“Sunny isn’t going to want to leave, but I think I can convince her that keeping Sadie safe should be our priority.” Sawyer nodded. “Hop in and I’ll drive over to the bakery,” Aaron offered. He threw his gear in the back of the truck, and Sawyer got into the passenger side. When they got to the bakery, Tag and Piper were already there. As soon as Aaron walked through the door, Sunny ran across the room and threw herself into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. She kissed him as if they had just seen each other three hours ago. Honestly, it felt like three days to him. Since being back in town, he wasn’t without Sunny and now, Sadie, for even an hour. He loved that Sunny didn’t care that all their friends and her customers were watching them make out in the middle of her bakery.
“I was so worried,” she breathed.
“Honey, you are going to have to get used to me going on calls—it’s part of my job.” He was still holding her in his arms since she made no move to unwrap her legs from his waist.
“I know that, but the fire was at our home.” She sobbed, and the fear in her eyes gutted him. “What if we were home?” She shook her head and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Shhh, baby. It’s all good now.” He set her on the table closest to them and gently kissed her lips. Their friends were too busybeing distracted by something cute that Sadie was doing, giving them a few private moments.
“We are all safe and I’m going to keep us that way,” he promised.
“Torren was a lousy babysitter, and he’s a bully. He locked me in my office and wouldn’t let me out until Pipe and Tag got here. And he saw my boobs.” Aaron shot Torren a murderous look, and Tor held his hands up in defense and then shrugged. Aaron knew that Torren and Sunny had a thing a while back. But he also knew that Sunny was loyal, and if she said that she loved him, she meant it. “Well, Torren and I will talk about him looking at your boobs later. Right now, we need to all put our heads together and come up with a plan.” Sunny nodded, then shot one of her sassy smiles in Torren’s direction and stuck out her tongue, causing them all to laugh.
“Yeah, honey, maybe we don’t teach our daughter to do that.” Aaron pulled her into his arms, and she snuggled into his chest.
“Was it the same guy?” she whispered against his neck. Aaron almost didn’t want to answer her, but he knew that his girl wouldn’t leave it alone until she had her answer. She wasn’t one to sit on the sidelines and watch life happen. If something needed to be fixed, she would want in on finding a solution.
“I believe it was,” Aaron admitted. She sighed at his confirmation, and he wanted to tell her that it was all going to be okay, but he wasn’t sure that he could make that promise.
“We are going to have to find someplace safe to go for a while. I just need time to think things through and come up with something,” Aaron said. Sunny nodded.
“Well, we’ve all been talking over here,” Sawyer cut in, “and I think we may have an idea.” Sunny jumped down from the table, and she and Aaron joined the rest of the group.
“Okay, let’s have it then. What’s the plan?” Aaron asked as he pulled Sunny into his side and took Sadie from Piper. He lovedthe way his daughter seemed to know him already. She snuggled into his arms and yawned. He kissed her little rosy cheek and gave his attention back to Sawyer.
“Well, your new employee is the one who came up with the plan, actually,” Sawyer whispered. “Sorry, I’m trying to learn how to whisper around sleeping babies. Lorna says my indoor voice is a little loud. Of course, she was a librarian, so I’m not sure that she is a credible source,” Sawyer said. Sunny giggled, “I think your baby will learn to adjust to your indoor voice, Sawyer. So, what is the plan?” Sunny seemed a bit on edge, and Aaron had to admit he felt the same. Sawyer motioned for Justice to join them, and she reluctantly made her way around the counter to stand next to Sunny. Aaron only met Justice a handful of times, and she always seemed so sure of herself. He liked her since she kind of reminded him of a younger Sunny.
“Go on, Justice—it’s a good plan,” Piper whispered. Justice still seemed a little reluctant to speak up. She looked over to Sunny and Aaron and cleared her throat.
“I haven’t been exactly honest about who I am. My name isn’t Justice McCoy. It’s Justice Hobbs, and my father is the mayor.” Sunny gasped, and Justice looked down at the floor. “Before you get angry with me, I’m so sorry I had to keep who I am a secret. See, my dad doesn’t know where I am—no one in my family knows except my grandma. It’s a long story, one that I will someday share. But it’s not important now. What is important here is that I know where you all can hide out for a bit.” Justice looked hopeful.
“Go on,” Sunny coaxed, “and don’t think you’re off the hook for lying to me about who you are. You know that I care about you, and if you have a reason for hiding out from your family, then I’ll keep your secret.” Sunny pulled Justice in for a quick hug. “So, let’s hear your plan, Justice.”
“Well, my grandmother owns one of the largest cattle ranches in Colorado, about three hours from here. You three can go there and stay until they catch the creep that is trying to hurt you.” Sunny nodded, “That just might work, Justice. Thank you. Do you think your grandmother will be okay with two strangers and a newborn infringing on her home?” Aaron looked down at Sadie, worried that a screaming baby might wear out their welcome quickly.
Justice laughed, “I’m not sure you understand. She owns most of Goose Creek—you know, the biggest tourist attraction in Colorado? You can stay in one of her guest cabins, a few miles down the road from the main house. She won’t even know that you’re there. Hell, she’ll love Sadie. This time of year, she usually has a lot of traffic—tourists coming and going. You three could just blend in.” Justice reached over to stroke Sadie’s little bald head.
“So—what? We just run and hide until this guy either turns himself in or is caught?” Sunny asked. She didn’t look convinced that the plan would work, and Aaron’s heart sank. He needed her to be on board because staying in Harvest Ridge was too risky.
“Well, that’s where I come in,” Sawyer offered. “I’m going to be staying at your condo and waiting for this asshole out.”
Sunny growled, “Language, Sawyer!” Everyone laughed, and Sawyer turned three shades of red. “Yeah, sorry about that. Lorna keeps threatening to wash my mouth out with soap if I don’t stop cussing before the baby comes.” Everyone laughed again, even Sawyer this time. “We have a lead as to who this guy is, and if it’s Reid, sooner or later, we’ll catch up to him. I’m going over to meet with his wife after this, and hopefully, she’ll give us some clue as to where to start.” Sawyer said. Aaron patted Sawyer’s shoulder and smiled. “Let me know what you get from Reid’s wife. We appreciate everything, Sawyer. Really,everyone, I don’t know what we would do without you all,” Aaron said, handing Sadie to Sunny so he could start getting everything together.
“Justice, let's shut down the bakery, and we can load up and start for your grandmother’s,” Sunny said. Justice looked a little green. “Um, I can’t go back right now. Besides, someone will need to stay here and run your bakery.” Sunny wanted to insist, but she also knew that Justice was right. She did need someone to run her place, especially if they were going to be gone for a while. “All right, I appreciate that, Justice.” Sunny hugged her and started going over everything that she would need for a couple of weeks. Tag and Piper promised to check in on Justice to make sure she had everything she needed. Everything seemed to be working out, and Aaron was grateful that Sunny was on board. The sooner he got his family out of town, the sooner he would be able to breathe again. He just hoped that his former captain would slip up sooner rather than later because he had already spent enough time away from home.
They pulled onto Justice’s grandmother’s property just before sundown. They spent the rest of the afternoon packing up Aaron’s pickup truck, mostly with baby stuff, while their friends helped and kept watch. Sawyer even pulled in a few of his officers to stand guard while they loaded their belongings into Aaron’s truck and left town, their tails between their legs. At least that’s what it felt like. Sunny hated that they were running, effectively being forced out of their home like cowards. It went against all her instincts not to stay and fight, but if Aaron was correct, this guy Reid had a vendetta and was crazy enough to hurt all of them. She wouldn’t put Sadie in harm’s way, so theywere running. Aaron seemed to sense her uneasiness, pulling her hand into his.
“It won’t be forever, Sunny. We just need to lie low for a few days and give Sawyer some time to figure this all out. If it is Reid who’s after us, he’ll fuck up at some point and we’ll get him.”
Sunny sighed, “Language, Aaron. Even though Sadie is sleeping, she can still hear what you are saying. I know that it is only for a little while; I just hate that one crazy person is dictating where and how we live our lives. We just had a baby. I should still be resting, and we should be at our home, enjoying all the cute little things that she is learning to do daily. You know, like normal new parents.”
“Honey, nothing about us being parents has been normal. Hell, I didn’t even know that I was a parent until about a month ago. I think we are both doing a great job considering all the curve balls we’ve been thrown.” Aaron squeezed her hand and smiled at her, but it didn’t help her mood. “I just wish we didn’t have to run. Leaving our town and all our friends and family feels wrong.” Sunny looked out her window, taking in the scenery. The mountains dotted the landscape and were covered with evergreens; some were even still snowcapped. In the valley, little outbuildings were starting to pop up, telling her that they were starting to get close to the ranch’s main house. She couldn’t wait to meet Justice’s grandmother, Norma Jeane Hobbs. Justice shared a few stories about her grandma while she helped them pack, and they reminded Sunny of her grandmother, Bea. They both seemed like amazing, strong women, and Sunny only hoped that she could raise Sadie to be half the woman her Grandma Bea was. She looked to the back seat where her daughter was snuggled into her car seat, sleeping. Most of the trip was a quiet one. They stopped along the side of the road once so that she could feed Sadie, but the baby slept the rest of the trip.
“She’s going to want to eat again, soon. I hope we are almost there.” Sunny turned back around in her seat.
“I think that’s Mrs. Hobbs’s house, up there.” Aaron pointed to a huge log cabin that was much larger than the little cabins that dotted the valley. It had to be the main house.
“Wow, it’s gorgeous,” Sunny whispered.
