Page 115 of Well Aware

It was a hangar that was right outside Beau’s home. A building that I’d seen every day for the last few weeks but hadn’t thought to question what it was housing.

Iris hadn’t slept the entire time, her eyes wide and alive in a way that I’d never seen them before.

As we watched her skip her way back to the house, through a foot of snow I might add, I couldn’t help but say, “I love you for so many reasons, but one of the top ones is the way you love her.”

He ran his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his side. “You two gave me a reason to live these last eight—nine—months. I love you, too, you know. More than I ever thought possible.”

I leaned my head against his chest as we walked side by side into the house.

Iris was still chattering away about altitude, wind speed, knots, and whatnot.

“You’ve created a monster.” I pointed at him.

He winked. “I’ll nurture this particular monster. I could use a flying buddy.”

As I lay down that evening in Beau’s arms, having made love to him quietly and slowly until we were both exhausted and on the verge of sleep, I made a simple wish.

One that was pretty damn simple. I wanted forever with this man. Iris and I deserved to be happy. Protected and loved in a way that only Beau could provide.

TWENTY-NINE

You had me at ‘we’ll make it look like an accident.’

—Beau to Magnolia

MAGNOLIA

“Are you sure?”

I tapped him on the belly with my toe from where he was standing at the end of the bed. I was still in bed, having not gotten up with him when he’d informed me he was about to go get some grocery shopping done for the winter storm that was set to hit tonight after he dropped Iris off at school and went to his own school to sign some paperwork for next year.

He’d planned on doing it tomorrow, having wanted to spend the day with me in bed being lazy.

But the winter storm had forced him to abandon that idea.

The winter storm was likely about to snow us in. At least for a day, if not two.

And since I didn’t know a damn thing about Montana and their winter storms, I chose to let him do his thing and tell me how it was going to go.

That meant that he was headed for supplies and running all his errands today.

But the way he made tomorrow sound, I was a little bit excited to be snowed in with him.

I didn’t think there’d be anything more beautiful than looking out Beau’s big front windows and seeing the mountains covered in snow.

Another thing he’d mentioned that he was doing was buying some moving boxes so that Merrill could box up some of our things while he was running said errands.

When I’d offered to go over there and do it myself, he’d said no.

I needed a day of rest, and Merrill had agreed.

Plus, she was still mad and freaked out over what had happened. She wanted me at home safe, just in case.

That was also why I was relegated to staying at home while he went to do the errands. He wanted me home safe, just in case.

I wasn’t sure what they thought was going to happen, but I’d acquiesced after making sure that he would grab all my favorite snowed-in snacks.

But, according to him, I was going to have to be careful, because Montana got snow a lot, and I would get myself in trouble if I ate nine thousand calories each time it snowed.