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“Thanks, Mom, but?and remember I love you?you are driving me crazy. I am fine now, albeit a little sore, and you don’t need to keep hovering anymore.” I look into Mom’s blue eyes, the shade very similar to my own. Her long silver-grey hair?which makes her look so dignified?is pulled back into a clip.
She lets out a deep breath and her shoulders droop. “I know you’re fine, honey. I promise, I do. But when we got that call from Cooper telling us you’d been attacked, everything in me just froze. I was so scared for you, and even though he told us you were fine, I kept imagining what you had been through, and to see your beautiful body all bandaged up, I just…”
“I can’t imagine how hard that phone call was, but you can see me now, I’m a little gimpy but totally fine. I wasn’t even in the hospital for very long. On top of all of that, the stitches come out soon, and then everything will be smooth sailing from there.”
“Are you sure? I can still help you around the house.”
“I’m positive, Mom. I know you’ve been delaying your travel schedule for me, and while I appreciate it, it’s not necessary anymore.” She looks me over as if to make sure I really am okay and then nods her head.
“We do need to get back on the road. We were supposed to be helping a clinic in South Africa.”
“Well then, let’s get you to South Africa,” I say with a laugh because that sounds ridiculous coming out of my mouth.
“Quinn, I want you to know that even though we don’t completely understand your job in this gallery, we can see how happy you are here, and we’re incredibly proud of you. That’s all we want, you know. After everything that’s happened…we just want you safe and happy.”
Despite having missed the launch party, I’m still trying to keep up with the gallery while I heal, and Mom has gotten a small glimpse into what I’m doing now.
“Yeah, I know, Mom, and I am both of those things.” I give her one more big hug, and then we work on packing up their stuff and arranging their flights.
Cooper comes in while Mom and I are fixing dinner. He’s been helping wrap up Rachel’s case. She hasn’t said a single word since her arrest, but they’ve still found evidence tying her to both murders.
I guess she was living with the manager of the impound lot, and that’s how she got the key to the car. One of the part-time guys had noticed it missing, otherwise, it wouldn’t have ever been reported. So, between my testimony, the evidence they’ve found, and what she told Cooper at the lake, she’s going to be in prison for a very long time.
“How are you feeling?” Cooper asks as he gives me a quick kiss and then hugs my mom.
“I’m doing good today. Moving around a little more to keep from getting too stiff.”
“Oh, so he can ask how you are and it’s fine, but me, I’m told I’m hovering,” my mom says with a huff and a wink at me, telling me she’s kidding. That has been one of the greatest things about her being here. We’ve gotten to know each other so much better as adults than just mother and daughter, and I’ve learned so much about my mom that I never knew before. Most importantly, her sense of humor.
Cooper looks at me with wide eyes like he stepped into a fight and doesn’t know how to fix it, which makes me laugh. I put him out of his misery and tell him she’s joking. “Mom and I had a little heart to heart today about them getting back to work because we all know it’s time for them to move on, but she was afraid she’d be abandoning me,” I inform Cooper. His eyes flash with a huge amount of relief, but he quickly recovers.
“It’s been great having you here though, Denise, and knowing that Quinn is being taken care of while I’m at work has been so helpful,” he says.
“I appreciate you saying that, but Quinn is right. I have been hovering and it’s time to let you guys have some alone time.” Cooper just nods his head and smiles at me, and I can already tell he’s thinking, thank god.
“Where’s Paul at?” he asks about my dad.
“He and your dad were playing golf this afternoon, and we haven’t seen them since,” I say. My dad and Rob have gotten very close in the almost two weeks my parents have been here. They’re like long-lost brothers, and if I’m honest, Mom and Dad would be more likely to come for a visit to see Rob instead of me.
A few minutes later, we hear them clomping into the house, chattering away like teenage girls. Piper trots in behind them having gone to the golf course with the boys, and Alice sneaks in carrying another bag of groceries. They clamor into the kitchen and hellos are given out to everyone, including Piper.
We all pitch in to set the table for dinner and sit down to share the meal. The whole scene fills my heart with happiness as I watch our two families enjoy each other’s company. I’ve always dreamed of moments like this but never thought I’d get to have it.
I moved to Sonoma in the hopes of finding the same happiness I found every summer all those years ago. I knew being in my grandparents’ house was the perfect start, and from there, I could find out who I am and what makes me, me. I had no idea that one decision could lead to me finding the love of my life, the best group of friends, and the home I had always wanted.
I feel Cooper’s hand on my thigh under the table and turn to look at him. Every feeling of love and happiness I just had is reflected back at me. It’s a look I will never tire of and one I hope I can return for the rest of my life.
EPILOGUE
QUINN
“Babe, are you ready to go?” Cooper asks, walking into our bathroom. I’m standing at the sink in nothing but my underwear, trying to get my hair to do what I want. “I can see the answer is no,” he says, walking up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist.
“We don’t have time for any funny business, mister,” I say with a smirk, although I could be persuaded into some funny business pretty easily.
“No, we don’t, and you still need to get dressed. I will not have my girl parading around in her birthday suit, even if it is her birthday.” I laugh and wiggle around, pushing my butt into his crotch. “Stop wiggling and get dressed. We need to get moving,” he says, slapping my butt and walking away.
“Tease!” I yell out from the bathroom, making him laugh out loud. Megan and Todd are hosting a birthday party for me tonight, and it’ll be the first large gathering I’ve been to since the attack. Looking at my body, I trace the pink lines on my torso from Rachel’s knife.
