“Dad!”
He chuckles before stopping short and wincing in pain. The distraught look on Em’s face has me rushing to the door to call Blair back into the room. Once she makes sure he’s comfortable and not in any pain, we reluctantly leave him in Blair’s care and reluctantly make our way down the mountain for dinner.
What we realized too late is that Sully knew his time was coming to an end, which is likely why he insisted we go out to dinner.
Because sometime while we were all at the restaurant, we were blissfully unaware that Sully Wilson squeezed Blair’s hand one last time and passed away with a peaceful smile on his face.
Little did I know, two weeks later, just one week after Sully Wilson was laid to rest, my wife packed up and left town in the middle of the night without a single word.
Not to her brothers. Not to me.
But I knew the moment she was gone, because the mountain made sure I sensed it. That’s when I knew our journey had truly begun.
Chapter 5
Em
I tried to stay on the mountain. I really did. But everywhere I went, everything I did, all I could feel was Dad’s absence. Mom’s too. Even though she’d been gone for longer, it was like I was grieving for them both, together this time. It was like there was a new aching wound on my heart I felt could not—would not—heal as long as I was at the ranch.
Was it a coward’s move to sneak away in the middle of the night? Yes.
Did I make it worse by not telling anyone before I left? Absolutely.
Do I regret doing it now that I’m back in Palmer and can finallybreatheagain? No, because I had to put myself first, and I did it knowing that everyone important in my life would understand.
Including my husband—even if he’s that in name only.
Jude Cooper was the other reason I had to leave, even if it’s something I can’t explain away as easily. The more I got to know him, the more time I spent with him, the more I realized that he was special. More than just a symbolic husband. More than just a friendly neighbor.
He proved himself to be everything I sensed he was: kind, thoughtful, patient, understanding, and truly selfless. Hell, hemarriedme so Dad could see me walk down the aisle. He even helped Dad stand up for me during the ceremony.
Once Dad was gone, it was like he understood why I had nothing to give anyone and why I drew into myself. He didn’t judge or push or ask for anything he knew I wasn’t willing to give. He made sure he was there for me and my brothers, whether we needed him or not.Whether I needed him or not.
He’d stop by the ranch every day after finishing his chores at Cooper Ranch. He’d bring frozen dinners for me and my brothers. One day he even helped Asher fix the tractor unit that had broken down. Jude being on the ranch with my brothers and with me just felt…right.
During the funeral, without saying a single word, he reached over and held my hand, being the rock I never knew I needed at the time I was barely holding it together. It was everything.
It also scared me.
Because all I could think about was when the other shoe would finally drop. When would Jude realize he was no longer on the hook and didn’thaveto keep coming around.
Whenever my mind would go down that road, I’d re-read the note he gave me before the ceremony and I’d remember everything he’d done for me since, and I’d start spiraling.
Jude Cooper was too good to be true. So I left before I could find out either way.
The most confusing thing of all that I’ve thought about over and over again since leaving is the way he kissed me after we were pronounced man and wife.
That kiss wasanythingbut fake. It wasn’t even polite, conforming or routine. It wasn’t a peck or even something for show. It was soft and gentle, one of those slow burn kisses. A perfect mix of discovery and testing the waters. And despitethe circumstances and what followed later that night, that kiss—that moment—was the single-best moment of my life thus far.Literally.
My body tingled from head to toe, even myhairfelt like it was standing on end. I was right where I belonged with the person I was meant to belong to. All I wanted to do waskeepkissing him. Definitelynotwhat you should want with a stranger/rival neighbor my father asked to marry me to unite a mountain andhopefullyactivate a prophecy to give my family their soulmates.
When you think about it, the whole thing doesn’t make sense. It sounds downrightfictional.
It’s now been five weeks since Dad’s passing and a month since I squirreled away in the middle of the night.
I did leave my brothers a note, and I made sure to text our family group chat as soon as I got back to Palmer so they wouldn’t worry. Since then, at least once a day if not more, one or more of them texts or calls me to check in. Despite Dare assuring me that they know I was struggling being on the ranch again and they understood why I left, I still feel guilty. I still don’t understand why I had to leave and why I did it the way that I did. I just knew I couldn’t spend another night on the mountain, in the house, without Dad there. It felt wrong. Like I was in the wrong skin.
A feeling that went away more and more the further away I got from Timber Falls.