Harper and Kayley.Their names sound soft and kind. Like maybe they belong to people who don’t automatically think I’m insane for showing up at a secret mountain base demanding answers.
I follow Rhett out the cabin and down the wooded path. Sun filters through the trees, dappling the pine-needle ground and making everything feel oddly peaceful… despite the fact that we’re in the middle of planning to take down a criminal operation.
The clubhouse smells like heaven—coffee, bacon, something cinnamon-y. Inside, a big table is crowded with men who look like they could each carry me over one shoulder like a sack of potatoes and not break a sweat.
“Morning, Sleeping Beauty,” one of them calls out.
Rhett just grunts and nods. “Emma, this is Chase, Boyd, and Thorne. You sort of met them last night. And, you already met Silas, kind of. Harper’s somewhere—ah. There.”
He gestures to the far side of the room where a gorgeous woman with dark curls is bouncing a baby girl on her hip while chattingwith another blonde woman who’s seated next to a sleepy-eyed infant boy in a high chair.
“Kayley and Harper,” Rhett says. “This is Emma. She’s staying with us a while.”
“Welcome to the madhouse,” Kayley beams. “This little guy’s Aidan. And that wiggle worm Harper’s got is Poppi.”
“They’re the same age,” Harper adds proudly. “Basically cousins at this point. Haven 7 makes you family real fast.”
I smile, drawn to the babies immediately. “They’re adorable.”
“Want to sit with us?” Kayley pats the chair next to her. “You look like you could use pancakes and girl talk.”
“You have no idea,” I say, taking the seat.
As soon as I do, Poppi lets out a delighted squeal and grabs Aidan’s hand. Both babies giggle like they’ve got their own secret baby language.
“How,” I say softly, “did you find this place?”
She glances at Aidan, then back to me. “It wasn’t planned. My car broke down in the middle of a snowstorm, and Aidan was burning up with a fever. I had nowhere to go. I saw a porch light and started walking. Next thing I knew, Gavin opened the door and saved our lives.”
Harper leans in. “Same with me. I was running too. This place? It’s where you end up when you’ve got nowhere left—and somehow it’s exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
I blink fast, emotions clawing at my throat.
Because I’m not alone anymore.
And maybe Haven 7 is where I’m supposed to be too.
SIX
RHETT
If anyone ever asks me what my biggest weakness is, I’m going to lie. I’ll say something respectable. Like “sleep deprivation” or “bad coffee” or “Chase’s personality.” I willnotsay the truth. The truth is sitting at the clubhouse table right now, laughing with Kayley like she’s known her for years instead of hours, while Aidan tries to fist-bump Poppi and misses by a mile.
Emma’s smile is bright. Open. Like she forgot for a second that her sister is missing and a dirty cop might be connected to it. Like the warmth of Haven 7 seeped under her skin when she wasn’t looking. It shouldn’t affect me. However, it does.
I stand with a mug of coffee I don’t taste and watch her for a beat too long. She glances up and catches me. Her brows lift like she’s caught me doing something embarrassing.
I immediately look away, because I’m an adult man with a combat record, not a teenager with a crush.
Chase sidles up beside me, grinning. “You’re staring again.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.” He takes a sip of his coffee like it’s a fine wine. “It’s kind of adorable. Like a murder puppy.”
I turn my head slowly. “One day, Chase, you’re going to mouth off at the wrong person.”
He smiles wider. “And that person will still be you.”