“Can I give you some advice?”Raven asked.“From someone who almost threw away her marriage because she was too hurt and too scared to believe things could be different?”
Mia’s lips twitched.“Normally I’m not one to take advice.I usually listen to my gut.But in your case I’ll make an exception.”
“I appreciate it,” Raven said, grinning.“These men—Wyatt, Zeke, Blaze—they’re good at what they do because they can compartmentalize.They can lie to criminals without blinking, can live double lives, can shut off their emotions when the job demands it.That skill doesn’t turn off when they come home.Sometimes they forget we’re not the enemy.”Raven’s dark eyes held Mia’s.“But here’s what I learned—being good at lying doesn’t mean they’re always lying.And being scared to trust doesn’t mean trust isn’t worth the risk.”
“How do you know when it’s real?When they mean it this time?”
“You don’t.Not with absolute certainty.”Raven smiled.“But Wyatt proved it to me by making changes.He moved out of deep undercover work.He comes home every night.He tells me what he can about his cases.He went to counseling with me.He showed me through his actions that I mattered more than the job.”
“And that was enough?”
“More than enough.”Raven’s hand moved unconsciously to her belly—a small, protective gesture.“We’re expecting again.Getting pregnant hasn’t been an easy journey for us, but a couple of years ago we had twins.This one will be here in about six months.And I’m terrified and excited and so grateful we didn’t give up when it got hard.”
“Congratulations,” Mia said, meaning it.
“Thank you.”Raven stood, gathering the empty containers.“My point is this, if Zeke’s really going to retire, if he’s really taking a job in Riverton, if he’s really here trying to prove he’s changed—maybe give him the chance to do it.Maybe don’t make him pay forever for the mistakes he made three years ago.”
“What if he breaks my heart again?”
“What if he doesn’t?”Raven countered.“What if this is the real thing, and you miss it because you were too scared to try?”
After Raven left, Mia stood in the middle of her slowly healing shop and thought about second chances.About whether love was worth the risk of getting hurt again.About whether she was brave enough to believe that people could change.
Her makeshift front door opened and Lily Crow O’Hara walked in, her tall frame moving with the easy confidence of someone who’d never backed down from a fight.
“It must be my day for O’Haras,” Mia said, smiling at her friend.
“You can hardly sneeze without hitting an O’Hara,” Lily said, tossing a bag on the counter.
“Lovely image,” Mia said.
“Brought you some things.Pepper spray, a better deadbolt for the back door, and a stun gun.Because Blaze told me what happened and I’m not letting you stay here alone until those bikers are caught.”
Mia stared at the bag.“Lily, I?—”
“Don’t.”Lily held up a hand.“We’re friends.This is what friends do.Besides, Blaze would have my head if I didn’t check on you.He’s been worried.”
“He has his own problems.Wyatt too, from what Raven said.”
Lily’s expression turned sympathetic.“Zeke’s a good guy, from what Blaze tells me.They’ve worked together on several cases over the years.Blaze says he’s never seen Zeke so focused on getting out of the undercover life until now.”
“Seems like everyone’s talking about us,” Mia said wryly.
Lily grinned.“Small town.Law enforcement family.Of course we’re talking.But we’re also rooting for you.”Her expression grew more serious.“Blaze and I got married drunk in Vegas.We barely knew each other.And then we spent a year apart before we finally figured our lives out.So believe me when I say—if you want it to work, it’ll work.You just have to decide if he’s worth the fight.”
“I thought so once.I don’t know now.”
Lily’s smile was genuine.“Only you can answer that.But from where I’m standing?That man hasn’t stopped looking for ways to prove himself to you since he got here.Blaze mentioned he’s been coordinating with Wyatt and the DEA, setting up protection details, doing everything he can to keep you safe.That’s not just professional duty.That’s personal.”
After Lily left, Mia walked through the shop, running her hands over the repaired shelves, the new inventory, the evidence of a community that had shown up for her without being asked.The O’Haras had done this—had woven her into the fabric of Laurel Valley whether she’d intended it or not.
And Zeke was part of that network too—connected to Wyatt and Blaze through work, to the O’Hara family through friendship, to this town through his summers working here years ago.
He wasn’t just a man from her past anymore.He was becoming part of her present.
The question was whether she was ready to let him become part of her future.
* * *
