Chapter 28
Naomi had told Hadley goodbye and then headed back inside.
Now her mind circled Dale’s visit. The way he’d looked at the property. The way he’d said Sarah’s name.
Grace’s cry cut through her thoughts.
Naomi turned and crossed the living room to the bassinet. Her mom was already there, lifting the baby with practiced ease.
“Someone’s hungry.” Her mom settled Grace against her shoulder and patted her back gently.
Naomi reached out, and her mom transferred the baby into her arms. Grace squirmed, her tiny face scrunched in displeasure, mouth working in that urgent way that meant she was done waiting.
“I’ll get a bottle ready.” Her mom headed toward the kitchen.
Naomi sat on the couch and cradled Grace close. The baby’s cries softened as if she knew help was coming. But she kept fussing, the sound small and insistent. The noise tugged at something deep in Naomi’s chest.
She was so thankful her mom was here.
Her mom had always been the one to help Luke, Naomi’s oldest brother, with his kids. She’d spent countless days babysitting, carpooling, showing up for school events. But the timing for Grace’s arrival had worked out well.
Luke had just taken his kids to Florida for a week-long vacation, which meant her mom had been free to come here. To help with Grace. To be the steady, capable presence Naomi desperately needed right now.
Her mom returned a moment later with a warmed bottle, testing it against her wrist before handing it to Naomi. “There we go.”
Naomi adjusted Grace in her arms and offered the bottle. The baby latched on immediately, her cries stopping as if someone had flipped a switch. Her little hands came up to rest against the bottle, and her eyes drifted half-closed, completely focused on eating.
Relief flooded through Naomi. “Thank you, Mom.”
“Of course.” Her mom smiled and headed back toward the kitchen. “I’m going to throw in a load of laundry while things are quiet.”
A few minutes later, Millie stepped into the room. “You want some company?”
“I’d love some,” Naomi told her.
Millie grinned and settled into the armchair across from Naomi, tucking her legs under her. Biscuit jumped in her lap.
For a moment, they sat in comfortable silence, the only sound the soft sucking noises Grace made as she ate.
Then Millie tilted her head, her expression shifting into something more curious. “So . . . not to be nosy, but I’ve been dying to get you alone for a moment.”
“Why’s that?”
“So I can ask you what’s going on with you and Micah.”
Naomi blinked, keeping her eyes on Grace. “What do you mean?”
“Come on.” Millie’s tone sounded light, teasing. “Don’t play clueless with me.”
“I’m not playing anything. There’s nothing going on.”
Millie gave her a look—the kind that said she saw right through that answer and wasn’t buying it for a second.
Naomi shifted Grace in her arms, adjusting the bottle even though it didn’t need adjusting. “He’s just—he’s been helping. That’s all.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Millie.” She gave her a pointed look.
“Naomi.” Millie’s smile softened, but her eyes stayed sharp. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. And I’ve definitely seen the way you look at him when you think no one’s watching.”
Heat crept up the back of Naomi’s neck.
She opened her mouth to respond—to say what, exactly, she wasn’t sure—but the words wouldn’t come.
Because Millie wasn’t wrong.
Naomi had noticed. Had felt it.
She’d noted the way Micah showed up without being asked.
The way his hand had settled on her elbow outside, grounding her when Dale’s presence had made her feel like the ground was shifting.
The way he looked at her sometimes—steady, patient, like he was willing to wait as long as it took for her to figure out whatever she needed to figure out.
And the way her chest tightened every time he was close.
She looked down at Grace, who was still eating contentedly, oblivious to the conversation happening above her.
But the question hung in the air between them, unanswered.
And Naomi wasn’t sure she had an answer to give.
Micah moved carefully through the woods, his eyes scanning the ground ahead for any sign of another trap.
Thunder and Hamilton ranged behind them—Wyatt and Caleb had both called the dogs back the moment they’d stepped through the gate. Better to keep them close. Better to be cautious.
“Any more trouble with the Hendersons?” Wyatt asked, his voice low.
Micah and Caleb exchanged a glance.
“Yeah,” Caleb said. “Travis hit Naomi’s SUV a few days ago on Hollow Ridge Road.”
Wyatt stopped walking. “He what? Why didn’t someone tell me?”
“Sorry—we’ve had a lot going on,” Caleb said.
“He came flying down a side road and clipped her rear bumper.” Micah kept his tone factual. “She saw him and accelerated just in time. Otherwise, he would’ve hit her door.”
Wyatt’s jaw tightened, his expression darkening. “Was she hurt?”
“Shaken,” Caleb said. “But physically fine.”
“And Travis?”
“Left the scene,” Micah said. “I caught up with him later. He claimed it was an accident. Said he stopped to check on her, but he didn’t have insurance and didn’t see any reason to stick around.”
Wyatt let out a sharp breath and shook his head.
“I don’t like that. I don’t like any of this.
” He started walking again, his strides harder now, angrier.
“I don’t know what it’s going to take to get them off our backs.
Their fixation with getting this property back—it’s not just stubbornness anymore. It’s an obsession.”
Micah nodded. He’d been thinking the same thing.
The Hendersons had never accepted losing the land. That much was clear from the beginning. But lately, something had shifted. Travis seemed to be escalating. Testing boundaries. Getting bolder.
And if Dale Harding was tied up with shady people, and the Hendersons were still circling this property like wolves—
Micah didn’t like where that logic led. Both represented two separate threats—which meant double the trouble.
“We need to stay alert,” he said. “All of us. Until we know what we’re dealing with.”
Caleb nodded. “Agreed.”
They continued walking, the woods growing denser as they moved farther from the fence line. Thunder stayed behind them, his nose low as he worked methodically through the underbrush. Hamilton moved with Caleb, ears forward, body tense.
Then the crack of gunfire split the air.