Page 115 of The Outpost (Jamison Valley 4)
I’d given this story to Beau.
He’d probably never read the words I’d written for him but it gave me a great deal of peace to know they were there.
Wiping the tears off my damp cheeks, I closed my eyes and tipped my head to the ceiling. I miss you. I hope you have a nice day. Every time I thought of Beau, I closed my eyes and sent him good thoughts. And since I thought of him about a hundred times a day, I did this a lot.
“Morning.”
I opened my eyes and spun my chair around to see my dad leaning against the doorframe. “Hi, Dad. Did you sleep okay?”
He nodded, the lines in his forehead deepening. “I did, but it doesn’t look like you did.”
I stood from my chair and crossed the room, hugging him at the waist. “I slept okay. I just got up early so I could finish my book. It’s always a little emotional at the end.”
He hugged me tighter. “Congratulations, Sabrina. I’m so proud of you.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I smiled against his navy polo then stepped away, reaching up to knot my messy hair. “So what’s the plan for today? Is there anything you guys would like to do?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Whatever you and your mom want to do is fine with me. Let’s decide over breakfast. Though, between you and me, I’d rather not spend the entire day shopping.”
“Your secret is safe with me. I’ll hop in the shower and then we can head out. There’s a coffee shop around the corner that has the best pastries.”
“Chocolate croissants?”
“The best you’ll ever have.”
Dad and I shared the same weakness for breakfast pastries so I grinned when he rubbed his hands together.
“Morning, dear,” Mom called. She waved at me and Dad but was making a beeline for the coffee pot.
“Morning, Mom.” I followed her into the kitchen and gave her a quick hug before disappearing into my bathroom.
My parents had just gotten to Seattle last night, their first visit out since that horrible night with Anton. They had been distraught over ever
ything that had happened and had wanted to come up immediately to check on me, but I had assured them I was fine and asked for a little time alone to process everything. Only after I’d spilled everything about Beau and told them that he had been here to help me through the rough patch did they agree to wait a few weeks.
But when I’d picked them up at the airport last night, I’d realized that three weeks had been too long. While I had needed time alone, they had needed to see for themselves that I was okay. With just one hug, a few of my mom’s gray hairs had turned back to their normal blond and my dad had lost fifteen worry lines from his forehead.
Spending a week with them would be healing. For all of us.
“Ready!” I called, coming out of my bedroom, wearing cuffed jeans and a simple black blouse. “After breakfast, we should visit the market before it gets too crowded.” I strapped on my black gladiator sandals.
“Sounds lovely!” Mom always wore dresses and heels, but since she’d traded her normal shoes for flats this morning, I’d taken it as a hint that she wanted to do some exploring. I just hoped my sandals would hold up for the inevitable miles she would put us through today. My dad never wore anything other than golf polos, chinos and sneakers, so no matter what we decided to do, he’d be comfortable.
We set out for coffee and pastries, then wandered toward the market. Sipping my vanilla chai, I followed my parents through Pike Place. While Mom was busy buying fresh fish and produce for dinner, Dad was struggling to pick out a bouquet of flowers from the plethora of available options.
“These?” he mouthed, pointing to an enormous bundle of green buds and deep purple peonies.
I smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. While he handed a wad of cash to the merchant, I glanced over my shoulder, expecting to see an FBI agent close by. I’d been doing that all morning out of habit even though Henry had finally deemed it safe for me to be on my own. It had been a week but I still found it strange to come out of my apartment door and not see someone in my hallway.
Mom called me over to a vegetable stand and pulled me from my thoughts. I helped her pick out the rest of our dinner menu and then we strolled back to my apartment with food bags and flowers in hand.
“We’ve got some news,” Mom said as we walked. “Kameron’s girlfriend is pregnant.”
“Really?” I did a little skip. “I’m going to be an aunt?”
Dad smiled. “Yep. And we’re finally getting some grandbabies.”
“I’m so excited! I can’t believe he didn’t tell me. I talked to him two days ago.”
