Chapter 10
AVA
The taillights of the black sedan disappeared around the curve, and the silence that followed was deafening. The adrenaline that had fueled me for the last hour drained away, leaving my knees shaking.
Cole’s hand grabbed my elbow, steadying me. “You okay?”
“I think so.” I let out a breath that shuddered in my chest. “Is it really over?”
“It’s over.” His voice was rough, but certain. “We have him.”
I looked down at the phone in my hand—the weapon that had saved my daughter. Then I looked up at Cole. In the harsh glare of the parking lot light, he looked exhausted. His tie was loose, his hair messy, and his eyes were filled with a raw vulnerability I’d never seen before.
He had destroyed his own legacy to protect us. He hadn’t hesitated.
“You said something,” I whispered, the memory of his words echoing in my ears. “To him. You said he went after the two people you love.”
Cole stilled. He didn't look away, didn't play it off as an act. “I did.”
“Was that part of the script?” I asked, though I already knew the answer.
“No.” He took a step closer, crowding my personal space, and for the first time all day, I didn't want to back away. “I’ve never said I loved anyone before. Love was never part of the world I grew up in. But I love you, Ava. I think I fell in love with you six years ago, when I was too much of a coward to admit it. Seeing you again and getting to know the woman you’ve become only strengthened it. And I definitely love our daughter.”
Tears pricked my eyes, hot and fast. “Cole…”
“I broke your trust today,” he continued, his voice urgent.
“I can't just fix that with words and a grand gesture. But I’m asking for a chance to earn it back. Not a weekend. Not a fling. I want the real thing. I want to drive you crazy leaving sawdust on the floor, and I want to argue about what time Maisie has to go to bed, and I want to wake up next to you every single morning.”
He reached out, his fingers brushing against my cheek, waiting for me to pull away.
I didn't.
I leaned into his touch, the anger that had fueled me finally dissolving into something softer. Something like hope. A watery smile tugged at my lips, but I wasn’t quite ready to give in. “It’s a bit of a commute. Maisie and I are in the city.”
“I have a truck,” he said, a grin finally breaking through his tension. “And I can build anywhere, Ava. As long as it's near you.”
“You'd move?”
“In a heartbeat,” he promised. “Moving a workshop is easy.”
He lowered his head, his lips hovering inches from mine. “So? What do you say? Can we try?”
Fear flickered in my chest—fear of the grandfather, fear of the future. But then I looked at Cole. He wasn't the boy who ran away. He was the man who had just dismantled his own family’s empire to keep my daughter safe.
“Yes,” I whispered. “We can try.”
He didn’t wait. He crashed his lips to mine, kissing me with a desperation that told me he meant every word. It wasn’t happy-ever-after. Not yet. We had a lot to figure out and trust to rebuild, but as his arms wrapped around me, holding me tight against the chilly night air, one thing was certain.
We were no longer holding back.
Cole
“Daddy!” Maisie launched herself in the air and I caught her, swinging her around until she erupted into giggles.
Ava stood on the porch, watching us with a smile.
We’d told Maisie shortly after the wedding who I was.
She’d pulled back a little at first, asking where I’d been.
That broke my heart. Ava had explained that I didn’t know about Maisie—giving me far more grace than I deserved—but that as soon as I found out, I wanted nothing more than to be in her life.
Two weeks later, Maisie called me daddy, and I cried.
I spent the first month finishing up projects I was in the middle of and preparing to move. But every weekend I drove into the city and visited my girls. And every time I showed up, I could practically see the trust building between us.
Then I told Ava I was ready to start packing to make the move. I’d found an apartment near them and would sign the papers that day. I swore my heart stopped beating for a second when she shook her head.
“Maisie’s been talking almost non-stop about Cedar Hollow since we got back. She loves it there.” Ava met my gaze, eyes serious. “My job said I can work remotely.”
“You want to move to Cedar Hollow?” My heart started again, racing now as I struggled to catch up.
“When I imagine our future, I don’t see us in the city. I see us in your cabin.” She bit her lower lip. “I’m not saying I’m ready for that yet. But it doesn’t make sense for you to move here. Maisie and I can get a place in town before school starts.”
“You can have the cabin.” I shook my head when she protested. “There’s a small bachelor’s apartment over my workshop. It’s nothing fancy, but it’s enough for me. And I’ll be close enough to help if you need anything.”
Five months later, and we’d settled into an almost domestic bliss. We often ate supper as a family and spent the evenings together. After Maisie went to bed, Ava and I would sit on the porch and talk for hours. And kiss.
I wasn't interested in dating her anymore. Dating was for people figuring out if they fit. We fit. I was just waiting for her to realize I wasn't going anywhere in the morning. Because the next time Ava and I made love, it would mean forever.
“Time for supper, kiddo.” I flipped Maisie upside down and carried her up the steps as she giggled. I leaned down and brushed a kiss across Ava’s lips when I reached her. “Missed you today.”
“I had some errands to run in town.” She tickled Maisie’s belly, and our daughter’s giggles turned to shrieked laughter. “Ended up working at the coffee shop for a few hours.”
“Wi-Fi in the cabin glitching again?” I frowned. The town had been extending services up the mountain, but sometimes the connection wasn’t great.
“A little. I had a report due today and didn’t want to take a chance, just in case it cut out.” She shrugged. “Besides, I got to visit with Hazel.”
Hazel ran the coffee shop in town, and the two had become fast friends since Ava moved here.
I flipped Maisie upright again and lowered her to the floor. She grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the table. “We’re having pizza, Daddy.”
I grinned. “My favorite.”
Over dinner, Maisie regaled us with her adventures from school that day. My eyes narrowed a little when she mentioned the same boy for the fourth time. Ava nudged me under the table with her foot, whispering when I looked her way, “She’s in kindergarten. Relax.”
We finished dinner, and I helped Ava clean up before we moved into the living room to play a game with Maisie. I wanted to check the rules a few times because I suspected our daughter was making some up, but Ava just laughed at me and hid the instructions.
When Maisie was tucked into bed, Ava sent me to sit on the porch and said, “I’ll be out in a minute.”
I leaned against the railing and stared up at the stars, wondering when Ava would give me the sign I needed to take the next step.
It felt like we were already a family, but we had yet to make it official.
I desperately wanted to make it official.
I wanted to wake up under the same roof as Ava and Maisie.
I wanted them to have my last name and for Ava to wear my ring.
I patted my pocket, confirming the ring I’d bought months ago was still there. I carried it always, waiting for the right moment.
“Cole?”
I glanced over my shoulder, jaw dropping as I took in Ava wearing something short and silky. It clung to her curves, and my gaze drank her in. “Ava?”
She licked her lips, her fingers twisting in the nightgown’s fabric. “I picked this up today. Do you like it?”
I nodded, swallowing hard. “I do.”
“Do you think it would look even better on the floor?” Her eyes met mine, and despite the bold words, I sensed the nerves behind them.
“You’re killing me, Ava.” I groaned. “The next time I take you to bed, I want everything. No more separate houses, no more nights apart. All the strings attached. Until then, I can’t.”
She moved closer. “Cole, all the strings have been attached for a while now.”
“They have?”
She nodded.
“I’ve been waiting for a sign,” I said slowly, taking a step toward her. “That you’re ready.”
She laughed, a breathless sound. “Cole, I wore your favorite perfume three days in a row. I ‘accidentally’ let my towel slip yesterday. Subtlety clearly isn't your language.”
I took another step forward, pulling the ring out of my pocket as I kneeled in front of her. “I love you, Ava, with a love that grows stronger every day. I want to watch you walk down the aisle toward me, and I want to make vows in front of everyone that matters to us. Will you marry me?”
She threw her arms around my neck, joining me on the porch floor. “Yes. Absolutely yes.”
We kneeled on the floor, wrapped in each other’s embrace, promising forever without words. When we drew back, I slid the ring on her finger and pressed my lips against the inside of her wrist.
I swept Ava into my arms and carried her to the bedroom. I slowly undressed her, wanting to take my time tonight. We might have forever in front of us, but I wanted this first night to be special.
I kissed her, lingering over her lips and pouring all my love into it. She sighed into my mouth as my hands skimmed over her silky skin. “Cole.”
Her body heated beneath me, and I stroked my fingers over her, drawing out her moans.
I kissed my way down her body, memorizing the changes.
Worshipping every inch. My hands—rough from sanding wood, calloused from work—gripped her hips.
I wasn't gentle. I wanted to mark her, to leave the imprint of my love on her skin so she'd never doubt who she belonged to.
When neither of us could hold back any longer, I settled between her thighs, which spread wide to welcome me, and waited for her eyes to open. “I love you, Ava.”
“I love you, Cole.”
We laced our fingers together as I slid inside. She met me thrust for thrust, our bodies both seeking the same thing. I savored the feel of her around me, squeezing me, urging me to move faster and take us where we wanted to go.
When she shattered, my name mixed with a cry of pleasure on her lips, I followed. My spine tingled, and I emptied into her, moaning as I clutched her close. I rolled us onto our sides, and we kissed each other. Deeply. Languidly.
I held her close, and she nestled against me, neither of us willing to let go now that we were finally here.
For us, love came fast, but learning to hold nothing back took practice.
At least for me. Luckily, Ava gave me a second chance to get it right.
And I would hold on every day, always remembering what was important.
The family I made. The family I chose. The family I would never walk away from again.