I want to say yes. I want to promise it like I used to promise everything would be fine. But the truth sticks in my throat.
"I don't know," I say finally. "But I think sometimes the people we love find their way back to us, even when we don't expect it."
She nods, satisfied with that, and presses a kiss to my cheek. "Okay. Can we have pancakes for dinner?"
I laugh through the ache in my chest. "Why not? New house, new rules."
We make a mess of the kitchen, flour on the counter, syrup on our sleeves. She eats two and falls asleep halfway through the third, her cheek pressed to her arm, her fork still in her hand.
I carry her to bed and tuck the blanket around her. For a moment, I just watch her breathe. She's the reason I keep moving. The reason I can start over, even when it feels like everything I built has fallen apart.
When I go back to the kitchen, the last of the light is gone. The cabin hums softly in the dark, the sound of crickets and wind blending into a peaceful hymn.
I clean up the dishes and wipe the counter. Even though I've lost my job, my home, and the man I love, tonight, my daughter is safe, the lights are on, and the wind through the trees encourages me to keep going.
So, I do.
Then I crawl under the blanket and close my eyes, letting the sound of the night wrap around me.
Tomorrow, I'll start again.
And maybe, just maybe, the road that leads me forward will somehow find its way back to him.
Chapter 28
Asher
Idon't hear my brothers coming. I feel them.
I’m sitting at the kitchen table, the old folder still in front of me, papers spread, a map of everything I've tried to hold together. The coffee in my mug's gone cold. The house holds its breath, waiting for something to break.
Finn comes in first, jaw tight, eyes set on me as if he's already got the whole fight built and ready to swing. Zach follows slower, quieter, but he doesn't look any softer.
"You got a minute?" Finn asks, though it isn't really a question.
"Always," I say, and it's half true.
Zach shuts the door behind him. "We need to talk."
I knew this was coming. The silence between us these last days has been louder than a gunshot. Closing the folder, I sit back in my chair, bracing for it.
Finn folds his arms. "We've been thinking about what happened. About her."
Kassi. He doesn't say her name. He doesn't have to.
"I'm not apologizing for caring about her," I say before he can get any further.
He exhales hard, the kind of sound a man makes when he's trying not to start shouting. "That's not what this is about. It's about the fact that you didn't tell us anything. You went behind our backs while we were fighting to save this land, and you let someone from their side into the middle of it."
"She wasn't on their side anymore," I say.
Zach shakes his head. "You don't get to make that call alone, Ash. You brought her into this house. Risked the ranch. You risked all of us."
"She risked more," I shoot back. "You think it was easy for jeopardize her job, the way she supports her daughter? She could've kept her head down, pretended she didn't hear a damn thing, and walked away clean. But she didn't. She came to me."
Finn's voice sharpens. "And you fell for her."
I meet his eyes. "Yeah. I did."