EPILOGUE
TARA SAT ON a folding lawn chair, staring up at the window of clouds visible through a break in the forest. The air cooled quickly as the sun descended, and Jeff worked with quiet concentration to build a fire.
She took a deep breath and released it slowly. Six months ago, the forest had made her anxious. She’d preferred to drown her thoughts in the noise and bustle of citylife.
But that had been life before she knew that someone could love her enough to stick around. Could find her worthy of commitment. Before Jeff.
The silence didn’t bother her as much these days. She didn’t need to fill the void of loneliness. And she’d come to appreciate the outdoors in a new way.
Mainly because she saw it through Jeff’s and Evan’s eyes. The raw beauty, the wildness, thecalming effect of being surrounded by nature. Before camping with them, she’d never known how bright and numerous the stars could be. How content she could be to simply stare at the sky for hours while holding Jeff’s hand.
And she could happily lie in the RV by his side, listening to him breathe, forever.
It didn’t happen often enough for her taste, but they’d been taking things slowly, lettingEvan work through his issues while getting more comfortable with Tara as a permanent fixture in his and Jeff’s lives. Honestly, Evan had come around more quickly than either of them had expected, but it wasn’t always easy.
The boy’s physical injuries had fully healed—as had hers—but he still sometimes woke from nightmares. And he still sometimes worried that Jeff—or now Tara—might leave himfor good.
She understood the feeling. Her insecurities might never fully go away. But the three of them were learning to trust each other and themselves.
She could wait forever as long as she had the Pataravas in her life.
The fire crackled to life and Jeff poked at it with a long stick a few times before standing and dusting his hands on his jeans. Heat crept across her skin like the tendrilsof a vine as their gazes met.
He gave her a sheepish grin. “What?”
She stood and circled the fire pit, pushing her hands into his open parka and hooking them around his waist as she molded herself to him.
“Cold?” he asked.
Looking up at him, she shook her head. “Not anymore.”
One hand cupped her cheek, the other wrapped around her back as he leaned forward, his gorgeous smile wideningas their lips met and he finally closed his eyes.
Every kiss felt like falling all over again. She was so in love with this man that it scared her and thrilled her in equal measure, but his kisses alone were worth the fear of losing him. The soft push and pull of his lips, the sweet caress of his tongue, the gentle nibble of his teeth.
When they kissed, nothing else mattered.
All of theother men, all of the heartbreak had led her here to the best of men, the prize. She couldn’t regret a moment of her past if it meant Jeff was her future.
He broke away, holding her tight, tucking her against the rise and fall of his chest, her ear tuned to the rhythm of his heart. “That never gets old.”
She laughed and licked her lips. “Agreed.”
Behind her, the door to the camper—whichJeff had spruced up rather than replaced—slammed open. Evan had awoken from his post-hike nap.
The two-year-old rescue dog that he and Jeff had adopted after finding a house in Virginia jumped to its feet and bounded toward the boy.
Evan descended the steps and sat on his haunches, rubbing the dog vigorously. “Lulu.” He giggled as the chocolate lab mix licked his neck. Laughing was good. Itusually meant there’d been no nightmares. Standing, he declared, “I’m hungry!”
“Hey, bud.” Jeff slowly disengaged from Tara with a chuckle that held as much relief as humor. “I think I hear our future,” he said under his breath.
She laughed, her tummy taking a little dive at the word “our.” He used words like that a lot these days, and it never failed to thrill her. She was completely onboardfor a full commitment whenever Jeff and Evan were ready, but she knew Evan’s needs came first.
If Jeff hadn’t been making sure of that, he wouldn’t be the man she loved.
But patience wasn’t exactly her strong suit. Sure, shecouldwait forever if she had to; that didn’t mean shewantedto. But Evan had just started pre-K at a Montessori school near his house, which meant a new school, newfriends, and a whole new world.
On the heels of all the changes he’d faced since his mom had whisked him away to North Carolina ten months ago, Jeff worried it might be too much.
