Page 1 of In the Light of Day

Prologue - Ace

Beauty in the Struggle - Bryan Martin?

Present Day

Wrapping my arms around the most beautiful woman in the room I can't help but stare around the lawn and think, I’ve made it. My best friend Dante and his wife Mila watch over their son who is currently in the throes of a sugar high from his first taste of cake while we all laugh along to his squeals of delight. Who knew a 1st birthday party could be so entertaining?

Dante and Mila are humble in everything they do, so there are only a handful of close friends and family at their new house, the brisk mountain air cooling everyone down on this hot summer's day.

Porter hands his girl, Charlie, a glass of wine. The slight limp in his gait still evident despite all the physical therapy he's had. Since the day they were reunited, they've never lost the honeymoon phase and continue to look at each other like horny teenagers in love.

It's been just over a year since we all thought Porter had died, so moments like these, where we get to come together as a group of friends who are more like a dysfunctional family, make the days sweeter and the nights shorter.

Every touch Nova lets me have of her, feeds my soul. I don't take anything she gives me for granted. Every graze of her fingers, her small hand gripped in mine or the quiet nights we share, wrapped in each other on the couch. You would never guess she has a traumatic past by looking at her now but as I nuzzle into her neck and breathe her in, I hope that every day we've shared since the night we met, brings her another step closer to being mine.

“Ace, your stubble is prickly,” she laughs, trying to pull away from me but I hold her tighter for a second before I let her go. The lemon yellow sundress she’s wearing rustles in the breeze and she falls into me without a care in the world, laughing.

I love these moments where she truly lets go and is no longer haunted by her past. I've made it, repeats in my head again and I know that I've got everything I could ever want in this world.

This is happiness.

“I think Pop is leaving so I'm going to say goodbye quickly. Don't go anywhere.”

Her voice is so light and free that I wish I could have told the terrified woman I came across all those years ago that she would get through it. That she was stronger than what happened to her.

“I'll never go anywhere without you, love,” I say, lifting her up and swinging her around. Her squeals and laughter echo across the lawn as the sound of music rings out over the party. She takes her hands and rests them on either side of my face, holding my gaze as she looks at me.

Please, gods, let this be the moment she kisses me, let this be the start of us.

She leans in ever so slightly, her plump lips and bright eyes so close to me now, before she lets out a sigh. Her gaze moves over my shoulder to where I know Seth, her Pop, is standing. I guess the time still isn't right. I'm okay with that, she's worth the wait. Wiggling out of my hold, she takes my hand and we head over to where he stands.

“Great party wasn't it sheriff?” I say grinning at him, holding Nova's hand.

“Nothing like a kid's birthday party to make me feel like I have one foot in the grave, ready to join Martha up there.”

He takes off his hat, wiping his brow as he looks up to the sky.

“Come on Pop, don't talk like that. You're all I have now,” she sighs, reaching over and taking his hand in hers. Nova doesn't share her emotions easily but after the sheriff's wife passed a few years ago, she's triggered when he talks of joining her one day.

“I'm not going anywhere anytime soon so don't you worry about that. Ace, you take care of my baby girl now alright? I’ll see you all for Sunday dinner and stop giving me damn food for my freezer. I survived this long, I'm sure I can survive without freezer meals,” he says, shaking his head, walking away to his patrol car.

Dr Johnson left early into the party, popping in to say hi on his way to work at the medical centre, and now that the sheriff has gone, that just leaves Dimitriy, Porter's brother, as the only extra to our group of six. Considering Porter is currently scowling over how long Charlie’s been laughing and hugging him, I’d say he’s about to leave soon too.

???

Walking into Nova's house we are surrounded by light despite the dark sky outside. Security lights shine brightly outside and almost every interior light is on, set on an automatic timer to turn on at dusk every day.

Throwing my body on the couch, I stretch out. Tired but happy after a day of celebrating.

“Come here, let's watch a movie and relax a bit,” I say, yawning and gesturing to Nova who’s taking off her sandals by the front door.

“I'm going to go and change first. Pick something to watch and I'll be right down. And can we break up the rom-coms with an action film, it's nice to have some man candy every now and then,” she says smiling.

“Hey, I’m great man candy!” I say, making a point to flex my biceps at her. Surely she has to be impressed by how big they have gotten. Waving her hand in the air mumblingsure, sure, her blonde hair falls like ribbons of silk behind her as she makes her way up the stairs and I follow her lead, changing into something more comfortable from the spare clothes I keep here. Sweat’s have never felt so good after being stuck in jeans all day. I don't mind wearing fancy pants but everything just feels better when it has a bit of wiggle room.

Taking some water and popcorn from the kitchen I move into the open plan living space. Everything in Nova’s house is white or has a natural texture. It's a purpose-built, Scandinavian styled dream from the high ceilings to the fuck off large windows almost everywhere.

I dim the inside lights, letting the permanent security lights from outside soften the space with a comfortable glow. I can hear Nova moving around above me before I go to the base of the stairs and wait for her. This situation has played out enough times now that it’s second nature for me to wait here after I dim the lights. My girls got to know she’s not alone, I'm here with her.

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