Chapter 3 Jack #2
He could not remember the last time he’d heard that sound. Three years. It had been over three years since the accident. Three years since the joy had been ripped out of her life and replaced with grief so profound it had nearly destroyed her.
But she was laughing now. Really, truly laughing. She looked alive in a way she had not in years, and it was the most beautiful and painful thing Jack had ever witnessed.
“That’s a good sign,” Logan said softly beside him, his voice gentle with understanding. He nudged Jack toward their table. “Come on. Let her have this moment.”
Jack let himself be guided back to his seat, but he could not take his eyes off his daughter. He watched her interact with Gabe, seeing the life coming back into her expression. The animation in her gestures. The light in her eyes that had been absent for so long.
It was beautiful. It was painful. It was hopeful all at once, and Jack felt his throat tighten with emotion he could not quite name.
“Gabe seems to be good for her,” Logan observed quietly, keeping his voice low. “Both he and Trinity have breathed life back into Jane.”
“I can see that,” Jack managed to say, his voice rough. “I haven’t seen her this happy since before the accident.”
Mrs. Hurling brought their breakfast, setting the plates down with her characteristic warmth. “You two enjoy now.”
Jack picked up his fork, but he found he was no longer really hungry. His mind was too full of everything swirling around him. Holly’s distance this morning. Pamela’s insistence. Jane’s laughter. It was all mixing together in his head, and he could not quite process any of it.
Logan broke the silence after a few minutes of eating. “Want to talk about last night?”
Jack knew what Logan was asking. Last night, when Simon and Terry showed up at the inn with their threats and their smug confidence. When Holly had gone pale and Gabe had looked ready to throw his father out physically despite being on crutches.
“Not much to say that you don’t already know,” Jack said. “We finally found who was representing the enemy. Turns out they aren’t just our enemies.”
“I know,” Logan said. “Charlie was blazing. She wanted to rush after Holly’s ex and rip him a new one.” His eyes bore knowingly into Jack’s. “But really, how are you feeling about this information?’
Jack considered the question as he pushed eggs around his plate. How was he doing? “Honestly? I’m worried. About the inn. About Jane. About...” He trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.
“About Holly,” Logan finished for him. It was not a question but a statement. His friend knew him too well.
Jack nodded, setting down his fork. “She was different this morning. Distant. Preoccupied. Making me wonder what she is thinking.”
“Her ex-husband showed up trying to take away the place that has become her refuge,” Logan pointed out reasonably. “That would make anyone preoccupied, Jack.” He sipped his coffee, swallowed, and continued. “But here’s something. Why don’t you ask her?”
Jack said nothing, just nodded. “I know not much time has passed since then and now, but have you or Charlie been able to uncover anything?”
“Don’t worry. Charlie and I will find out who is behind this,” Logan assured him, his voice firm and confident. “We are digging into every corporate filing, every connection Simon and Terry have. If there is a paper trail, we will find it.”
“I’m sure you will,” Jack said, and he meant it. Logan and Charlie were thorough and determined. If anyone could uncover the truth, it was those two working together.
But the worry still sat heavy in his chest. The inn had been in his family for generations.
His great-great-grandfather had built it with his own hands.
Generations of Christmas men after him had maintained it with love and dedication.
Jack could not lose it. Would not lose it.
Not to some faceless developer who saw it as nothing more than prime real estate.
They finished breakfast in companionable silence, though Jack’s mind was already moving ahead to the renovation work waiting for him. And to the conversation he needed to have with Jane about Pamela.
Across the dining room, Jane and Gabe finished their breakfast and stood to leave. Jane was still smiling, still had that light in her eyes that had been missing for so long.
“I need to talk to her today,” Jack said, standing up from the table. “I want to catch her before she gets too busy with the inn.”
“Is everything alright?”
Jack filled Logan in.
Logan’s expression filled with sympathy. “That is going to be a hard conversation.”
“Everything with Pamela is hard,” Jack said, the bitter truth of it settling in his mouth like ash. “But it needs to be done.”
He needed to meet Holly on the first floor to go over the renovation plans for the day. The work would not do itself, and keeping busy would help keep his mind from spinning in circles.
“I will be in the workshop if you need me,” Logan said, standing as well. “Working on the crown molding for the ballroom.”
They walked out of the dining room together, Jack’s mind already shifting gears to the work ahead and everything he needed to do today. A lot of unpleasantness.
It was going to be a busy day. On the bright side, Jane had laughed this morning. Really, truly laughed. After three years of silence and grief and barely existing, his daughter had laughed with pure joy.
That was something. That was hope.
Jack held onto that thought as he headed toward the first floor to meet Holly.
As he walked to the first floor, he reasoned with himself that he needed to trust. Trust Holly when she said she didn’t know that it was her ex-husband and ex-best friend who were coming after his inn for their client.
Trust that Logan and Charlie would find the answers they needed.
Trust that Jane was strong enough to handle whatever Pamela was about to drop on her.
Trust felt like the hardest thing in the world right now, but Jack was determined to try.
For Jane. For the inn. For whatever was growing between him and Holly.
He would find a way to trust, even when everything in him wanted to hold on tighter and protect everyone he loved from the threats he could see coming but could not yet name.