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“I’m not saying it’s necessary,” the doctor said. “Your scars will heal well. But if you ever want to explore that as an option, I’ll be happy to refer you.”
“Thank you,” she whispered.
The doctor smiled. “Hang tight, and we’ll get you out of here, okay?”
She disappeared, and I sat on the bed with Ev. “You okay?”
She leaned back against me, and even in pain, she was more relaxed than I’d ever felt her. “I am.”
“Good.” I slipped my arm around her and hugged her close. “I love you.”
“I love you.” Her voice was a smaller echo of mine, but no less fervent.
I breathed in the freedom of holding her without anything over our heads. We were going home. Together.
Epilogue
Evelyn
Six Months Later
I’d given up on ever seeing Florida again. First, I hadn’t thought I’d ever get to return because of Nathan, and then after he was gone, because I wasn’t ready.
After everything, I didn’t know how seeing all my old places would affect me. But when it was time, I knew.
Dr. Rayne and I had been meeting regularly since everything had happened. Sometimes in her office, sometimes outside, and sometimes with Lucas too. Now that we had shared trauma, it was good to process it together.
The past six months had been... amazing. I’d gone back to work at Deja Brew, helped Lucas with the animals, and lived. He did take me back to the lake—and very thoroughly kept his promise of using a tree. He’d encouraged me to apply to vet studies programs, and even though I wasn’t ready for that, I was thinking about it.
My birthday had happened. I’d almost forgotten about it. After so long not celebrating, and not knowing if I would be alive to celebrate another one, it had snuck up on me. That celebration had been private, just the two of us, and I was grateful for that.
I’d even had consultations with the plastic surgeon about my scars. I wasn’t ashamed of them. Not anymore. Not when Lucas took the time to make sure I knew how brave I was to have them and how beautiful I was anyway. There wasn’t a second where he’d flinched or looked at me as anything but perfect. And he would never know how much that meant to me. It would be a long and slow process, and not every scar could go. But some of them... it would be good.
Most of all, I settled into a life. One that had normalcy and friendships and no more fear. So after our first Christmas together with all of our friends, and after we were buried in snow, when Lucas asked if I finally wanted to go to Florida, I said yes.
Now I was standing on the beach in the warm air. Winter wasn’t hot in Florida, but it was a hell of a lot warmer than Montana was. The tang of humidity brought memories both good and bad.
Honestly, I’d thought I’d miss it more. Yet now that I’d experienced the clear Montana air, there was no comparison. But I felt lighter being here.
Lucas had arranged everything, and this afternoon I’d seen my sister, Melanie, for the first time in years. I’d cried. Hard. Now that I had the freedom to, I cried more often than I felt like I should. But it had been amazing to see her, and we were going to see her again tomorrow.
I wasn’t ready to see the rest of my family after what they’d done and believed. Maybe I’d never be ready. But Melanie was the one who’d saved me, and we were already making plans for her to come visit the ranch in the spring.
Arms snaked around me from behind and a kiss warmed my neck. “Hey.”
“Hi,” I said. The sun was setting now, and I was enjoying the wind blowing on my skin. That was one of my favorite parts of the beach, and probably the one that I’d miss the most.
“You ready?”
“For what?”
“For a surprise.” He smiled, curling himself further around me. Lucas was still so big, and I’d gotten so used to it that I sometimes forgot. But when he curled around me like this, I remembered and felt small. Protected. Loved.
“This is already amazing. You don’t need to surprise me.”
He laughed, the soft sound rolling across my skin and making me hope that the surprise involved going back to our hotel room. “Too late.”
Lucas pulled me down the beach in the direction of our hotel, but not all the way. We drifted toward one of the many restaurants that dotted the area behind the beach, and one in particular seemed to be his goal.
