Page 122 of Theirs to Hunt

"I am okay," she whispers, tears finally falling. "And I am so damn grateful. Bobbie, I…" Her voice breaks.

I do not rush her.

"I have lived most of my life like none of it mattered," she says, eyes darting anywhere but me. "Surviving. Scraping by. Never letting myself want too much because what was the point? It would just disappear."

She gives me a watery smile.

"Except you. You and Momma Nell were all that grounded me. After we lost Momma, it was just us."

I squeeze her hand, blinking against my own tears.

"But now…" Her breath shakes. "Now I feel like I was finally getting somewhere. Maybe this messed-up, sideways thing that landed in my lap is actually the first real shot I have ever had. At something different. At a life that is mine. Even if it is not what I pictured. Or what society would call normal."

She looks up at me, eyes glassy but clear.

"I know it is weird. I know it is fast. And God, it is dark in places. But I see it now. WhatI have. What they are. And I just want to hold on tight. Because I do not think I will survive losing it.

"I mean, for God’s sake, Grayson is tracking my period and talking about lineage. And Brooks, sweet, loving Brooks, is talking about how he cannot wait to see a pregnancy glow. It has been days and a lifetime all at once and I want all that. With them."

I swallow the lump in my throat and rest my forehead against hers, gentle.

"You will not lose it. They will not let you. And neither will I."

She closes her eyes and nods. I stay there a moment longer before easing back.

"Alright," I whisper. "Let’s get your boys."

She grabs my hand again before I can leave, voice fragile but urgent.

"It is all coming together for both of us. You and Devon. And me and—"

She does not get the rest out.

The door bursts open.

Brooks rushes in, eyes wild with love and relief, Grayson just behind him. He stops in the doorway for half a second, clutching a massive bouquet from the gift shop. A peace offering and a prayer in one.

His hands flex. He takes a breath and strides across the room just as Brooks reaches her side.

Brooks folds her into his arms, pressing kiss after kiss to her face, murmuring how much he loves her, afraid to stop saying it.

Behind him, Grayson comes to a reverent stop at her bedside. A man who just found the thing he did not believe existed anymore.

She reaches out her other hand to him. That simple gesture, open and steady, cracks him open. The invitation. The catalyst. The silent permission he did not know he needed.

His face shifts. Fills withsomething raw and wordless as he gazes at her.

Then, gently, he sets the bouquet aside and takes her hand in both of his.

Takes his place.

I can no longer see my petite friend. She is fully enclosed now, surrounded by them.

A living shield.

A storm and a sunrise, shoulder to shoulder, built to keep the world from touching her again.

And for the first time in years, I believe.

I believe that maybe, just maybe, there are happy ever afters.

And possibilities beyond our wildest dreams.

Even for girls like us.