I smiled as my heart crowded out my lungs. “I love you so much,” I whispered.
“Baby,” he replied, teetering on the edge of control, “you got no fuckin’ idea.”
My laugh turned into a gasp which turned into a moan. I hadn’t known it could be this good—and I suspected this was just the beginning.
GIDEON
It was hard to let Sadie out of my sight, those first few weeks after the kidnapping and the fire. I followed her to the city and acted as her bodyguard whenever she’d allow it. I bit my lip every time she went out on her own to meet her client or to work on the dresses that would re-launch her business. But she always came back, and I managed.
Soon enough, we were heading back to Marswood Harbor. Iwatched Sadie’s face as we left the city, searching for signs of regret. Would she really want to move to a tiny town on the coast of Maine? Could she really be happy there, with me?
When we crossed state lines and entered Maine, Sadie let out a sigh. Her shoulders eased, and a smile spread over her beautiful lips. “Feels good to be home,” she said, and I reached over to tangle my fingers in hers.
Throat tight, all I could do was nod.
It was Sunday, so we went straight to Grandma Mars’s house for family lunch. Sadie glowed in the warm welcome that my family—our family—gave her, and I could hardly believe that she was really mine.
“Gideon.”
I turned to see my grandmother beckoning from the hallway. I followed her to her study, where a document folder waited on her desk. “What’s this?” I asked, suspicious.
Grandma Mars smiled, and it wasn’t the sharklike smirk I knew so well. This one was softer. Happier. “Your wedding present,” she said simply. “Congratulations.” She kissed me on the cheek and left me to read the documents on my own.
It took me a while to understand. I had to read through the pages twice to be sure.
Then I rocked back on my heels and let out a disbelieving huff.
My grandmother was surrendering the leverage she’d had over me, once and for all: She was selling me her share of Marswood Security—for just a dollar.
THIRTY-TWO
ETTA
Three weeks after Gideon’s return, I sat behind the desk in my study and reviewed the report Alex had slid over my desk. I flicked through the pages, then leaned back and tapped my finger against my chin.
“It’s remarkable,” Alex said, pushing his wire-frame glasses higher up the bridge of his nose. “A ninety-nine point two percent match. The highest we’ve seen with either grandson’s applicants. No one else came close.”
I watched the young man for a beat, then returned my gaze to the pages. “Jack won’t like this,” I said. “He was very clear with me that he won’t bring any woman around Darby until she’s grown up and moved out. He only completed the profile because I twisted his arm.”
And if needed, I’d twist it harder. It was for his own good, after all.
“I’ve finally gotten the information I needed from Knox, Bennett, andFletcher.”
I glanced up sharply, surprised. “Fletcher?” I hadn’t expected my lothario of a grandson to complete his profile at all.
Alex nodded. “Your other grandchildren, however, have been…”
I arched my brows.
Alex grimaced. “Avoidant. I haven’t heard from Walter’s daughter at all. She never answered my messages.”
“Not surprising,” I murmured. Danae had shot out of Marswood Harbor when she’d turned eighteen and never looked back. It would take a cataclysm to bring her back to her hometown. Walter’s two sons weren’t much better.
Sighing, I placed a hand on the report and drummed my fingers. “We’ll move forward with Jack,” I decided. “The boy needs a push in the right direction, and we can’t ignore the strength of this match.”
If Alex disagreed, he didn’t show it. He simply gave me a curt nod, stood, and went to work.
Single dad Jack is content living his life exactly as it is.
