Seated at the kitchen table with Hazel and Thea, I sipped my coffee in silence. Hazel was staring blindly at her own coffee, letting everything Thea had just told her about last night sink in.
I’d never forget the feeling of helplessness I’d had last night. First on the drive to Lark Cove, when I hadn’t been able to get ahold of Thea. Then getting here to find out she was gone.
By the time I had arrived in Lark Cove, the sheriff was already at the house to warn Thea. Except Thea was on a walk. Hazel panicked and tried to get ahold of her numerous times, but every call went unanswered. When she called Jackson at the bar and no one had seen Thea, I immediately called Sean.
Within two minutes, he triangulated her cell to my house. It was a miracle that I found her in time and that nothing had happened to her. I wasn’t letting myself even consider the unthinkable.
After I knocked that psychopath Ronny unconscious, Thea and I spent the rest of the night at the sheriff’s department. We stopped by briefly to assure Hazel that Thea was okay, then went into the station right afterward to deliver our statements.
Even with everything Sean had already sent the officers—emails, prior records, photographs found on Ronny’s computer—it took hours before we could leave.
So when Thea and I got back to the cottage, we collapsed into bed for a few quick hours of sleep until we woke up to explain to Hazel what had happened, then take Charlie to her first day of school.
“Daddy?”
I spun around. Charlie was standing in the doorway wearing her pajamas.
I smiled and set down my coffee mug. “Hi, peanut.”
She blinked, then flew across the room, launching herself into my lap. Then she wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me with all her might.
“I missed you.” I ran a hand up and down her back. I wanted so badly to tell her that I’d never be far again, but since Thea and I hadn’t talked about it yet, I kept my mouth shut and just held my girl.
“Good morning, honey.” Thea stood from her chair and came to kiss Charlie’s hair.
There were tears in her eyes, a mix of emotion and exhaustion. She’d tossed and turned against my side last night, until I’d held her so tight, using my arms and a leg to trap hers down, that she’d finally fallen asleep for a couple of hours.
But even with dark circles under her eyes, she was heart-stopping.
After she’d hugged me enough, Charlie leaned back and smiled. “Can you take me to school?”
I nodded. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
I wouldn’t miss any of her first days of school again. Hell, if she wanted me with her for her first day of senior year, I’d walk her to class.
“Okay.” Thea sniffled. “We’d better get ready.”
The morning turned into a blur of activity as we had breakfast and got Charlie ready for school. Then, dressed in her new jeans, new shoes and new shirt, Charlie walked to her first day of first grade, accompanied by Hazel, Thea and me.
She kept ahold of my hand until we took her into her classroom and she put her backpack in her cubby. She’d been anxious on the walk, tugging on her hair and chewing her lip. But when two of her kindergarten friends and soccer teammates rushed up to her, all the nervous butterflies flew away. My peanut gave us a huge smile and wave, then disappeared into the classroom to pick her desk.
“Is it always that hard?” I asked Thea and Hazel as we headed back to the cottage.
I hadn’t expected a first-day-of-school drop-off to be so difficult. Charlie had been ready to let go, but I hadn’t.
“Yes,” Hazel and Thea answered together.
I took Thea’s hand, lacing her fingers with mine. Then I brought it up to my lips for a kiss. “I’m glad I made it.”
“Me too.”
“So what else happened last night?” Hazel asked as we turned down their road. “When will we know what’s going to happen with Ronny?”
Thea took a deep breath before summarizing our discussion with the sheriff last night. “They’re going to charge him with assault and criminal stalking. I’ve put in for a restraining order, just in case Ronny gets out of jail, but the sheriff thought the district judge would work quickly on this one. It’s likely Ronny won’t get bail and he’ll be sent straight to sentencing. We’ve got a meeting with the county attorney’s office at two to discuss it all.”
With this being Ronny’s second stalking offense, the chances of him getting jail time were high. Prison was going to be hard on a sick bastard like Ronny Berkowitz. My money would make sure of it. And when, or if, he was released, he’d be coming home to a life in ashes.
Sean had been up all night, digging into Ronny’s system. I doubted we’d ever know for sure, but it appeared that his obsession with Thea had all stemmed from his obsession with Angela, the bartender in Texas.
Because of their physical and occupational similarities, Ronny had latched onto Thea. He’d actually known Angela as a kid. They’d gone to elementary and middle school together. From early on, he’d formed an attachment to her, one that had turned sour when Angela hadn’t returned his affections and began dating someone else instead. The same emails that Ronny had sent Thea, Sean had found to Angela. He was still emailing her, even after years of living in Lark Cove.
He’d just added Thea to his routine too.
None of us were sure why he’d come to Montana after he’d been arrested for stalking Angela in Texas. As far as we knew, he had no personal connection here. Sean’s theory was that Ronny had come up here for a vacation after being let out of jail in Dallas and had stumbled across Thea at the bar. Since he couldn’t have Angela, he’d settled here instead.
If not for me showing up, he might have gone on as a quiet, unsuspecting citizen. He might have just admired Thea from afar, never progressing to the extreme.
“I hope they put him away for a good long while,” Hazel said, stopping as we reached the sidewalk leading up to the front door. She stepped closer to Thea, placing her hands on her shoulders. “No more late-night walks.”
Thea nodded. “Never again.”
“And no more scaring me to death. My heart can’t take it.”
“Neither can mine.”
Hazel pulled Thea in for a tight hug, then kissed her cheek. “I’m going to take a nap.”
As Hazel went inside, I tugged Thea’s hand. “Come on.”
I led her around the house and across the lawn, straight to the dock. We walked down the worn planks and stood at the end, looking out across the water. The morning air was crisp and fresh. It was the next best smell besides Thea’s hair. The sky was a cloudless blue, bright with the early sun.
“It’s beautiful this morning.” Thea yawned. “But I’m going to need a nap too.”
“Same here.”
“I’m glad you’re here.” Thea leaned into my side. “How long are you staying?”
“For a while.”
I grinned and patted my jeans pocket. Inside was the ring I’d stashed there this morning.
Proposing today hadn’t been on my agenda. Thea and I were both exhausted, physically and emotionally. I had a lot I needed to explain. I’d only grabbed the ring so Thea wouldn’t find it accidentally. But I couldn’t stop my hand from slipping into my pocket just to touch the delicate band.
Should I? Should I ask her?
Marry me. The words were right there, practically leaping from my lips. I wanted to start building our life together today, and when I told her I was moving, I didn’t want her to have a shred of doubt that I’d ever leave her again.
I should wait.
Fuck it. I wasn’t waiting any longer.
I dug out the ring and spun Thea away from the lake to face me.
“Thea Landry.” I took her hand, then dropped to one knee. She deserved a proposal on one knee.
“Oh my god,” she gasped as panic flashed across her face. She probably thought I was here to beg her to move back to the city. “Logan, what are you—”
“Let me go first,” I said. “When I asked you what you wanted, you said the impossible. But I don’t believe anything is impossible, not for you. I’ll do everything in my power to make sure you never have an impossible again. Including living our life together in Lark Cove.”
Her eyebrow quirked. “Really?”
“I love you. I want you to be my wife and for us to be a family. Marry me?”
She nodded, a tear sliding down one cheek. “Yes.”
Yes. Fireworks exploded in my chest as I slid on her ring. As soon as it was nestled against her knuckle, she dropped to her knees, nearly tackling me in a kiss.
I smiled against her lips, stroking them gently with my tongue. When she opened for me, I slid inside slowly, savoring her taste and the feel of her in my arms. It didn’t take long for the spark to ignite and the two of us to get lost in a kiss I’d never forget.
We poured everything into that moment. Love. Passion. Hope. Excitement for the unknown we’d face together.
When we finally broke apart, I looked up to the sky and said a silent thank you to the angel who’d led me into her hotel bar all those years ago. The same angel who’d brought me to Montana and back to Thea’s side.
“I can’t believe it,” Thea whispered, studying her ring. I’d gotten the best solitaire in Manhattan and set it in a diamond-studded gold band. From here on out, Thea would live a life full of sparkles. “I just . . . I can’t believe it.”
“This is real, baby. Me and you and Charlie. It’s as real as it gets. I’m not going anywhere.”
Her forehead furrowed as she met my eyes. “Are you sure? What about your job? And your family? I can’t ask you to give it all up.”
“You didn’t. I made this decision because it’s the right one. I’d never be happy without you or Charlie, so if this is your home, then it’s my home too.”
“What about the firm?”
I shrugged. “I quit.”
“You quit?” Her jaw dropped. “How can you quit? You love your job.”
“Yes, I did. I loved working hard. I loved the challenge. At the time, I needed that in my life. Now, I don’t. I don’t want a job that keeps me from you at night. Or makes me miss breakfast and bedtime with Charlie. Being a lawyer isn’t at the top of my priorities anymore.”
My first priority was watching her and Charlie shine.
I’d finally realized what mattered.
The dock planks were digging into my knees, so I shifted Thea, moving us so we were seated and looking out across the water.
“So what are you going to do?” she asked.
“I’m sure I won’t be bored. Nolan and I are juggling some responsibilities around at the foundation so I can play a more active role. I’m going to spend some quality time on my new boat. And I’m taking over coaching for Charlie’s soccer team.”
She laughed. “Are you now?”
“Next year, we’re going all the way.” I put my arm around Thea’s shoulder, tucking her close. “I’ll be able to do ninety percent of my work from home here, but there will be times I’ll have to go back to the city for family things and such. Foundation meetings I can’t miss. But it won’t be often.”
“I can live with that.”
“Maybe one day, you’ll want to come with me. I understand it might take time, but I’d love the chance to show you the part of the city I love. We can make our own memories there, good ones to overshadow the bad. If it takes ten years, then I’ll wait. If it never happens, then that’s okay too.”
She thought about it for a moment. “I think I’d like that. One day. What does your family think about all this?”
“They’ll come around.” And if they didn’t, then it wasn’t my problem. If I had to give up the Kendrick family responsibilities to ensure that my Kendrick family was happy, then I’d do it every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
“You’re sure?”
I kissed her hair. “I’m sure.”
We sat there for a while, watching as a flock of birds flew over the water. Across the bay, a woman was walking her dog. A few houses down, someone was mowing their lawn.
My phone rang in my pocket and I shifted my weight to dig it out. “Sorry. It’s Granny.”
“You should take it. I don’t mind.” She leaned away, but I pulled her right back in as I answered the call and put it on speaker.
Other than Charlie, I couldn’t think of anyone else I wanted to tell about our engagement.
“Hi,” I answered.
“Hello, Grandson. What are you up to today?”
“Not much.” I grinned. “I was actually going to call you today to tell you that I figured it out.”
“Figured what out?”
“The secret to life.”
Granny’s laughter rang through the speaker. “I take it you’re in Montana?”
“I am.” Right where I belonged.
“Well, it’s about time. Hello, Thea.”
Thea giggled. “Hi, Joan. How are you?”
“Much better now. I’ll let you two go, but please have Charlie call me tonight. I’d like to hear about her first day of school. And Logan?”
“Yes?”
“You have two weeks to get your house set up for guests.” With that, she hung up the phone.
“I guess we have some work to do,” Thea muttered. “We can’t have police tape by the garage when Granny shows up.”
“Hey.” I took her chin, turning it so I could see her eyes. “If you don’t want that house, we’ll find another one.” I’d never force her to live there, not after what had happened last night.
“No.” She shook her head. “I think it will be fine. It’s such a pretty home and in the best spot. It will probably take me hours to clean, but I don’t want to let it go just yet. Maybe we could go over later and you could give me the full tour. See how that goes and then move forward from there.”
“All right.”
I let the cleaning comment go for now. She’d never clean or cook or wash clothes another day in her life unless she wanted to. But we’d work into that after the dust from last night’s drama had settled.
The two of us went back to watching the lake, both yawning from time to time but neither making a move to leave. A fish jumped not far off and I made a mental note to take the boat out tomorrow. Maybe Thea could come with me and we could break it in properly. I wanted to talk her into forgetting the condoms from here on out. Call me a barbarian but getting her pregnant was the next item on my to-do list.
I just hoped she was as eager as I was to expand our family. Because this time, I wasn’t going to miss a thing. I’d be here for the pregnancy test, the doctor’s appointments and the midnight feedings. Every moment for the rest of my life, I’d spend with Thea.
“Logan?”
“Hmm?”
She looked up at me. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“It’s hard to believe this is really happening.”
I smiled. “Believe it. Always believe.”
