“Remember when I said not to do anything stupid?” she asked, arching a brow.
I grimaced. “I didn’t know how long it would take you guys to get there. I wasn’t going to let her face down that woman alone.”
“Uh huh. Well, we were contacted by Simon Baumgartner, the one who’d reported the burnt car stolen. After he spoke to Eden, he found some things Sandra left for him in his office, flyers about repentance and journals full of ranting passages from the tangles of her own mind.”
“About role-playing games opening the gates of hell for innocent teenagers?” I asked.
Rose grimaced as she nodded. “You guessed it. Turns out Martha Baranski is Sandra and Mary’s second cousin. Word got around that they were looking for a space to open the store, and after they lost out on it, Sandra saw one of your new ads. I guess she put two and two together and placed the blame on you. She didn’t know Eden was related to her brother-in-law until after the fire.”
I blew out a breath. “I’m glad. Eden’s been hurt enough as it is.”
“Baumgartner said he was extremely concerned she was planning to do something reckless after she called him, especially once he realized Sandra had gone off the rails.”
“Reckless,” I mused, staring at the nondescript artwork hanging on the wall across from me. “She was trying to protect me.”
“Maybe next time she’ll let us do our jobs,” Rose said, but she smirked at me just before Libby waved for her to go in to take Eden’s statement.
My sister-in-law sat in the chair Rose had vacated and grabbed my hand. “Hanging in there?”
“Trying. Is Eden really okay?”
“Yes, though I’d like her to take it easy for a few days. Nothing’s broken, but she’ll probably have some serious bruises. You two are quite a pair.”
“A match made in paradise,” I murmured.
Libby squeezed my hand, then we sat in silence until Rose and Eden emerged from the exam room. I caught a glimpse of the bandages on her knees, but she had shed the blankets and otherwise looked blessedly whole, even if she was moving a bit stiffly.
“Will you still love me if I start wearing combat boots?” she asked as she walked straight into my arms.
“Hell yeah, combat boots are hot. Please tell me you’re not already planning for your next tussle with a would-be murderer, though?”
Her silence was answer enough. I rolled my eyes heavenward as Libby’s laughter rang out behind me. A faint giggle, muffled against my shirt, shook Eden’s shoulders when I growled against the top of her head.
Oh, yeah. A match made in paradise, for sure. Everything I’d ever wanted was right here in my arms.
Chapter Forty
Milo
Edenwasnomoregood-natured a patient than she was a caregiver when I was hurt. It took threatening to tie her to my bed to get her to grudgingly agree to relax and let me look after her—and even then, I was certain she only caved because she was too sore to make better use of my threat.
On the morning of her birthday, she woke up to breakfast in bed—coffee and the custom cake I ordered from her favorite food truck baker, decorated to look like the Garden of Eden.
“Milo,” she breathed, blinking sleepily at the gorgeous design.
I had given the baker full creative freedom and she had come through beautifully. A tiny, shiny apple adorned one corner, and a golden snake was hidden among the leaves in another.
“Happy birthday, my love.”
She pivoted and threw herself into my arms. “Thank you. I’ve never…”
I waited for her to continue, then drew back just enough to study her expression, but I couldn’t interpret the mixture of joy and sorrow. “Please don’t cry on your birthday,” I begged her, peppering kisses across her cheekbones.
With a shaky breath, she said, “I’ve never had a birthday party before. Addie and I have gone out to dinner or whatever, but I never had a cake. Not like this.”
“Then we’ll make a toast.” I handed her a coffee mug, made just the way she liked it, and tapped my own gently against it. “To new beginnings.”
The smile that spread slowly across her face was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. “To new beginnings.”
