12. Piper
TWELVE
PIPER
The walk back to Boyd’s cabin feels lighter than it should after everything that has happened.
My leg still aches with every step, but the crutches feel more natural now, and the fresh mountain air fills my lungs with something that almost feels like hope.
Boyd stays right beside me, one hand hovering near my elbow in case I need him.
He doesn’t say much. He never does. But his presence is steady and warm, like the mountain itself.
We stop by the main lodge on the way. The women are gathered in the big kitchen area, cleaning up from the big Sunday dinner. Harper spots us first and waves us over with a bright smile.
“Piper! Come sit with us for a minute,” she calls. “The men are still outside talking strategy. You look like you could use some girl time.”
Boyd glances at me, checking to make sure I’m okay with it. I nod. He presses a quick kiss to the top of my head. “I’ll be right outside if you need me.”
He leaves, and the women pull me into their circle like I’ve always belonged here. Harper pours me a cup of herbal tea. Kayley slides a plate of leftover apple pie in front of me. Sadie and Daisy make room on the couch so I can prop my leg up.
I settle in, suddenly surrounded by warmth and easy conversation. It feels so normal. So safe. I have to blink back tears more than once.
Harper sits across from me, little Poppi asleep on her shoulder. “How are you feeling today? You looked stronger at dinner.”
“Better,” I say honestly. “Eli took the cast off this morning. I can walk on it now. It still hurts, but it is so much better than it was.”
Fiona grins. “That’s our girl. You’re tougher than you look.”
The words settle deep inside me. Our girl. I have never belonged to anyone like this before.
I look around at all of them—Harper with her quiet strength, Kayley with her bright laugh, Sadie with her gentle eyes, Daisy with her endless kindness, Emma with her warm eyes, Fiona with her no-nonsense fire, Hannah with her soft resilience.
They’ve all been through something. I can see it in the way they carry themselves.
“Can I ask you something?” I say quietly. “All of you… you came here running from something, right? How did you decide to stay? How did you make a home here?”
The women exchange soft, knowing looks.
Harper speaks first. “I was running from a bad situation. It was dangerous. When I showed up here with Poppi, I was terrified. But Silas and the men made it clear I didn’t have to run anymore.
They gave me safety. Then they gave me family.
I never left because this is the first place that ever felt like home. ”
Kayley nods, her hand resting on the back of Aidan’s empty chair.
“I came with my nephew after my sister… well, she died. I was scared and broke and had no idea what I was doing. Then Aidan’s father came after me.
Gavin and the others helped me. They showed me what real family looks like.
I stayed because Aidan deserves this kind of life. And so do I.”
Sadie smiles softly. “I ran from a man who wanted to control me. Thorne found me and brought me here. At first I thought it was temporary. But the longer I stayed, the more I realized I didn’t want to leave. This place heals you. The people here heal you.”
Daisy leans forward. “I was running too. When I got here, I was broken in ways I didn’t even understand. The women helped put me back together. Now I’m planning to go to nursing school in Timber Creek. I want to help Eli at the clinic here. I want to give back to the place that saved me.”
I listen to every word, my chest growing tighter with emotion. These women were once like me —scared, running, alone. Now they’re strong. Rooted. Loved.
“I have always wanted a big family,” I say quietly. “Not just blood. But this. People who choose each other every day. Laughter around a table. Kids running around. Sunday dinners that last for hours. I never thought I could have that.”
Hannah reaches over and squeezes my hand. “You can have it here. If you want it.”
I swallow hard. “Do any of you ever think about leaving? Going back to the world outside?”
They all shake their heads almost at the same time.
“Never,” Fiona says firmly. “This is home.”
Daisy smiles. “I’ll go to school in Timber Creek, but I’ll always come back here. This is where my heart is.”
The conversation shifts after that, lighter again.
They tease each other. They ask me questions about what I like to do, what I dreamed about when I was younger.
I tell them about wanting to help people, about how much I appreciated the way Eli took care of me.
Daisy’s eyes light up when I mention nursing.
“You should think about it too,” she says. “There’s room for more of us to help here. The compound is growing. We could use another set of hands at the clinic.”
The idea plants itself deep in my heart. Helping people. Being useful. Building something real here with these women and these men.
By the time Boyd comes back to get me, my mind is full and my heart feels too big for my chest. He helps me up and we walk slowly back to his cabin. The mountain air is cool and sweet. Stars are starting to come out overhead.
Inside the cabin, Boyd locks the door and turns to me. The look in his eyes makes my breath catch. He crosses the room and pulls me gently into his arms.
“I’ve been waiting to get you alone all day,” he murmurs.
He kisses me softly at first, then deeper, like he can’t get enough. I melt into him, letting him take my weight as he lifts me and carries me to the bedroom. He lays me down on the bed with so much care it makes my eyes sting.
We undress each other slowly. His hands are gentle on my healing body, but his eyes are full of heat.
When we’re both bare, he kisses every inch of me like he’s worshiping.
He spends long minutes between my thighs, licking and sucking until I come apart with his name on my lips.
Then he moves up my body and slides inside me, slow and careful, watching my face the whole time.
“You feel so good,” he whispers against my neck. “This is real. You and me. I’ve been falling for you since the moment I carried you up that ridge. You’re mine now. All mine.”
We move together, sweet and deep. There’s no rush. Just love and trust and the quiet promise of something lasting. When we come, it’s together, wrapped so tightly around each other that I don’t know where I end and he begins.
Afterward he holds me close, stroking my back, pressing soft kisses to my hair.
I lie there in his arms, listening to his heartbeat, and let myself dream.
I want this. I want the cabin and the mountain and the big loud family dinners. I want to go to nursing school with Daisy and help Eli. I want to build a life here with Boyd. I want children someday. I want forever.
But doubt still whispers in the back of my mind.
What happens when my father finds me? Because he will. He always does. When that happens, will Boyd think I’m too much trouble? Will he decide I’m not worth the danger I bring?
I push the fear down and snuggle closer to Boyd’s chest. For tonight, I let myself believe that this could be real. That this strong, silent man might actually want me to stay forever.
Because I’m already falling in love with him.
And I never want to leave.