“And I told you I’d risk it.”

“Even if I’m still scared?”

He pulled her close, his lips feather light as he touched them to her forehead. “Especially if you’re scared.” His words were like honey, slow and warm and unbearably sweet. “I can be brave enough for the both of us until you get good at it.”

“How do you know I will?”

“Because you’ve finally decided to. And because the woman I know is much too strong to let a little thing like being loved scare her for long. You’re going to get good at it, Christy-Lynn. I promise. In fact, something tells me you’re going to get very good at it.”

He kissed her then, so slowly and thoroughly that she felt herself sway against him. It was the delicious surprise of it that made her head swim, the rightness of their bodies melding together, like two halves of the same perfect whole. She was ready. After years of running, of hiding, of punishing herself, she was ready to let herself be happy.

But there was something they hadn’t discussed. She pulled away briefly, looking up at him through damp, spiky lashes. “In the interest of full disclosure, I need to inform you that I’m now a package deal—I come with a little girl.”

Wade grinned broadly as he dragged her back against his chest. “And a cat,” he murmured against her mouth. “Don’t forget the cat.”

FORTY-EIGHT

Riddlesville, West Virginia

October 15, 2017

Christy-Lynn glanced at Wade as he pulled the Rover into Rhetta’s drive and cut the engine.

He must have felt her gaze because he turned and reached for her hand. “Ready?”

She pulled in a deep breath, the kind kids took before hurling themselves into the deep end of the pool. “I think so.”

Wade gave her fingers a squeeze. “You are. I promise.”

Rhetta was at the door before they made it up the porch steps. She looked frailer than the last time Christy-Lynn had seen her, her eyes rimmed with shadows, her face worn. Inside the door, a pair of battered green suitcases waited, along with a pink fleece jacket and Iris’s beloved teddy—a child’s life stuffed into two avocado-green Samsonite cases. The sight brought a sharp pang of memory, of other moving days, of strange beds and new schools, of having to start all over—again.

She must be terrified.

Wade followed the direction of her gaze. “It’s okay,” he said softly. “This is good. It’s right.”

Christy-Lynn nodded, noting the trio of half-packed boxes in the middle of the living room floor. Rhetta had been packing, picking and choosing which things to take with her to Pine Brook and which to leave behind. She was glad to see it. Part of her had been afraid she might change her mind at the last minute.

Christy-Lynn nodded at the boxes. “You’ve been busy.”

Rhetta’s faded blue eyes moved wearily around the room full of knickknacks, as if wondering where it had all come from. “I’m leaving more than I’m taking. They say I won’t even need to bring dishes to the new place. I should be able to finish boxing the things I want by the time you come back.” She paused, making another scan of the living room. “I still can’t believe I’m leaving this place. I always thought I’d die right here in this house.”

Christy-Lynn had no trouble believing that. “Will you miss it?”

Rhetta mulled the question a moment, lips pursed thoughtfully. “I’ll be sad to leave Honey all alone in that cemetery,” she said finally. “She always hated this town, and now she’ll never get out. But Iris will, and I’m glad of that. She deserves better than the little bit I could give her.”

“Where is Iris?” Christy-Lynn asked, imagining her hiding somewhere, sobbing her heart out.

“She’s in her room. I sent her to check her closet one last time. Trying to keep her busy.” She paused, gathering a shaky breath, then called down the hall. “Iris, honey. It’s time to go.”

Christy-Lynn cringed, wondering what those words must sound like to a three-year-old who was about to be yanked up by the roots, torn from the only home she’d ever known.

“How is she? Is she . . . upset?”

Rhetta’s lips thinned. “There were some tears when I first told her. But she settled down when she realized she’d be living with you—her Angel Mama.”

Rhetta loved the nickname, and apparently Iris did too, but it still made Christy-Lynn uncomfortable. It wasn’t an easy name to live up to, especially for someone with no maternal skills whatsoever.

Rhetta reached for her hand, her smile teary. “Don’t you worry. She’s young, and young hearts mend. A year from now she won’t remember this place, and you’ll be her mama for real.”

Christy-Lynn felt the butterflies in her stomach stir to life. “She knows you’ll be nearby though, right? That she can see you whenever she wants?”

“Yes, but not too much at first, I think. Having me around in the beginning would only confuse her. That’s why I wanted to wait a bit before coming. She needs to get settled in, to know her place is with you now.”

Before Christy-Lynn could protest, Iris appeared wearing the sparkly pink sneakers she had brought her the last time she visited. Her eyes went wide when she spotted Wade and Christy-Lynn.