Chapter Thirteen
Lily only lasted about another twenty or thirty minutes before she began getting restless.
Willow stood up. “Come on, bug. Let’s take a walk.”
She excused herself and led Lily through the doors outside to the patio.
The moment they stepped onto the patio, Willow realized just how close they were to the beach. To the left, there were stairs that led down to the beach.
Lily spotted it at almost the same time. “Water!”
Willow smiled at her excitement. “Yeah, bug. That’s a whole lot of water.”
She glanced back through the windows toward the others, then down at Lily. The guys were still playing pool, and the others were still chatting away. She could probably sneak away for just a few minutes.
“Come on. Let’s go put our toes in the sand.”
Lily grabbed her hand and immediately started tugging her toward the steps, making Willow laugh.
“Okay, okay. I’m coming.”
The moment they reached the bottom, Lily stopped. A huge smile broke out on her face.
“Momma!”
The beach stretched out in front of them, the evening sun casting warm light across the sand while gentle waves rolled toward shore.
Lily stared in absolute wonder.
Willow then realized something. Her daughter had never been to a beach. They’ve lived and traveled to places where there were beaches, but she had never been to one. Hell, Willow hadn’t been to one since before her abduction.
Willow crouched beside her. “That’s the ocean.”
“Water!” Lily shouted and immediately took off.
“Lily!” Willow burst out laughing and chased her across the sand.
Her daughter squealed, and her little legs pumped furiously as she headed straight toward the waves.
“Oh no, you don’t.” Willow caught her around the waist just before she reached the water and scooped her into her arms.
Lily shrieked with laughter. “Water, Momma!”
Willow spun Lily around, and her daughter’s laughter spilled out across the beach until Willow found herself laughing too. Not because anything was particularly funny, but because Lily was happy.
She set Lily down and took her hand as they ran toward the edge of the surf together, both laughing when the water rushed over their feet.
Willow couldn’t remember the last time she had laughed this hard.
She lifted Lily again and kissed her cheek. “We made it, bug.”
Lily wrapped both arms around her neck.
“Momma happy.”
The words nearly broke her, and Willow pressed her forehead gently against Lily’s, holding her close as if that alone could keep everything steady.
“Yeah, baby. Mommy’s happy.”
A deep, familiar voice called out from behind them.
Willow turned and spotted Jay Bird walking across the sand toward them, hands tucked into his pockets and a smile spreading across his face as he watched Lily squirm excitedly in Willow’s arms.
Then his gaze met hers, and Willow felt her heart do that stupid little flutter it seemed to have perfected whenever he looked at her like that.
Jay Bird lined up his shot, drew the cue back, and sent the ball cleanly into the corner pocket.
“Show-off,” Joker muttered.
Jay Bird grinned and moved around the pool table, but his attention drifted back toward the table for what had to be the tenth time in as many minutes. Willow was still there with the women.
He had kept an eye on her most of the night without making it obvious, checking that she wasn’t getting overwhelmed by the noise, the number of people, or the constant movement around her.
The first hour had been rougher. He had caught the tension in her shoulders a few times and noticed how often she checked where the exits were.
But somewhere between Amira interrogating him about his sudden acquisition of a child and Juliette offering Willow enough food to feed an entire platoon, she had started to relax.
Now she was laughing, and Jay Bird liked seeing that. Probably too fucking much.
“Your turn, Romeo.”
Jay Bird looked at Bear. “Don’t call me that.”
Bear smirked.
Jay Bird glanced toward the table again just as Willow stood and took Lily’s hand. Then they disappeared out onto the deck.
“I’m out.”
Joker stared at him. “We’re in the middle of a game.”
“You’ll survive. I’ll be back.” Jay Bird set his cue against the wall.
The knowing looks behind him were ignored with the expertise of a man who had spent years ignoring these idiots.
He walked onto the deck, scanning the space as he looked around, but there was no sign of Willow or Lily anywhere.
“They’re down on the beach.”
Jay Bird glanced toward the voice.
Derek stood near the railing, one shoulder resting against a post and a beer in his hand.
Jay Bird walked over. Then he saw them.
Lily was running toward the water with her arms out, squealing loud enough that Jay Bird could hear her above the waves. Willow chased after her, laughing as she caught the kid around the waist seconds before she charged headfirst into the Atlantic.
Jay Bird smiled. The two of them looked happy.
Derek glanced sideways at him. “You good?”
Jay Bird kept watching Willow. “Yeah. Better than good.”
That earned him a faint smile.
“Kinda figured.”
“Don’t start.”
“I’m not.”
They stood quietly for another moment.
Then Jay Bird said, “I told her about Amanda.”
Derek’s expression changed. “How did she take it?”
Jay Bird grinned. “She climbed into my lap and hugged me.”
Derek smiled.
“What?” Jay Bird asked.
“You’re smiling.”
“Am I not allowed?”
Derek chuckled and looked back toward the beach.
Jay Bird rubbed the back of his neck. “I also told her how I feel about her.”
Derek’s eyebrows rose. “Well, hell.”
Jay Bird's gaze returned to Willow. “She feels it too. We’re taking it slow,” Jay Bird added. “Really slow. She needs that.”
“So do you.”
Jay Bird looked at him, and Derek shrugged.
“Don’t give me that look. You lost almost everything once. She spent three years having everything taken from her. Neither one of you needs to sprint into anything.”
Jay Bird nodded. “That’s pretty much what we decided.”
Derek’s expression softened. “I’m happy for you, Jay.”
The sincerity behind the words hit harder than Jay Bird expected.
“Nothing’s happened yet.”
“Doesn’t matter.” Derek glanced toward Willow and Lily. “I haven’t seen you like this in a long time.”
Jay Bird didn’t know what to say to that. Thankfully, Derek didn’t require an answer.
He slapped Jay Bird lightly on the shoulder. “Go.”
Jay Bird frowned. “Go where?”
Derek nodded toward the beach. “Go be with your girls.”
The words stopped him for half a second. His girls.
He nodded to Derek and then headed toward the stairs.
By the time Jay Bird reached the sand, Willow had Lily back in her arms and was standing near the edge of the surf.
“There are my two girls,” he called out as he approached them.
Willow turned toward him. Something flickered across her expression at the words, but before he could figure out what, Lily spotted him.
Her entire face lit up. “Jay!”
Willow lowered her to the sand, and Lily immediately charged toward him.
“Jay! Bitch!”
Jay Bird stopped dead. “What did you just call me?”
Willow had her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh.
“Bitch!” Lily shouted happily again, pointing toward the ocean. “Jay! Bitch!”
Willow lost it. She doubled over laughing.
Jay Bird stared at Lily. Then at the water. Then he got it.
“Oh. The beach.”
“Bitch!” Lily said again.
Jay Bird chuckled. “Close enough.”
Willow was laughing so hard she had tears in her eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, you’re not,” Jay Bird said, grinning.
Jay Bird scooped Lily up. “Listen, peanut. I’m gonna need you to work on that one before you announce to everyone that Jay likes bitches.”
That made Willow laugh even harder.
Lily pointed enthusiastically. “Water!”
“Yeah, that is better. Let’s stick with water.”
He kissed the side of her head and set her back down.
Lily took off after a seagull.
Jay Bird immediately called, “Don’t touch the bird!”
Willow leaned against his arm, still laughing.
Jay Bird looked down at her.
“You enjoying yourself?”
She smiled up at him. “I really am. Everyone’s been wonderful.”
“Told you.”
She glanced toward the restaurant. “It’s strange.”
“What is?”
“Having this many people around and there’s no real drama.”
Jay Bird laughed. “You’ve clearly missed some of the arguments.”
“No, I saw Amira tell Bear that he was ruining her life because he wouldn’t let her order another dessert.”
“Standard family drama.”
Willow smiled. “That’s what it feels like.”
“What’s that?”
“A family. Just a really big, loud, slightly insane one.”
“Yep.”
They walked slowly along the water while Lily darted several feet ahead, chasing seagulls that were smart enough to remain safely out of toddler range.
Willow’s smile faded into something more thoughtful. “She’s never done this before.”
Jay Bird looked at her. “The beach?”
She nodded, her eyes following Lily. “She was born in that compound. Even when Chen moved us somewhere else, she was always behind walls.”
Jay Bird’s jaw tightened.
“I used to lie awake at night thinking about all the things she might never get to do.” Her voice wavered.
“You know, normal kid things, like going to the playground, having friends, or seeing the ocean. I knew I was going to get her out.” She swallowed.
“I didn’t know how, but I knew I would try until either I succeeded or Chen killed me. ”
Jay Bird hated hearing that, not because he blamed her, but because he knew she had genuinely believed those were the only two possible outcomes.
Willow looked toward Lily. “I just wanted her to have a life.”
Jay Bird stepped closer. “She does. You got her out.”
He nodded toward Lily, who had abandoned the seagulls and was now crouching in the sand, poking at something with one finger.
“Look at her. She’s happy, and safe. She’s got people who already love her enough to spoil her rotten. And most importantly, she’s got you.”
Willow looked up at him. “She’s got you, too.”
Jay Bird’s heart did a flutter. “Yeah,” he said quietly. “She’s got me. And so do you.”
Her breath caught, and Jay Bird reached out slowly, giving her every opportunity to move away, and brushed a strand of hair from her cheek.