place nearby. At least temporarily.”
I blinked, caught off guard by his easy capitulation. “You’d do that?”
“For Nora? Yes.” His expression softened slightly. “She’s all I have left, Ella. My father’s empire has crumbled, and my old life is gone. She’s my future now.”
There was a sincerity in his voice that was hard to dismiss, a vulnerability I’d rarely seen during our short relationship. I found myself nodding slowly.
“We can work something out,” I conceded. “For Nora’s sake. But there will have to be rules, boundaries.”
“Of course,” he agreed quickly. “Whatever you think is best.”
Jake had remained silent during this exchange, but I could feel the tension in him, the careful control. I squeezed his hand under the counter, trying to convey what I couldn’t say aloud—that nothing had changed between us, that Mikhail’s presence didn’t threaten what we were building.
The conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Declan, his expression grim.
“Interpol’s here,” he announced. “They want to speak with each of you separately.”
The next few hours were exhausting—a detailed recounting of everything that had happened, from Mikhail’s reappearance to the rescue at the compound.
The agents were thorough but not unkind, especially when it came to questioning me about Nora’s kidnapping.
By the time they finished with me, I felt wrung out, emotionally and physically drained.
I found Jake waiting outside the room they’d been using as an interview space, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
“How’d it go?” he asked, straightening as I approached.
“About as well as could be expected,” I sighed. “They seemed satisfied with my statement.”
He nodded, his eyes searching my face. “You look exhausted.”
“I am,” I admitted. “But I need to check on Nora. Make sure she’s okay.”
“She’s fine,” he assured me, taking my hand. “I just came from the stables. She and Kat are grooming the ponies. She’s in heaven.”
The image brought a smile to my face despite my fatigue. “Of course she is. Animal-crazy, that one.”
“Wonder where she gets that from,” Jake teased, his thumb tracing circles on my palm.
I leaned into him, allowing myself a moment of weakness now that the immediate crisis had passed. “What did you tell them?” I asked quietly. “About what happened in the study?”
His arms came around me, steady and secure. “The truth. That we were defending ourselves and each other. That Mikhail did what was necessary to protect his daughter, and that Alexei was alive when we left.”
I nodded against his chest, relieved. Whatever had happened in that room, I trusted that Jake and Mikhail had done what they had to do. The rest were details I didn’t need or want to know.
“What now?” I asked, pulling back to look up at him.
“Now,” he said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, “we go home. Back to Wolfcreek. Back to our lives.”
“Our lives,” I repeated, testing the words. “That has a nice ring to it.”
His eyes softened as they met mine. “Yeah, it does.”
∞∞∞
The flight home the next day was quieter, more subdued than our frantic race to the Petrova compound had been. The roads were still partially snow-covered, but the storm had passed, leaving behind a landscape transformed—pristine, unmarked, like a fresh page waiting to be written upon.
Once we landed, Nora dozed in the backseat of Jake’s truck, exhausted from the excitement of the past few days.
Mikhail had opted to remain at the MacGallan estate for another day or two, finalizing arrangements with his contacts and, I suspected, giving us space to settle back into our routines before he inserted himself into our lives again.
“Are you sure about this?” Jake asked as we crossed into familiar territory, the first glimpse of Wolfcreek visible in the distance. “About staying here? We could go anywhere, you know. Start fresh.”
I considered his question seriously, looking out at the snow-covered fields and forests I’d come to love over the past eight years. This place had been my refuge, my sanctuary when I was running scared. Now it was simply home.
“I’m sure,” I said finally. “This is where we belong. Where Nora belongs.”
He nodded, seeming satisfied with my answer. “And Mikhail? Are you okay with him being nearby?”
I sighed, watching the scenery pass outside my window. “I don’t know,” I admitted. “Part of me understands why he did what he did. Why he let us believe he was dead. But another part...”
“Still feels betrayed,” Jake finished for me.
“Yes.” I turned to look at him, grateful for his understanding. “But he’s Nora’s father. She deserves to know him, to have him in her life if that’s what she wants.”
“And what do you want, Ella?” Jake asked, his voice gentle but insistent.
I reached across the console to place my hand on his thigh. “This,” I said. “You. Us. Whatever that looks like going forward.”
His hand covered mine, warm and calloused. “Even with all the complications?”
“Even then,” I assured him. “Jake, the last couple of days have shown me what I’ve known in my heart for a long time. Life is too short and too precious to waste being afraid. Of feelings, of possibilities, of the future.” I squeezed his hand. “I want that future to include you.”
His smile, slow and sweet, warmed me from the inside out. “That’s good,” he said. “Because I’m not going anywhere.”
As we pulled into the driveway of my little house, I felt a surge of emotion at the sight of it—snow piled on the roof, icicles hanging from the eaves, smoke curling from the chimney where someone had thoughtfully lit a fire in anticipation of our return.
It looked like a postcard, a picture of home.
“Looks like the welcome committee is here,” Jake noted, nodding toward the porch where Lana and Caleb stood waving, with Scout by their side, wagging his tail.
Nora stirred in the backseat, blinking sleepily as she took in our surroundings. “We’re home?”
“We’re home,” I confirmed, my heart full as I watched recognition and relief wash over her face.
She was out of the truck just as Jake turned off the engine, running through the snow toward Scout.
∞∞∞
Later, after Lana left for the lodge and Caleb headed over to Jake’s place, after Nora had been tucked into her own bed with Scout curled protectively at her feet, Jake and I sat at my kitchen table, the remains of a casserole that we’d eaten for supper sat between us.
“Stay,” I said, the word both a question and a request.
He set down his fork, his eyes meeting mine across the small table. “For how long?”
“Tonight,” I answered. “Tomorrow. However long you want.”
He stood, circling the table to pull me to my feet and into his arms. “That might be a very long time, Ella Shaw.”
I wound my arms around his neck, rising on tiptoes to press my lips to his. “I’m counting on it,” I murmured against his mouth.
His kiss was gentle at first, then deepening as I responded, my body melting into his. We fit together perfectly like two puzzle pieces. When we finally broke apart, both breathless, his forehead rested against mine.
“We should probably take this slow,” he said, though his hands at my waist suggested otherwise. “For Nora’s sake.”
“Probably,” I agreed, pressing closer. “Though she did ask if we were boyfriend and girlfriend.”
He laughed softly, the sound rumbling through his chest. “Smart kid.”
“She gets that from me,” I teased, as I reached up and took his hat off his head.
“Among other things,” he agreed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “Her strength. Her courage. Her heart. What are you doing with my hat?”
I felt myself flush at his praise. “She was so brave, Jake. Through all of it.” I plopped his hat on my head and smiled.
“She was… Ah, you do know about the cowboy hat rule, don’t you?” he asked, his expression growing serious as he pressed closer to me. When I didn’t respond, he murmured, “You wear the hat, you ride the cowboy.”
Before I could respond, a small voice came from the doorway.
“Mom? Why are you wearing Jake’s hat?”
We turned to find Nora standing there in her pajamas, Scout at her heels. Her hair was tousled, her expression troubled despite being home in her own bed.
“I ah… was just trying it on for size. Bad dreams?” I asked, kneeling in front of her.
She nodded, leaning into me as I wrapped my arms around her. “About the bad men. And Grandpa.”