Chapter 18 Gabe
GABE
They were all gathered in the dining room: Trinity, Holly, Charlie, Jack, Logan, Christopher, Isabella, Maddy, Julie, and William.
These people in front of him were all his family now.
They had taken him in and treated him as such since the moment he and Christopher had arrived to surprise his mother, daughter, and aunt.
They all deserved to know the truth about him.
A few days ago, they had gathered to hear Jane’s good news. That she did not have a hereditary disease. Now they were gathered in anticipation, waiting for Gabe’s news.
His eyes met Jane’s. She was sitting on one side of her father, Holly on the other. Trinity was between his mother and Aunt Charlie. Christopher was perched beside Isabella, with Maddy on his other side. Logan sat next to Aunt Charlie, and Julie and William were close to where Jane sat.
All eyes were on him. Gabe felt like he was standing beneath a hot spotlight, exposed and vulnerable in a way he had not felt since his first day of SEAL training.
He took a breath and began.
“You all heard that I helped a young girl and broke my leg a week before I joined you at the inn,” Gabe said, his voice steady despite the nerves churning in his stomach. “But there was a lot more to what happened that day.”
He could feel Trinity’s eyes on him, wide and attentive. His mother’s face was already creasing with worry.
“Obviously, I can’t tell you everything.
The day my leg got broken, we had gotten all the hostages out of a compound,” Gabe continued.
There were fifteen people. Including aid workers, journalists, and locals.
The extraction was going smoothly. But there was one hostage left.
A little girl, maybe seven or eight years old.
She had been injured earlier and couldn’t walk on her own. ”
Gabe’s hands clenched around his crutches as he relived those moments.
“I rushed back in to get her,” he said. “As I was carrying her toward the exit, I saw it. An IED was rigged to the doorframe. And then I heard a gunshot crack through the air. Someone had set a tripwire, and the shot triggered the explosive.”
Several people in the room gasped. Holly’s hand flew to her mouth.
“I had maybe two seconds,” Gabe said quietly. “I threw myself over the child. The blast hit us. There was debris everywhere. Something heavy came down on my leg, breaking it. And I took shrapnel to my thigh. It lodged near my femoral artery.”
“Oh my word,” Julie breathed.
“The pain was...” Gabe paused, searching for words. “Intense. But the girl was alive underneath me, crying but alive. And I knew I had to get her out of there before the building came down completely or before hostiles showed up.”
He saw Jane’s eyes glistening with tears, understanding flooding her face.
“I forced myself up and out of the debris,” Gabe continued. “Forced myself to move forward, ignoring the blood and pain. I carried that little girl to the extraction point, handed her off to my team, and then I passed out. I woke up three days later in a military hospital in Germany.”
The room had fallen completely silent. Even Trinity was staring at him with a mixture of awe and concern, even when he’d told her earlier, before this gathering. He didn’t want to shock her.
“That’s why my recovery has been slower than expected,” Gabe said. “The shrapnel is still there. It’s too dangerous to remove without risking massive bleeding. And I made the fracture worse by walking on it, by forcing myself to keep moving when I should have stayed down.”
“And then you damaged it again when you rushed down the beach.” Holly stood up abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor. “Gabe...” She was gobsmacked, torn between anger that he had kept this from her and worry for her son. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you—”
“Wait, Mom,” Gabe interrupted gently. “You can berate me later, I promise. But please, I have some more news.”
Holly stopped, her mouth open, clearly wanting to argue but holding back. Jack pulled her back down.
Gabe looked at Jane and Trinity, who were both watching him with knowing smiles.
“We...” Jane said, standing and turning to Trinity, who immediately hopped up and took Jane’s hand with a grin.
“We have some important news,” Trinity announced, her voice filled with barely contained excitement.
They each moved to stand on either side of Gabe, taking his hands carefully as he balanced without his crutches. The three of them stood there together, and Gabe felt something in his chest expand with warmth and rightness.
“Can I do it?” Trinity asked, looking between Gabe and Jane.
They both nodded, smiling despite Gabe’s nervousness about how everyone would react.
“Daddy is going to be home more now,” Trinity told the room, her voice clear and confident. “And we’re going to be moving to Anastasia Island because he and Jane are in love.”
A huge smile split her lips as she blurted out the rest. “They haven’t discussed marriage yet, but I think they will before the Winter Ball.”
Jane gasped, her cheeks flushing bright red. Gabe felt his own face heat as surprised exclamations erupted around the room.
“Trinity!” Jane said, half laughing, half mortified.
“What?” Trinity asked innocently. “It’s true, isn’t it?”
“Well, yes, but—” Jane started.
“Then why not say it?” Trinity finished with perfect twelve-year-old logic.
Holly was on her feet again, this time with tears streaming down her face. She rushed over and wrapped her arms around all three of them. “Oh, sweetheart,” she said to Gabe. “Oh, my baby. You’re really coming home?”
“I’m really coming home, Mom,” Gabe confirmed, his own voice thick with emotion. “My SEAL career is over. The doctor can’t clear me for active duty. The PEB will make it official, but it’s done.”
“Good,” Holly said fiercely, pulling back to look at him. “I’m sorry about your career, truly I am. But I’m not sorry to have you home safe. I’m not sorry to have you here where I can see you and know you’re alive.”
Jack stepped forward and shook Gabe’s hand. “Congratulations,” he said warmly. “On the coming home and on...” He glanced at Jane with a slight smile. “Well, on everything else too.”
Jane laughed, still blushing furiously. “Trinity jumped the gun a bit on the marriage talk.”
“Did I?” Trinity asked, looking between them with wide, innocent eyes. “You were thinking about it though, right?”
“We’re taking things one step at a time,” Gabe said diplomatically, though he could not help grinning.
His daughter was not wrong. He had been thinking about it.
About a future with Jane and Trinity, about building a life here on Anastasia Island, about having a home instead of just a series of deployments.
Logan clapped Gabe on the shoulder. “Welcome to civilian life, son. It’s an adjustment, but it’s worth it.”
Christopher pulled Gabe into a bear hug. “I’m glad you’re staying, brother. Really glad.”
Isabella hugged Jane, whispering something that made Jane laugh and blush even more. Maddy was bouncing excitedly, already asking Trinity if she could be in the wedding.
“There’s no wedding planned!” Jane protested, but she was smiling.
Julie and William approached last, Julie with tears in her eyes. “I knew it,” she said, looking between Gabe and Jane. “I knew you two were meant to find each other. Another Christmas Inn miracle.”
“More like a Christmas Inn reality,” William corrected gently. “These two found each other through shared pain and understanding. That’s not magic. That’s just two brave people choosing to open their hearts again.”
Gabe felt his throat tighten with emotion. These people, this family, had embraced him and Trinity completely. Had made them feel welcome, wanted, and loved. And now they were celebrating his relationship with Jane, his decision to stay, his new beginning, even as his old life ended.
“Thank you,” Gabe said, his voice rough. “All of you. For making us feel like family. For accepting us. For—”
“You are family,” Jack interrupted firmly. “That’s not a feeling. That’s a fact.”
CHARLIE
Charlie stood slightly apart from the group, watching the joyful chaos with a smile. Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she pulled it out discreetly. It was Angus.
Her eyes met Jane’s across the room, and she inclined her head slightly before slipping out of the dining room into the hallway.
Charlie immediately called Angus back, her heart racing with anticipation.
“Charlie,” Angus answered on the first ring. “I’ve found out who Simon and Terry’s client is. You should be getting the documents delivered to you—”
The front door of the inn opened, and a delivery person walked in carrying a large envelope.
“Now,” Angus finished. “And Charlie, I think I’ve discovered why Pamela is targeting Jane specifically. Oh, and I can’t talk right now, but call me soon to discuss the rest of the information about Pamela’s father and where his money went.”
“Wait, Angus…” Charlie started, but he had already hung up.
Charlie walked over to the delivery person. “Are you looking for Charlotte Burke?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the delivery person said. “Sign here, please.”
Charlie signed quickly, took the envelope, and the delivery person left. Her hands were shaking slightly as she ripped open the document.
She froze as she read the first page. Then the second. Then flipped through the rest of the documents, her legal mind processing the implications of what she was seeing.
“No,” she whispered. “It can’t be.”
But it was. Right there in black and white, filed with the state of Florida, publicly available for anyone who knew where to look.
“Charlie?” Jane’s voice made her look up. “What is it? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Charlie wordlessly handed the documents to Jane, watching as the younger woman’s eyes scanned the pages and went wide with shock.
“No way,” Jane breathed, her voice barely audible. Her eyes shot up to Charlie’s. “This can’t be real.”
“It’s real,” Charlie confirmed grimly. “It’s all real. And it explains everything.”
Jane’s hands were shaking as she held the documents. “We have to tell them. Right now.”
Charlie nodded. “Let’s go.”
They turned and walked back into the dining room together. The celebration was still going on. People hugging, talking excitedly about Gabe and Jane’s relationship, making plans.
“Can I have your attention?” Jane called out, her voice cutting through the noise.
The room fell silent, everyone turning to look at her.
“Charlie has found out who’s trying to buy the inn,” Jane said, her voice steady despite the tremor Charlie could see in her hands. “And now everything has become so clear.”
“Who?” Nearly everyone in the room asked at once, voices overlapping with urgency and concern.
Charlie stepped forward, the documents still in her hand. She looked at Jack, saw the tension in his shoulders, the fear in his eyes that his worst nightmare was about to be confirmed.
“Victor Martin,” Charlie said clearly. “The developer trying to buy the Christmas Inn is Victor Martin.”
Jack’s face went white. Holly’s hand flew to her mouth. Julie swayed slightly, and William steadied her.
“That’s why Pamela has been targeting Jane,” Charlie continued, looking at the younger woman with sympathy. “Because Victor Martin, as Jack knows, is married to Pamela. They’re working together with Simon and Terry to take the inn.”
END OF BOOK THREE
Take me to Book 4!
Mistletoe Magic at the Christmas Inn (Lights of St. Augustine Book 4)
The final battle for the Christmas Inn begins. Love, legacy, and trust are all on the line.
When ruthless developers threaten to take the inn, Jack Christmas is ready to fight—but nothing prepares him for the betrayal that cuts deepest. His old rival has returned.
His ex-wife is standing beside him. And Simon—the man who broke Holly’s heart—is the lawyer trying to rip the inn from their hands.
For Holly Bennett, it’s a war of loyalty and love.
As mistrust threatens the bond she’s built with Jack, she digs deep into the archives—and finds a legal loophole that might just save them all.
With Charlie at her side and the entire inn family rallying behind her, Holly sets the stage for one final miracle.
With garlands hung, floors polished, and the Winter Ball fast approaching, everything rests on one night. Community. Courage. And the promise of one more chance.
On Christmas Eve, under fairy-lit skies and waves crashing beyond the ballroom windows, love wins. The inn is saved. And after years of loss, longing, and slow healing—Holly and Jack finally get their forever.
This is more than a holiday romance. It’s the ending you’ve been waiting for.
Buy now and return to the Christmas Inn—where second chances aren’t just possible… they shine brighter than ever.
Take me to Book 4!