Page 71 of First Chance

He lies back on the blanket beside me, and we sit in silence for a long time, staring at the blanket of stars above us. Long enough for the fireworks’ booms to echo up the mountain and fall quiet again once the show is over.

“All this time, I thought your father saved me. I thought it was him who I owed a debt to. But it’s you.”

“You don’t owe me anything. You were innocent, and you deserved to be free.”

“I don’t know how, but I’ll pay you back for your faith in me, I swear.”

I tilt my head to the side to look at him, and he’s already looking at me, so seriously. His normally furrowed brow is even deeper. I want to reach out and smooth it with my finger as if it will take away his hurt.

“Your grandfather told me that I could come here for solace, and I think I’ve found it,” I whisper now that he’s so close. Our faces are still nearly a foot apart, but it feels like centimeters.

“What are you running from? What aren’t you telling me?”

“My family.”

“I know they’re bastards, but there has to be more to it. A woman like you doesn’t come to a place like this for no reason.”

“I needed to be somewhere that my father couldn’t reach. This place is so far off the map that I knew he couldn’t sink his claws in and ruin it for me. And, I hoped that your grandfather would keep his promise. To keep me safe.”

“I’ll keep you safe, Jo.”

“I know, that’s why I put up with your grumpy attitude.”

He scoffs, but a small smile tilts his lips, and I cherish it because I never know when I’ll see the next one.

“Why didn’t you tell me all of this from the beginning? From the first time you drove through these gates.”

“I didn’t want you to give me a job because of your grandfather or because of my dad. I was prideful enough that I wanted to earn it the old-fashioned way, but I was desperate and took the job anyway after you found out I was a Montgomery.”

“I’m glad you took it.”

“Me too.” My eyes trace the scars on his face, still not knowing the story behind them. But as we sit in silence, only accompanied by the sound of the world around us, croaking toads, vibrating beetles, and the occasional grunt that I’ve convinced myself is one of the bears, I can’t make myself ask.

I don’t want him to have to share any more sad stories with me, not tonight.

“I can’t believe he never told me my guardian angel was a teenage girl,” he ponders out loud, looking back up to the sky.

“It was my father who signed the papers.”

“Your father is a jackass. I won’t give that man credit for a thing,” he states seriously, making me smile.

He notices my amusement and his face softens instantly.

“It broke my heart when you told me he was dead, though,”I admit softly.

“I was so callous about it, too.” He sighs, rubbing a hand across his face in regret. “He’s buried here on the property. If you’d ever like to visit him.”

“I’d love to.”

Saying goodbye properly might give me closure, even though I only ever met the man one time. I spent years idolizing him in my head, hoping I’d see him again one day.

He talks me down the ladder and we take a different path I’ve never traveled, only guided by the moonlight and the occasional lightning bug.

“I still didn’t get to see a bear.”

“I’ll make it happen soon, don’t worry.” He smiles softly, and the sight of it makes my stomach flutter. It does a flip when his knuckles brush the back of my hand as we walk side by side.

That small touch of his skin makes me ache to hold his hand again. Not because he’s helping me unbuckle a seat belt or getting me out of an awkward situation, but because he’s a man who wants to hold my hand.

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