Page 41 of Redemption
We got her back safely, against all odds. She’s still totally and completely perfect.
If that didn’t give me unshakable faith in life, I don’t know what would.
Before tears can well in my eyes, I look up and blink a few times. And right in my line of vision is another reason to trust that everything is going to be okay. Lachlan has a twin brother. And he came into our lives at exactly the right moment.
I pull myself together, because I want to laugh and cry at the same time. It’s the overwhelm of the insanity of the last week, combined with the soul-deep gratitude I have for the feeling of safety and security now wrapping around me from all sides.
We might not know exactly what awaits us on the other end of this flight, but it’s not the bullets and blood we’re leaving behind. My research into Lachlan’s family while I waited at the safe house, alone with Aurora, gives me that certainty. What little I could find on the living members showed me that they don’t live a life anything like the one we’re leaving behind.
And the life they’ll be able to provide for their granddaughter … the possibility was unthinkable only forty-eight hours ago.
It makes me think of something I read years ago—that our destiny is granted with compassion. That we only know what we need to know when we need to know it. We’re kept in the dark about our futures often because it’s the kindest thing for us. I’ve never felt that it was truer than right at this moment.
Everything is going to be okay.
Lachlan squeezes my hand in return. “Are you okay?”
Blinking back the emotions engulfing me, I nod. “I’m good.”
His dark, searching gaze caresses my face. “Sleep, Hellion. You need it. We’re all safe now. Everything’s going to be fine.”
My features soften as I let go of any worry about the future. Everything’s going to be fine. The tension leaks out of my frame as our fingers tangle together.
“I know. I’ve got you and Rory and a family we didn’t know existed.” A full-body yawn escapes me. “I love you. I’m going to rest for a little while,” I say through the yawn as I wipe the moisture from my eyes and settle deeper into the thick cushions of the reclining leather seat.
“I love you too. Sleep. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”
Chapter Twenty
Mount
Keira’s breathing shifts in less than a minute. With a glance, I know she’s asleep. Over the last few years, I’ve made a study of my wife. She’s the most interesting subject I’ve ever devoted myself to, and I have no doubt she will be for the rest of my life. However long that might be.
As if taking a cue from her mother, Aurora releases a sigh and settles against my shoulder. Her chubby fingers ball into a fist that she drools on as she descends into sleep.
The silence of the cabin is permeated by the sounds of the jet engines and the four of us breathing.
“Your family is beautiful,” my brother says quietly. He’s no doubt keeping his voice low so as not to wake them.
I lift my gaze from Aurora’s perfect little fingers and meet his. “It’s more than I deserve. More than I ever knew was possible to have.”
His lashes lower as he takes in my sleeping daughter. “You’re a lucky man. I’m glad you realize how lucky you are.”
I nod as Aurora’s tiny breaths heat a small patch of my skin beneath my shirt.
“The luckiest there ever has been.” I lift my head to meet my brother’s gaze once more. “We’ll see how long that luck lasts.”
My brother shakes his head ever so slightly. “Don’t think about it like that. It does no one any good.”
It takes me a moment to process that I’m being told what to do. A man in my position isn’t ordered around very often. Until my wife, no one dared. The corner of my mouth curls when I realize I’m about to have more people in my life who believe they can be free with their opinions on how I should live and be. Instead of bristling against the potentiality, I let my smile free.
“You’re my older brother by how many minutes?” I ask jokingly.
His grin comes much quicker than I have ever known how to smile. “Enough minutes to feel I can give you advice. I apologize if I sound bossy. I suppose I’m making up for lost time. I’ve waited many, many years to have my younger brother back. Forgive me.”
“No forgiveness required. It’s a new experience for me. Other than Keira, most people never tell me what they truly think. It’s part of who I am. My presence doesn’t exactly invite good-natured suggestions.”
His grin grows until the smile lights up his entire face. He glances down at his watch for a beat and says, “Just give it twelve hours. You’re about to be in a different world, brother.”
