“Still worth it,” he murmurs, kissing her temple.
Shay hugs me tight as they leave. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” she whispers.
“Me too,” I whisper back.
After they’ve all gone, the silence settles gently.
Wyatt turns off the stove and approaches me. “Come here.”
I go willingly.
He picks me up and sits on the couch with me curled on his lap, legs draped over his. My head settles against his chest. His heartbeat thuds strong and steady beneath my ear.
For the first time since yesterday, I let myself fully sink into him.
His hand strokes my back. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“That I survived,” I whisper. “That I’m tired. That I’m lucky. That I’m… proud of myself.”
“You should be.” His lips brush my hair. “You’re a damn warrior.”
I breathe in. “And you? What are you thinking?”
He shifts slightly, burying his face in my neck. “About the future. Ours.”
Warmth spreads through me, slow and sure.
“I want to build you a home,” he murmurs. “Real one. A place that’s ours. A life that’s ours. Whatever you want to study… whatever you want to become… I’ll be right there.”
My throat tightens. “Wyatt?”
“Yeah, Dove?”
“I love you.”
He pulls back enough to meet my eyes—stormy gray, soft around the edges. “Good. Because I love you more than words can say. And I’m not going anywhere.”
And just like that, something inside me settles.
Hope.
Wyatt presses a kiss to the top of my head, arms tightening around me like a promise.
“We rest now,” he says quietly. “We heal. And then we build.”
I nod into his shoulder. I believe him.
With Wyatt beside me, the future isn’t something to fear. It’s something Iwant.
Epilogue 1
Sadie
Three months later
Montana in April has two settings:
