Chapter 29 #2
I exchanged a glance with Jake over her head. “Want to talk about it?”
She shook her head. “Can I just stay with you guys for a little while? Please?”
“Of course,” Jake said, joining us. “How about some hot chocolate? That always helps with bad dreams.”
Her face brightened slightly. “With marshmallows?”
“Is there any other way?” he asked solemnly, which earned him a small smile.
I set his hat on the table, then guided Nora to the couch in the living room as he moved to the stove to heat milk. I pulled a throw blanket around us both, while she settled and curled against my side, her small body warm and solid, a reminder of everything I’d almost lost.
“Mom?” she asked after a moment. “Is my dad really going to live nearby?”
I smoothed her hair back from her forehead, wondering how to answer. “He says he wants to. To get to know you better.”
“Do you want him to?” she asked, her eyes searching mine with a wisdom beyond her years.
I took a deep breath. “I want what’s best for you, sweetie. And I think having your dad in your life could be a good thing, if that’s what you want.”
She considered this, her brow furrowing in that way that always reminded me of myself. “I think I do. But I don’t really know him yet.”
“That will take time,” I assured her. “There’s no rush.”
“And Jake?” she asked, glancing toward the kitchen where he was stirring chocolate into milk. “Will he still be around, too?”
My heart swelled at the hope in her voice. “Yes,” I said firmly. “Jake isn’t going anywhere.”
She nodded, seemingly satisfied with this answer. “Good. Because I like having him here.”
“Me too,” I whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
Jake returned with three mugs of hot chocolate, each topped with a mountain of mini marshmallows. He handed them out carefully before settling on Nora’s other side, completing our little circle.
“Perfect hot chocolate requires proper technique,” he informed Nora seriously. “First, you have to let the marshmallows melt just a little bit, so they get all gooey on top.”
She giggled, watching her marshmallows with studious concentration. “Like this?”
“Exactly like that,” he confirmed. “You’re a natural.”
We sat together, sipping hot chocolate and talking about inconsequential things—the horses at the MacGallan estate, the kittens in Jake’s barn, and whether Scout would like to have a feline friend.
“I already know which one I want,” she murmured.
“You do?” Jake raised his brows. “Which one?”
She nodded. “The little black and white one. She has a heart on her side, and I already named her.”
I laughed. “What name did you pick?’
“Mable,” she rubbed her eyes as a yawn escaped her.
“That’s a fine name,” Jake smiled. “We will need to take Scout to meet her tomorrow.”
They talked animatedly about kittens until, gradually, the tension drained from Nora’s small frame, her eyelids growing heavy as she leaned against me.
“I think someone’s ready for bed,” I murmured, taking her empty mug.
“Can Scout sleep in my bed tonight?” she asked drowsily.
“Of course,” I said. “And I’ll leave the hall light on.”
“And you’ll be close?” She looked between Jake and me.
“Right down the hall,” I promised. “Both of us.”
This seemed to reassure her. Jake scooped her up effortlessly, carrying her to her bedroom while I followed with the dog trotting at my heels. We tucked her in together, Scout curling up at the foot of her bed like a furry guardian.
“Sleep tight, kiddo,” Jake said, smoothing her blanket. “No more bad dreams, okay?”
“Kay,” she mumbled, already half asleep. “Night, Mom. Night, Jake.”
“Goodnight, baby,” I whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
We left her door ajar and the hall light on as promised, making our way back to the living room. The emotional weight of the past few days seemed to crash down on me all at once, and I sank onto the couch, suddenly exhausted.
Jake sat beside me, pulling me against him so my head rested on his shoulder. “She’ll be okay,” he said quietly. “Kids are resilient.”
“I know,” I sighed. “I just hate that she had to go through any of this. That she’ll have these memories now.”
“She’ll also have memories of being rescued,” he pointed out. “Of her mother moving heaven and earth to find her. Of people who loved her enough to risk everything.”
I looked up at him, struck by the truth of his words. “When did you get so wise?”
He smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “Must be all that clean mountain living.”
I laughed softly, “Must be.”
We sat in comfortable silence for a while, the fire crackling in the hearth, the house settling around us. Outside, snow fell gently, cocooning us in our own world.
“What are you thinking?” Jake asked, his fingers tracing idle patterns on my arm.
I considered the question, trying to sort through the tangle of emotions inside me. “That I’m grateful,” I said finally. “For this moment. For you. For having Nora safe at home.”
“And?” he prompted gently.
“And I’m scared,” I admitted. “Of what comes next. Of Mikhail being back in our lives. Of how complicated everything’s suddenly become.”
He nodded, understanding without need for elaboration. “One day at a time,” he suggested. “That’s all any of us can do.”
I turned in his arms, needing to see his face. “Stay with me tonight,” I said, the words both a request and a promise. “Not just to sleep.”
His eyes darkened as they met mine, his hands coming up to frame my face. “Are you sure? After everything—”
I silenced him with a kiss, pouring everything I couldn’t articulate into the press of my lips against his. When we broke apart, both breathless, I rested my forehead against his.
“I’ve never been surer of anything,” I whispered.
“So… about my hat.”
∞∞∞
Later, much later, I lay in my bed with Jake’s arm draped over my waist, his breath warm against my neck.
The familiar weight of him beside me felt right in a way I couldn’t quite explain; it was something I’d never felt with Mikhail.
It was then that it dawned on me. It was love.
Something I had never felt for Mikhail. I was in love with Jake.
Outside, the world was quiet, blanketed in snow and darkness. Tomorrow would bring new challenges—explaining my relationship with Jake to Nora, figuring out how Mikhail would fit into our lives, and rebuilding the sense of security shattered by Alexei’s actions.
But for tonight, in this moment, everything was as it should be. My daughter was safe in her bed down the hall. The man I loved was beside me, his heartbeat steady against my back. And for the first time in longer than I could remember, I wasn’t running from anything.
I was exactly where I was meant to be. Home.