Page 168 of Noel Secrets

Chapter Seventeen

David tore open his presents and squealed with delight.

Darby’s heart swelled at seeing him smile and laugh … especially given all they’d been through.

Their Christmas dinner consisted of chicken and potato salad from a local restaurant and, although they’d decorated their little motel room and gotten a tree, it was still not home.

None of it bothered David. He spent most of his time playing with Hercules. Darby could see the dog had missed him too. Neither of them left the other’s side throughout the day.

“Can I take Hercules to the parking lot to play?” David asked.

She didn’t like the idea of letting him out of her sight again, but their little motel room didn’t have enough room for a child to play, and David had nervous energy to work out. “Okay, but stay close.”

He seemed to be handling the fallout of everything they’d been through pretty well, although Darby suspected it hadn’t hit him yet. It had been less than twenty-four hours since Clay had rescued them both from Suzanne’s clutches.

She stood at the doorway and watched David bounce the tennis ball he’d picked out for Hercules and the dog chase after it. When they both chased the ball around the corner, herheart stopped briefly and didn’t start again until he reappeared moments later.

Clay moved to her and pulled her gently into his arms. “You okay?”

She shrugged, suddenly overwhelmed at having David out of sight for even a nano-second. “I guess part of me still expects to see danger return.”

“It won’t. Not anymore.”

She believed that. Her uncle was in jail and the hits on her life had all been cancelled. Suzanne was in custody too. Max had given her up quickly as the architect of the plan to abduct David for ransom as well as her order for Max to kill him.

She leaned into Clay’s chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. “I have a hard time convincing myself that it’s really over.

“It is. David’s safe. And we’re … here.”

“Together,” she said.

He brushed his lips across her temple as his thumb traced the edge of her jaw.

Darby looked up at him, her voice quieter now. “What do we do next?”

“I don’t know, but I hope I’m a part of it.”

“Of course you are.” Her throat tightened, emotion catching in her chest. “I need you.”

Clay took her hand, pressed it over his heart. “You have me. All of me.”

From the parking lot, laughter rang out—David’s, high and bright.

They turned to the sound, and Darby smiled. “I’ve been thinking. When you go home, maybe David and I could come too. There’s nothing left in Sheraton for us. But there’s everything in you.”

He stilled, surprise flickering across his face—then warmth. “You’d really do that?”

Darby nodded. “I want a new start. With you. And David.”

His eyes lit with something deeper than joy—something rooted in love and hope. “I’m glad you said that because I got something for you today while we were out shopping. It’s not much …” He pulled a small box from his pocket.

Her breath caught.

“No grand speech,” he said, a little hoarse. “Just this. I love you, Darby. I want to build a life with you and David. Will you marry me?”

Tears welled in her eyes as she opened the box to reveal a ring. A joyful laugh escaped her “Yes. A thousand times, yes.”

He slid the ring onto her finger and kissed her slow and deep, as the sun disappeared behind the trees and the future waited just beyond the horizon.

David shouted for them, his voice full of laughter and hope. Full of life once again.

They turned, fingers intertwined, and walked out to join him—together.

Forever.