Page 51 of Tracking Safety

What he didn’t know was what Liam would do with that memory when he saw her walk through the door.

Cora and Jonah—he was pretty sure they’d be okay. But it was his oldest he was worried about.

Lord . . . Luke let out a slow breath. I don’t know if this is right. I don’t know if tonight is too soon or if there’s ever a right time for something like this. But I can’t keep Jenna away from the children, and I can’t keep them away from her. I need You to be in this because I don’t have enough strength on my own.

He pulled up and stopped at the gate, and the modern farmhouse came into view.

Jenna’s breath changed beside him.

He glanced at her. She stared at the house with an expression he couldn’t name. But something in her gaze was stripped and unguarded, and her hands were no longer folded. Instead, they pressed together in her lap.

He punched in the security code, pulled through the gate, and stopped by the garage.

For a moment neither of them moved.

“Aren’t there women staying here now?” she finally asked. “Will I put them in danger?”

He shook his head. “No one is staying here during the construction—which is one reason we’re trying to get this done as quickly as possible.”

“You’re turning them away?”

“No. There’s a ranch out in Arizona that we’ve partnered with. We’ve sent any women who need our help there. Even though all my employees are vetted, we felt better having the women somewhere more secure during this building process.”

“Makes sense,” Jenna murmured.

His gaze lingered on her another moment. “Whatever happens in there, we’ll get through it.”

Jenna’s eyes were bright with questions.

Questions he couldn’t answer right now.

Instead, he climbed out of the truck, praying this reunion went well.

CHAPTER 20

Jenna sat in the passenger seat for one extra breath after Luke’s door closed.

Just one. Just long enough to lift an unspoken prayer.

She didn’t have the words—but God knew the silent cries of her heart. And she knew He’d be with her in this moment.

But she mostly prayed He’d be with her kids during this reunion. She didn’t want to hurt them any more than they’d already been hurt. She couldn’t live with herself if she did.

Finally, she climbed out.

The evening air felt cool and sharp around her, and it smelled of pine and damp earth from the earlier rain. She stood on the driveway a moment and stared at the farmhouse. She thought about all the times she’d imagined this reunion.

She hadn’t pictured it happening at Refuge Cove. She hadn’t pictured any of today like it had turned out. Life had a way of doing that.

Luke came around the front of the truck and nodded toward the door. “Caleb and Naomi are inside. My mom too. The kids⁠—”

She looked at him, waiting for him to finish.

“Like I mentioned earlier, they’re here,” he finally said. “But they don’t know you’re coming. I . . . I didn’t know how to tell them over the phone.”

Jenna’s throat tightened to the point she didn’t trust herself to speak. Suddenly, she second-guessed everything. Maybe she should have changed clothes. Cleaned herself up. Put some concealer beneath her eyes.

But it was too late for any of that now.