Page 5 of Almost Home
Hence why I’d met Wyatt that first time through the RuralMatch app. I’d been so worried about trying to meet them and having the whole family refuse to see me, I’d sought out the oldest Saint brother in the weirdest possible way. Fortunately, he hadn’t been bothered and had seemed to understand that I’d needed to approach him that way, even if it barely made sense to me. I’d come here with the goal to heal, and the Saint family played a huge part in that.
“Don’t be sorry, Sadie. It’s not your job to keep me informed of his plans. And I should’ve been more prepared. I think I figured if I saw him, it’d be around the holidays, and it snuck up on me.” To put it mildly.
“Can you help us understand? I mean, I don’t want to drag you through the mud, but can you help us with what had you looking like you’d seen a ghost and could barely keep down your lunch?”
Leave it to Quinn to paint a vivid and brutally straight-forward picture. I inhaled slowly, glancing at each of them and summoning the courage I’d worked up over the last few days. I’d need far more than this to confront Wilder, whenever that happened. It would be good practice.
“We were best friends, then dated and were in love. There was a baby, but we lost it. We’d made all these plans, and then we changed them all when we heard. And then… it was all gone. And I couldn’t—” I cleared my throat, willing that clog of emotion away. I’d actually done really well keeping it together for this recounting. “My parents flipped out when I got pregnant and decided we needed to move—away from Wilder’s bad influence and away from a community who knew about their daughter’s downfall.”
“What the—”
“That’s my wording, but that’s what it amounts to. My dad had taken a job in Silverton when I was younger, but supposedly, they’d never wanted to stay as long as they had. So when I lost the baby, they pushed everything up and my mom, sister, and I left within two weeks. And Wilder…” His face, the dark hair and his navy eyes glittering with tears had burned themselves into my mind. “He let me go.”
“He didn’t fight for you? Or… wait. I’m confused. Did you want him to?” Dahlia asked.
I smiled, understanding the confusion. “He tried to, but I didn’t let him. I was a mess. And the momentum from my parents was easier to ride, so I did. In my grief-twisted brain, I thought it was the right thing for both of us. For all of us.”
Quiet had settled between us, each of them setting down the bouquets they’d been wrapping with ribbons as I spoke. What a powerful visual counterpoint to this story.
“And now?” Sadie asked, her voice tight with emotion.
I loved her for that—her compassion and empathy.
“For a long time, I’ve known what an awful choice that was. Not so much the choice to leave with my family but to refuse all contact—to never reach out and see how he was doing. And at some point soon, whenever he’s back and settled in, I’m going to tell him how sorry I am that I hurt him, and how I wish I hadn’t.”
They each nodded or offered small smiles of encouragement, and I knew what they meant. They hoped I would do it, if only to bring myself some peace after so long. I hadn’t planned on addressing this part of my past anytime soon, but I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t need to. Seeing Wilder was nothing short of a shock, and yet here was the chance I’d been seeking. I’d never placed a limit on my time in Silverton, even if I knew it wasn’t forever, but now, I could see that maybe this was part of why I’d come back.
I couldn’t imagine he still felt wrapped up on the spool of those events so long ago like I did, but maybe it’d give him some peace, too.
And Wilder Saint deserved all the peace he could get.
CHAPTERTWO
Wilder
Four months later
Tossing the last of my stuff onto the back seat of my truck, I took a quick, calming breath. This next part wouldn’t break me.
“We’ll miss you, man. Not sure what Wave’s going to do without you. Not sure what any of us are.” West Wilcox, a fellow team leader, shook my hand and pulled me into a hug.
I held tight, then released him.
Up next came Rob Waverly—AKA Wave. “I’ll miss you, you crusty grump. But I’ve always wanted to ski the Rockies.”
“Come find me when you’re free,” I said, accepting his hug, too.
A small handful of my guys had walked out to the lot with me, and though it would’ve been easier to leave by myself and drive off this compound without the memories and relationships cinching my throat tight, this would help. It’d keep me from tricking myself into living in the past in my head like I did sometimes.
“Will do. Stay well, Saint.” Wave patted my shoulder, then pulled his phone to his ear as he stepped away, already onto the next thing.
He and my team would be rotating into their next recall cycle in just a few weeks. They’d be the number one response force for any emergent problems the US ran into. As part of the Exceptional Mission Unit, that could mean anything from a coup in a country of interest to US citizens kidnapped in some far reach, and many things in between.
But that was no longer my problem. Not that I wouldn’t want to be aware of things, just in case, but life would be very different in Silverton.
My heart kicked at the thought, but I slipped the lid over that particular box and focused on the here and now.
“I’ve got two months, and then I’m invading. You better keep me abreast.” Jaws, also known as Bruce Camden, gave me a little flash of his brows.
