“I’m sure,” I said finally. “This is where we belong. Where Nora belongs.”
He nodded, seeming satisfied with my answer. “And Mikhail? Are you okay with him being nearby?”
I sighed, watching the scenery pass outside my window. “I don’t know,” I admitted. “Part of me understands why he did what he did. Why he let us believe he was dead. But another part...”
“Still feels betrayed,” Jake finished for me.
“Yes.” I turned to look at him, grateful for his understanding. “But he’s Nora’s father. She deserves to know him, to have him in her life if that’s what she wants.”
“And what do you want, Ella?” Jake asked, his voice gentle but insistent.
I reached across the console to place my hand on his thigh. “This,” I said. “You. Us. Whatever that looks like going forward.”
His hand covered mine, warm and calloused. “Even with all the complications?”
“Even then,” I assured him. “Jake, the last couple of days have shown me what I’ve known in my heart for a long time. Life is too short and too precious to waste being afraid. Of feelings, of possibilities, of the future.” I squeezed his hand. “I want that future to include you.”
His smile, slow and sweet, warmed me from the inside out. “That’s good,” he said. “Because I’m not going anywhere.”
As we pulled into the driveway of my little house, I felt a surge of emotion at the sight of it—snow piled on the roof, icicles hanging from the eaves, smoke curling from the chimney where someone had thoughtfully lit a fire in anticipation of our return. It looked like a postcard, a picture of home.
“Looks like the welcome committee is here,” Jake noted, nodding toward the porch where Lana and Caleb stood waving, with Scout by their side, wagging his tail.
Nora stirred in the backseat, blinking sleepily as she took in our surroundings. “We’re home?”
“We’re home,” I confirmed, my heart full as I watched recognition and relief wash over her face.
She was out of the truck just as Jake turned off the engine, running through the snow toward Scout.
∞∞∞
Later, after Lana left for the lodge and Caleb headed over to Jake’s place, after Nora had been tucked into her own bed with Scout curled protectively at her feet, Jake and I sat at my kitchen table, the remains of a casserole that we’d eaten for supper sat between us.
“Stay,” I said, the word both a question and a request.
He set down his fork, his eyes meeting mine across the small table. “For how long?”
“Tonight,” I answered. “Tomorrow. However long you want.”
He stood, circling the table to pull me to my feet and into his arms. “That might be a very long time, Ella Shaw.”
I wound my arms around his neck, rising on tiptoes to press my lips to his. “I’m counting on it,” I murmured against his mouth.
His kiss was gentle at first, then deepening as I responded, my body melting into his. We fit together perfectly like two puzzle pieces. When we finally broke apart, both breathless, his forehead rested against mine.
“We should probably take this slow,” he said, though his hands at my waist suggested otherwise. “For Nora’s sake.”
“Probably,” I agreed, pressing closer. “Though she did ask if we were boyfriend and girlfriend.”
He laughed softly, the sound rumbling through his chest. “Smart kid.”
“She gets that from me,” I teased, as I reached up and took his hat off his head.
“Among other things,” he agreed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “Her strength. Her courage. Her heart. What are you doing with my hat?”
I felt myself flush at his praise. “She was so brave, Jake. Through all of it.” I plopped his hat on my head and smiled.
“She was… Ah, you do know about the cowboy hat rule, don’t you?” he asked, his expression growing serious as he pressed closer to me. When I didn’t respond, he murmured, “You wear the hat, you ride the cowboy.”
