Epilogue
“Here, let me help,” Lawson told Sarah, offering her a hand to climb down on to the rocks next to the clear blue natural pool below the waterfall.
She picked her way down toward the water in her sneakers, the sun gleaming off her legs beneath her shorts.
He tried not to let his gaze linger on the sight of her like that, but damn, it was hard not to feel like a teenager around her.
“Made it!” she told him happily, as she sank down on to the edge of the rocks, kicked off her shoes and dipped her feet in the water. “Mmm, that feels so good.”
He grinned as he sat down next to her, taking out the contents of the bag they packed full of food and fresh lemonade from the kitchen.
When he’d woken early on that Sunday morning and saw the late summer sun pouring through the window, he’d known he wanted to finally take her up to his favorite spot, just the two of them.
Now, here they were, by the pool at the bottom of a waterfall that stood high in the mountains above the lodge. It was a bit of a hike to get there, but the peace and quiet was exactly what he wanted for her.
“This is exactly what I needed.” She sighed, closing her eyes and leaning back on her elbows as the sun bathed her face.
He looked down at her for a moment. It was these instances, just the two of them in the quiet, where he realized how much he loved her.
How safe and settled he felt when she was around.
Of course, they’d known each other for several years, but it was only now that he was able to be truly and totally honest with himself about his feelings for her.
“Good,” he murmured, pushing a glass of lemonade into her hand. “Here you go. I think we could both use a drink after that hike.”
“Thanks,” she replied, smiling at him as she took a sip of the tart, sweet lemonade Hannah had made earlier that week.
“So how’s therapy going?” he asked her.
She paused for a moment, considering the question, and then replied, “Overall, it’s been good, I think. Not easy by any means, especially since we moved it up to three times a week. But I want to make sure I have my head straight for Granger’s trial.”
“But you’re coping with everything okay?” he asked. “It must be intense, working through all that happened.”
“It is,” she admitted. “But it’s not impossible. And besides, it’s not going to be forever. The trial’s finally in a couple of months, and I can step back some after that. Refocus on other things and move past all this once and for all.”
“Good point,” he agreed. “You’re doing great, Sarah. You should be really proud of yourself.”
“I’m a therapist—of course, I’m good at therapy,” she joked.
Suddenly, she jumped up, pulled off her shirt and wiggled out of her shorts. She flashed Lawson a flirty grin, slipping into the water below. “Come join me, it’s so nice in here…” she said, flipping to float on her back.
He didn’t need to be told twice. He quickly stripped off his own clothes and dove into the water alongside her.
He used to come to this spot all the time last summer, to think through problems and reflect on what all they’d been through and where he’d like to see them going.
But there was something about sharing it with her that was a million times more special.
He used to think that he wouldn’t be able to let anyone get close to him.
He was scared to be vulnerable with someone and to let them see the real him, underneath the tough-guy exterior.
But he had never once doubted that letting Sarah into his life was the right call.
He just hated that he’d waited for so long to make it happen.
He was just grateful that Sarah was patient and that she loved him, despite his tendency to be hardheaded. He intended to keep her in his life forever.
She swam toward him, resting her arms on his shoulders and smiling at him. He pushed her hair back from her face, gazing into her eyes. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe that after all this time, she was his.
“What about you?” she asked, brushing her nose against his.
“What about me?” he replied.
“What are you going to do after the trial?” she said.
“What do you mean?” he asked, confused. He would have to testify, too, of course, but he didn’t expect it to be that big of a deal for him.
He’d dealt with plenty of people like Victor Granger over the years, and standing up against them in court wasn’t new to him.
In fact, he was eager to tell the truth about Granger and to get him locked up for good.
“I mean…” she began, trailing off for a moment, like she wasn’t quite sure how to put it. “Do you have any other missions you might take on? Anything else that Lainey has asked you to do?”
He shook his head. Lainey was back home and settled with her family again and she was doing well. She’d invited him and Sarah down for a visit at the end of the year, around the holidays, and they had already made a pact not to talk business.
“Nothing that I know of,” he replied. “Why do you ask?”
“Just…curious, that’s all,” she replied coyly, a little smile on her face. “I want to know where you see your life in a year. Or two years. Or ten.”
“And why might that be?” he asked her, though he already knew the answer. Though the two of them hadn’t actually discussed what was coming next for them, their love for each other was obvious. If he could spend the rest of his life waking up next to her, he would, and he hoped she knew that.
They had moved into one of the resident cabins together down by the others, and his sister and the other women were thrilled at having Sarah closer for them to hang out and gossip with.
They decided to leave her separate cabin empty and usable for any of their residents who might need more intensive therapy, or couldn’t handle being in closer quarters with others.
Lawson loved being able to see her first thing in the morning and last thing at night before he closed his eyes.
To spend more quality time together just enjoying each other’s company, or sipping on coffee every morning before they went about their daily tasks at the lodge—which had been completely fixed up and repaired by the folks who had shown up in the aftermath on that fateful day last year.
Now, thanks to all their help, the lodge was better than when they first started out and thriving more than it ever had before.
He and Xavier finally had their dream come true for Warrior Peak Sanctury. It was truly now a safe place for people to come to for help and treatment and to find themselves again. No danger or destruction or old ghosts reappearing. It was a place of calm and reflection and caring and safety.
“Because I want a real life with you,” she confessed. “A family. I want to be a mom one day. I want us to raise kids together, Lawson. But that’s going to mean a safe life. You know? Not one where you’re running off on tactical missions all the time.”
“Hmm. I like the sound of that,” he murmured, sealing his mouth over hers once more.
“You mean that?” she asked softly as she pulled back, brushing her nose against his. “It’s not going to get too boring for you?”
“Are you kidding?” He chuckled. “Having a life with you? That sounds like the most exciting mission in the world to me.”
She giggled, and gazed up at him. “Well, that’s a hell of a lot to live up to,” she pointed out.
“Yeah?” he replied, slipping his arms around her waist and pulling her as close as possible, so there was no space between their bodies.
“I think you can handle it.” He kissed her again, smiling into the embrace. She let out a long breath against his mouth, as though this was what she had been waiting to hear all this time. He would make it clear to her every way he could, every time she asked.
“I love you, Sarah,” he told her softly.
“I love you, too,” she whispered back, and she kissed him again, the taste of lemonade on her lips.
He might have waited too long to make her his, but now, she belonged to him and he belonged to her.
He knew he was going to spend the rest of his life making up for lost time, and he was looking forward to every moment.
They had all the time in the world to enjoy together now. To enjoy building a life and a family with one another, and he could hardly wait to get started.
With the love of his life in his arms, everything felt possible.