Page 43

Chapter 42

Mila

W e spent the night at the hospital. Jude got stitches and a heavy dose of antibiotics, and when we were finally left alone, I curled up in the bed next to him. We were filthy and exhausted, but for the first time in hours, I could finally draw a full breath.

The bullet had grazed his thigh, causing minimal damage. But he’d need to rest for a while and would likely need a little physical therapy.

Curled up on his chest, I tried to wrap my mind around the events of the day. I’d thought of nothing but this trafficking ring and avenging my brother for so long. I’d lived as Amy. I’d quit my job and given up my entire life. And as good as it felt to see all those guys arrested, to know that I’d done my part to take them down, there was still a gnawing emptiness in my gut.

Because now I had to rebuild. Start from scratch. And I wasn’t sure I knew how.

“Rest, Trouble,” Jude murmured, pulling me against his chest. We were not supposed to be wedged in this hospital bed together, and the nurses would probably yell at me when they came back to check his vitals in an hour, but I couldn’t stand even a few inches of distance. He’d been shot trying to help me.

“I can’t. My brain is going too fast.”

“Let me help you slow it down.” He kissed me softly.

Instantly, I melted into him. Okay, that was a bit better.

“The timing is terrible and doing this in a hospital is even worse.” He shook his head. “But now that this is over, or at least over for now, I want you to know I love you.”

A lightness I wasn’t sure I was capable of feeling at the moment fluttered through me. “I love you too.”

“I know you’ve probably got a lot of exciting things out there waiting for you, but I’d love to be a part of it.”

Heart clenching, I buried my face in his neck. “I want that too,” I said against his skin. “In every other aspect of my life, I’m lost. But the one thing I know for certain is that I want to be with you.” Heat pricked at the backs of my eyes. “The possibilities are overwhelming. I can’t even begin to figure out what comes next. But you are the best person I’ve ever met. Regardless of all of it, I want to be by your side.”

He held me for a moment, the two of us silent, both processing my admission. This felt good. Vulnerability, honesty. I’d never been comfortable with either, but Jude was worth it.

“We have time to figure it all out,” he whispered. “You were so brave. So amazing. Let yourself recover. Then we can write our next chapter.”

“I don’t know what I want the next chapter to include,” I admitted. “Aside from you and Ripley.”

“That sounds like a good start. First, let’s try being normal, like we planned. I’ll take you out to dinner, and we can go for hikes with Ripley. From there, we can take that vacation we were talking about.”

I smiled at the thought of sand in my toes.

We fell asleep making mundane plans for when he was released and we’d both healed. We’d paint the bedroom, and he would teach me how to work the pizza oven. Then there were the endless Scrabble rematches and some nights volunteering to babysit his nieces and nephew.

As I drifted off to sleep against his strong chest, all I could think was how perfect it all sounded.

* * *

Gus met us the next morning, handling the discharge paperwork and tearing up when he saw his baby brother in a hospital bed.

“Fuck, Jude.” He shook his head.

“Any news?”

“Lots of arrests. Charles Huxley took off. They think he’s headed to the Cayman Islands, but Parker has a team from the ATF hunting him down.”

Of course she did.

“The town is in an uproar. It’s wild out there. Everyone is so worried about you. How are you guys feeling?”

“Tired,” Jude said, shooting me a wink. “Can’t wait to get home.”

The nurse rolled a wheelchair into the room and motioned for Jude to get into it.

“Do you really think you need that?” Gus picked up the crutch his brother had been using.

“I got shot,” Jude huffed.

“The doctor said grazed ,” Gus replied, arching a brow. “Pretty sure that’s different.” He ruffled Jude’s hair affectionately. “I’m not gonna start going easy on you now, little brother. Plus Mom is going to fuss all over you when we get to her house.”

Jude frowned. “Mom’s house?”

“We’ve all been summoned. She’s got to feed you and see for herself that you’re okay. No use fighting it.”

With a chuckle, Jude shook his head. “Sorry.” He pushed my hair behind my ear. “My family can be a lot, and it looks like you’re meeting my mom today.”

After loading up in the car and driving the forty minutes back to Lovewell, I was starving and in desperate need of a shower.

I knew so much about Jude and had heard all about his large, boisterous family, but aside from that first night, I hadn’t actually met any of them but Willa. With every mile we traveled, my stomach twisted tighter and worries consumed me.

Would they resent me for putting him in danger? How could I look his mother in the eye, knowing it was my fault her son had been shot?

Turned out there was no point worrying. Gus hadn’t even put his truck in park before people were spilling out of the house. They were hugging and crying and telling me the names of all the various kids who were running around.

There were others too. Parker and her husband, who was holding a little girl, and more of their family members. Parker’s brothers-in-law, maybe.

I couldn’t keep track. And honestly, the someone I was most interested in seeing wasn’t even human.

At least fifteen people had come out of the house when Ripley finally bounded down the front steps. She stopped right in front of Jude, sniffing his crutch and instantly sensing his injury. He bent at the waist and buried his face in her fur, hugging her fiercely.

When he straightened, I dropped to my knees and did the same. “You are such a good girl,” I said as she licked my face. “I missed you so much.”

Jude’s mom, who insisted I call her Debbie, hugged me several times, getting teary and thanking me for saving her precious boy.

I explained gently that it was the other way around, but she wouldn’t hear it.

Inside, I felt as if I’d found myself on the set of a heartwarming movie. The home was neat and filled with food and kids. Every person in attendance was happy and kind and determined to feed me. The love that filled this place to the brim made my heart ache for my own little family. I missed my mom and Hugo so much.

Once we got settled at Jude’s, I’d talk to him about borrowing his truck so I could drive down to Boston this week.

Debbie led me to the couch, carrying a slice of pie the size of my head in one hand. She’d urged me onto the cushion and forced the plate into my hand when Willa sat next to me, giving my knee a reassuring pat.

“You doing okay?”

I nodded, taking a big bite. Shit, this was good pie.

“You’re madly in love with him, aren’t you?” she asked, following my gaze to where Jude sat across the room, babbling to his niece Tess.

I shrugged and stuffed another bite of pie into my mouth.

“It’s okay. The Hebert boys are an irresistible bunch.”

“Truth.” A woman with a dark ponytail joined us. She’d been introduced as Victoria, Noah’s girlfriend. “We all knew he was hung up on you,” she said. “The mystery woman.”

“I was pretty much gone when he played the guitar for me,” I admitted, feeling like I was being granted admission into some kind of sisterhood.

Victoria fanned herself and Willa pumped her first. “Good work, Jude.”

For a moment, I was entranced by the bearded man in glasses across the room. He looked tired, but so, so happy as his brothers gathered around him.

“What are your plans?” Willa asked. “Are you staying?”

“Yes, I was wondering too,” Victoria said, her expression eager. “And if you have free time, I’m always looking for volunteers at the food bank.”

I looked between them, at a loss for how to respond.

“Do you know how to knit?”

“Ladies.” Alice Gagnon appeared, giving me a big smile. “Don’t overwhelm her.” She sat in the chair beside the couch and crossed her legs. “Mila, sweetie, when you’re healed, I want you to come and talk to my students about journalism. Tell them all about your exciting career.”

“Maybe leave out the getting shot at part,” Willa said.

“That’s my favorite part.” Parker sauntered up with a baby on her hip and a beer in her hand. “When I go to career day, I always bring a sidearm.”

Alice rolled her eyes. “Ignore Chief Gagnon. She’ll be gloating about arresting her crappy ex-boyfriend for the next decade.”

Parker tipped her imaginary hat at me. “I owe you, Mila. Cuffing that fucker will go down as one of the greatest moments of my life.”

Willa raised her wineglass and Parker clinked her beer against it.

“How did you know to come?” I asked Parker. “When we spoke on the phone?”

She shifted the baby and took a long sip of beer. “I wasn’t being totally transparent that day on the phone because I suspected a law enforcement leak. Never thought it would be Bryce, though.” She chuckled. “He’s always been an uptight by-the-book asshole, but I guess even those types can go rogue. Also,” she sighed, “Gus called me. Told me what you two were planning.”

I looked over at Gus, who had his arm around his wife, a petite redhead, and had a sleeping baby on his shoulder.

“I knew your instincts were good,” Parker continued. “And when Gus told me about the location you suspected, it made sense. Had the state police on standby, and it turned out to be a bigger bust than we ever could have imagined.”

Victoria leaned forward. “Did you seize a lot of drugs?”

“Yes. Millions of dollars’ worth.” Parker nodded. “And weapons and cash. Turns out it wasn’t just drugs they were running, but illegal weapons. We stopped a lot of bad shit from ending up on the street today. And the dominoes will keep falling. This is big.”

Relief washed over me. I was bone-tired, but the knowledge that people were safer because of what we’d done gave me a surge of energy.

“We could not have done this without you,” Parker admitted. “We were so stuck for so long.”

Willa stood abruptly. “Everyone,” she said.

Slowly, people stopped talking and turned toward us. “I’d like to propose a toast to Mila and Jude.”

Jude shuffled over and Victoria and made space for him. He eased onto the couch and put his arm around me. “To the bravest woman I’ve ever met,” he said, his eyes shining.

“And the lumberjack she dragged along for the ride,” one of the brothers shouted.

The room erupted in laughter.

Without giving myself a chance to second-guess the move, I kissed him chastely on the lips. Even though it lasted mere seconds, heat crept into my cheeks as I pulled back.

“I’m thinking a summer wedding,” Debbie trilled, clapping her hands.

My heart may have lurched, but I didn’t have even the smallest inclination to backpedal or run.

“Mom, give them some space.”

I snuggled into Jude’s chest, soaking in the warmth and safety of his hold as his family bickered good-naturedly around us.

As the night went on, plans were made for Thanksgiving, the Gagnons challenged the Heberts to more wood chopping, and I played peek-a-boo with some really cute kids.

I had no job, no home, and no direction. I had no idea what my next chapter would look like, but I was certain it would start here, in Lovewell, with my sweet lumberjack.