After that, there was a whirlwind of activity. They were welcomed into a cozy, beautiful house, even though it was the middle of the night. Mira met Eren's cheerful blond relatives, was given a room to sleep in, and finally,finallygot the promised long, hot shower.
She was stretched out in bed, wearing a borrowed pair of pajamas, when there was a soft knock on the door. "Awake?" Dane asked quietly.
"For you? Always."
She sat up as he came in. To her quiet amusement and delight, he was once again bare to the waist, wearing a slightly-too-big pair of sweat pants that probably belonged to one of the Nilsson men. When he sat on the edge of the bed, she found that he had showered as well; he was damp to the touch and fragrant with shampoo and shaving lotion.
"I don't know why you even bother owning shirts when you never wear them," Mira murmured, running a hand over his chest.
"Is that a complaint?"
"No," she said, and pulled him down to the bed. "Not at all."
Weary though they both were, they didn't get to sleep for a long time.
* * *
They spent several days enjoying the hospitality of the Nilssons, sleeping in their guest bedroom. Mira explored the little town, marveling at the bright-colored houses and the gargoyle statues everywhere; there was even a life-sized one inside a traffic circle. They took long walks on the hiking trails in the hills above the town. Mira was invited by Eren's brother Tor to tour the lighthouse on the point, which his wife Bernie was restoring into a residence and painting studio, with the ominous warning, "Just don't try to pet the cat." (She did not actually see the cat, which several different people told her was for the best.)
The quiet, peaceful time soothed Mira's anxiety and helped restore her shattered nerves, but she could tell Dane was chafing at being in town and she knew, without needing to ask, that he longed for the peace and solitude of his island.
Eren seemed to recognize this too, and quietly offered them a ride back to the island. They left on a fresh morning, when cool rains had swept across the sea the night before, leaving the world feeling bright and clean. Mira had a small bag of new things she had picked up in town, several changes of clothing, toiletries and the like. Dane had reluctantly allowed himself to have a change of clothes thrust upon him (including a shirt), borrowed a toothbrush, and declared himself fine.
Mira was surprised by her own reaction to seeing Dane's island again. After being stranded on a bona fide desert island, she hadn't thought she would want to set foot on another small island for a long time. But at her first sight of the long ridge covered with trees rising out of the ocean, she felt a warmth in her soul that could only be described as the feeling of coming home.
They tied up Eren's boat and Mira jumped ashore. Dane looked visibly more relaxed as soon as they were on the island, and Mira found that there were knots of tension unwinding between her shoulder blades as well.
Our place,she thought, looking around. The pine trees rustled in the wind, bringing their fresh smell.This is our place.
She had wondered if she would ever feel safe here after being attacked, but now she found that all her lingering trauma had attached to Black Rock Island and their castaway situation. This just felt like coming back to a cozy den after being gone for a long time.
Eren and Lucy handed packages and luggage ashore, and then they all made their way up the path to the cabin. As they walked, Mira recalled that the cabin had last been invaded by mercenaries; it would be a mess.Thatwas going to be hard to take.
But there was a surprise waiting. The yard was perfectly tidy, the cabin's door closed, and when Dane opened it, they found the interior immaculate. Everything had been picked up and set back to rights. The hinges on the doors had even been repaired.
"We cleaned it up for you," Eren explained at their surprised looks.
"We weren't just going to leave you to come back to a mess," Lucy put in. "What kind of friends would we be if we did that?"
After that, there was a busy bustle, putting things away and stirring up the fire to make coffee. Mira found herself cataloguing the things the cabin needed. More chairs, she thought, and more dishes if they were going to keep having guests. They managed to find cups for everyone, but they had to sit out on the edge of the porch to drink coffee and visit, with only one chair in the entire place.
And her imagination was once again running to flights of fancy, constructing additions to the cabin and improvements to the yard.
We could do all of this,she thought, leaning on Dane's shoulder and idly drifting on her fantasies as the others chatted. It wastheirplace, and they could make it into whatever they wanted.
After the guests left, they cleaned up and then Dane laid her down on the bed—clean, fixed, everything back in place; the sheets had even been washed and smelled freshly of dryer sheets, which suggested that Eren and Lucy had taken them back to Westerly Cove to do laundry. After a long, luxurious lovemaking, they lay in bed with Dane's hand running through her hair. It wasn't dark outside yet, and eventually they would need to get up and make supper, but there seemed no compelling reason to move yet.
Our place,Mira thought lazily, her entire body warm and filled with pleasant feelings, as Dane stroked her hair.
Ours forevermore.
EPILOGUE
Humming softly to herself,Mira walked with a bouncy gait down the familiar path from the garden to the cabin.
It was a gorgeous, sunny day, with a chill in the air that spoke of oncoming autumn. There weren't a lot of plants and trees on the island, which ran mostly towards pines and moss, that could change colors for fall, but here and there she glimpsed bright colors in the undergrowth.
Great flocks of sea birds had been migrating through, traveling to their winter range in warmer climates. With a bird book and a pair of cheap binoculars, Mira had discovered a new hobby as she tried to identify them all. She had even started keeping a list in the back of the bird book of all the ones she'd seen.
