Page 95 of The Outpost (Jamison Valley 4)
I nodded. “I’m still in trouble. I don’t know if I’ll ever get to have a normal life. If I’ll ever be free. I’d love to stay here with Beau, but not if I’m in danger. There’s a very real chance I’ll be going into witness protection and never get to see him again.”
“That sucks,” Maisy muttered.
I rounded the island and took a seat on the last stool. “Yeah. It sucks. But Beau and I have always gone into this with clear expectations. We’re enjoying the time we have, for as long as it lasts. Let’s do the same. Tell me everything about the wedding.”
“The wedding? No. I want to hear more about you and Beau.”
“Please?” I begged. “There isn’t much more to tell and I really want to hear about the wedding. Just because you know I’m here doesn’t mean I’m going to get to see you often. So let’s use this afternoon as a chance to catch up because I don’t know if it’s going to happen again.”
She sighed and nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ve got lots of pictures on my phone.” Maisy jumped up from her stool to dig through her purse.
“Good. Beau took lots of pictures and videos, but I want to see more. He didn’t get a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff.”
And I wanted to hear everything straight from Felicity’s mouth. If I could see her face light up as she described her dress or how the cake tasted, then maybe I wouldn’t feel so sad about missing my best friend’s wedding day. The Federov story had taken that away from me too. And though I was sad, I wasn’t sorry. Beau had helped me see that everything I’d done—all I’d lost and would miss out on—had been worth it to take them down.
So for the next hour, I swiped through hundreds of wedding pictures and listened to countless stories about Felicity and Silas’s day. There was something magical about being surrounded by these women, listening to them recount every detail of the wedding, because after that hour, I didn’t feel like I’d missed the wedding entirely after all.
Coby got bored with his cartoons not long after that and Maisy decided it best to take him home. So I hugged her good-bye and ruffled Coby’s hair before they went outside to get buckled into the car.
“Thanks for showing me pictures,” I told Felicity as I walked her to the door.
“We could have pushed the wedding back, you know.”
“I know, but I didn’t want that. It could be years until my drama blows over, if ever.”
“Don’t say things like that,” she chided. “This could all work out.”
“You’re right.” I pulled her into my arms. “It could.”
Or it couldn’t.
I didn’t voice that last bit. I’d let my friend keep hoping that this would all turn out for the best.
And maybe she’d be right.
“Take care of yourself, okay? And that baby.”
She squeezed me once more, then let me go. “Promise. You take care too.”
“Love you, lady.”
“Love you too.” With a sad wave, she walked out the door, closing it behind her so I wouldn’t be seen standing by the window.
As I watched Felicity get into the passenger seat and Maisy pull away from the curb, Beau’s truck appeared and pulled into the driveway.
I heard the garage door roll open and I walked back to the kitchen to greet him as he came inside.
The smile on my face fell when the door opened.
Beau was home, and he was not happy.
“Hey. What’s wrong? Didn’t you find the kids?” I asked.
“Yeah, I found them,” he clipped, brushing past me to toss his keys on the island. When he spun around, he planted his hands on his hips. “Was that Felicity I saw leaving with Maisy and Coby?”
“Um, yeah.” Where was he going with this? And why was he mad?
