Page 64 of Summer Ever After

Chapter Twenty-Two

Aaron woke to the soft weight of Beth curled against his chest, her hair spilling across his arm like a dark silk curtain. The early light stretched through the blinds, brushing over her face in pale gold. For a moment, he lay still, just listening to the rhythm of her breathing, the quiet proof that she was here, safe, with him.

He tightened his arm around her, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. “Morning,” he murmured.

Beth stirred, her lashes fluttering as she blinked up at him. A faint smile tugged at her lips, but he didn’t miss the shadow in her eyes before she tucked it away with a soft, “Morning.”

They moved through their newly formed routine together, coffee steaming on the counter, her quiet humming as she tied her hair back. She laughed once when he stole the last piece of bacon from her plate, swatting at him like it was habit.

There was a glimmer of something in her eye. Doubt? It was subtle, the way her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, how her gaze drifted when she thought he wasn’t looking.

Was she regretting telling him that she loved him? Was she having second thoughts about moving in with him for real?

By the time they drove through the gates of River Camps, his instincts were buzzing. She held his hand the whole way there, her fingers cool in his, but the tension in her shoulders told him more than words. Something was on her mind, and whatever it was, it was eating at her.

He walked her to the main building, where Jules was working behind the counter, greeting new campers. He headed off to the security building to start his day, the morning passing in a blur of checking in guests and routine patrols. He caught glimpses of her at the front desk when he passed by, her polite smile, her easy voice, but it all felt like a mask.

By the time lunch rolled around, he’d had enough.

He found her already seated in the employee cafeteria, alone, her tray untouched in front of her. She looked up as he slid into the seat across from her, trying for a smile that fell flat.

“What’s going on?” Aaron asked, his voice low.

Beth shook her head. “Nothing. I’m just tired.”

He leaned forward, catching her gaze as he took her hand. “Beth. You can tell me the truth. Don’t shut me out now. Do you want to take back those words? Are you having second thoughts about… us?”

“No,” she answered quickly. Her free hand fisted in her lap. She stared at their joined hands for a heartbeat before her voice broke through, soft and raw. “I’ve been thinking… maybe I should quit. Leave River Camps. Leave you.”

The words hit him like a blow, sharp and cold. “What?”

Her eyes lifted. “I love you,” she said as her eyes filled with tears that he could tell she was fighting to hold back. “I want to be with you but it’s the only way I can protect you. To protect everyone here. If Ian comes… if he decides to…” She swallowed hard. “It’ll be because of me. I won’t let him ruin this place or hurt any of you.”

Aaron exhaled slowly, fighting to keep his anger steady, not at her but at the man who still taunted her. He reached across and took her other trembling hand in his. “Listen to me. If Ian wants to come after you, after any of us to hurt you, it won’t matter where you go. Running won’t stop him. Leaving me won’t stop him. He’ll find a way no matter what. You’re the safest you can be here, among the people that love you.”

Tears spilled over, trailing down her cheeks. “But if I go, maybe everyone here will be safer.”

“No.” His grip tightened, firm but gentle. “The only thing leaving does is take you away from the people who can protect you. Away from me. And I won’t let him win like that. I told you that I’d protect you, and I meant it.”

Her lips parted, trembling on a breath. “Aaron…”

He leaned closer, his voice rough with conviction. “You love me. I love you. That’s not something we throw away because of him. We fight back, together.”

For a long moment, silence hung between them, heavy with the weight of fear and hope colliding. Then, slowly, she nodded, her fingers curling tighter around his.

He pulled her quickly into his arms and held onto her, knowing just how close he’d come to losing her again.

He felt some of the tightness in his chest ease, though he knew that the storm wasn’t over. He understood that Ian’s shadow still hung over her happiness, over their happiness. But he also knew Beth wasn’t going to do anything drastic. As long as she was here, he’d fight every damn day to keep her safe.

For the rest of the day, he set up shop in the main building. He watched as she smiled when guests came to the front desk. She laughed lightly at a guest’s joke, and even chatted with Zoey when she stopped in. But underneath it all, there was a shadow in her eyes. Worry.

On his early afternoon rounds, sunlight slanted through the trees, catching on the shimmer of the bay as he walked his standard route near the row of cabins. For a while, things felt almost normal—the hum of voices from guests lounging near the water’s edge, the steady rhythm of the forest all around them.

Then his radio crackled.

“Aaron, we’ve got a situation,” Brett’s voice cut through the static. “Bear sighting near the Eagles Nest Cabin. We need you here, now.”

Aaron swore under his breath, already jogging. “On my way.”