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Lifting my head off his shoulder, I search his eyes, hoping to find a promise. “You will?”Is he declaring himself?
“I’ll do whatever it takes to protect the three of you.”
Leaning in, I close my eyes and kiss him on the lips, then wrap my arms around his neck and hug him tightly. He hugs me right back. “I feel so safe with you,” I whisper.
“You are,” he answers, dropping a kiss on my temple. “Why don’t you get some rest? You must be exhausted.”
Nodding, I snuggle into him again. “Thank you.”
He pulls a plush throw off the back of the sofa and covers me with it. “Just sleep. I’m here.”
I lie against him, listening to the sound of his heartbeat and let the rise and fall of his chest lull me to sleep.
Chapter32
Digger
I wake with a start as soon as I hear Lily and Liam’s voices. Quickly getting up off the couch, I straighten myself out and do my best to make it seem like I just got here. The last thing I want to do is confuse them.
Lily appears first, her blonde hair resembling a bird’s nest in the back as she pads toward me in her long, pink nightgown. Her eyes light up when she sees me. “Digger? Did you bring us breakfast?”
Before I can answer, Harper bolts upright and says, “Hey, baby, good morning.”
“Morning, Mommy.” Lily hurls herself at her mom for a big hug.
“You hungry?” Harper asks.
“Starving like a big lion!”
“Well, we should feed you then,” I answer. “I didn’t bring breakfast because I need your help at the lodge.”
“We need the big grill for all the pancakes I’m going to eat.”
Harper stands up. “Let’s get you dressed and brush your teeth, okay? Then we’ll go see what Grandpa Jack’s got going on.”
I wait in the living room, listening to the sounds of Harper and the kids in their morning routine. I hear her say, “You have to brushallyour teeth, Lily,” then, “Okay, I better do the ones at the back for you.”
I smile to myself, realizing that for the first time, maybe in my entire life, there’s a chance I could let myself want more. Marriage, the kids, the whole thing. I know how crazy this sounds but maybe one of our own if Harper is up for being pregnant again. But if not, Lily and Liam are enough for me. It’s nothing I’ve allowed myself to want because I never believed it could happen.
I’ve only known Harper for a number of days, but we’ve already gone through so much together, it feels like years.
Somehow, deep in my bones, I know there’s a future here for us. At least I hope there is. The fact that I’m even thinking such a thing is enough to shock the hell out of me.
Harper and I are from two vastly different worlds. I’d never fit into hers, and I’m afraid mine will be too small for her. But maybe, just maybe, it won’t be.
When the three of them finally appear, Liam rushes ahead calling, “I’m driving!”
We’re almost at the golf cart when I first notice them. I hear the clicks of their cameras before I see the reporters hiding in the trees. Then one of them comes rushing out of the woods, shouting questions at Harper while a man with a video camera keeps pace next to him. Before I know what’s happening, we’re being swarmed.
“Harper! Is this your new leading man?”
“Did Brett really knock him out at the bar last night after he caught you two making out on the dance floor?”
“Are you ending your marriage for this guy?”
“Brett says you’ve been coming up to Alaska for a long time to be with Digger. Is that true? And if so, how long has this been going on?”
I freeze, not having the first clue what to do. Harper moves on instinct. She spins around, grabbing Lily and Liam. She tells them, “Get inside. Now.”
