An image of her mother’s last, terror-filled minutes replayed in her mind. Randi would never forgive herself for not being there when her mom needed her most. But another emotion rose to the surface, one she didn’t quite comprehend, but recognized all the same. Pride. She was proud of her mom for standing up to Norwood and his bullies. Proud she fought for what she believed in.
If only the ending could have been happier.
“You okay?” Britt asked.
“I will be. Right now, I just miss my mom.”
“I miss her, too. She was brave. Like you.”
Randi’s throat had grown so dry, she couldn’t swallow the lump that welled up there.
“Ready to put the past behind us?” Britt asked. “Are you up for it?”
Could she do it? Put the past behind her? She wanted to. Wanted to so badly. The constant hurting and anger had taken its toll on her. She was ready to let it go. Ready to forgive her mom. But could she forgive herself?
Maybe with Britt by her side she could. Maybe she could finally shake off the burden of her past and step into her future.
Their future.
“Together?”
He leaned closer. “Together.” His tempting lips, a whisper away, curled into a weak smile. “I think you’d better haul my ass to the hospital now.”
Epilogue
Twelve weeks later
* * *
Britt opened his cabin door to find Grif on the other side. Dressed in a charcoal-gray suit, white shirt, and a deep ocean-blue tie, his brother would be the best-looking guy at the groundbreaking ceremony.
“What are you doing here?” Britt asked, his mood souring.
“Making sure you don’t attend the ceremony in steel-toe boots.”
“Nothing wrong with boots.”
Grif gave him a once-over. “I see Randi already got her hands on your attire.”
“It might surprise you to know that I’ve been dressing myself since I was ten years old.”
“Exactly why I’m here.”
“Morning, Grif.” Randi sidled up to Britt. “You’re looking dashing as usual.”
When Grif bent to kiss her cheek, he winked at Britt. “You’re quite beautiful yourself.” He nodded toward Britt. “Nice job cleaning up the lumberjack.”
Randi curled an arm around Britt. “I only helped with the tie.”
“Take that, asswipe.” Britt shut the door in his brother’s face.
“Britt!”
“We haven’t hugged all day.” He pulled her into a full embrace, loving her jasmine scent and the feel of her in his arms.
“Not true. We hugged quite a bit a few hours ago.”
“How about we blow off this waste-of-everyone’s-time ceremony and go back to bed.”
“Tempting, but no. Are you nervous?”
“What’s to be nervous about, getting up in front of hundreds of people and making a fool of myself?”
“You’re going to do great.”
“Public speaking isn’t my thing.” He paced away, grabbing his wallet, readjusting his tie. “Everything I’ve come up with sounds like pandering mumbo jumbo.”
“Tell them about your goals and objectives for the center.”
“I’ll put them to sleep.”
“Stick to the layout of the building. Discuss your ideas about what types of projects the center will undertake.”
“The people who give a damn about the center’s projects have already been informed. The rest either won’t care or they’ll complain about the Steeles taking over yet another part of the town.”
“Only you would make a five-minute photo op into a Spanish Inquisition.” She grasped his chin and guided his gaze down to hers. “Speak from the heart. Tell them about the plight of the wolves. About the importance of protecting them and other endangered species. You won’t fail to capture their attention or interest.”
He tapped her on the nose. “How do you know so much about people?”
“I’m a bartender. I observe people for a living.”
Grinning, he said, “Pay you five bucks to do it for me.”
“Come on, big guy. All you have to do is flash that killer Steele smile and they’ll be groveling at your feet.”
When his grin broadened to show his pearly whites, she shook her head and led them from the cabin. “Won’t work on me now. I’m on a mission.”
By the time they arrived, the build site was overrun with milling guests.
In typical Grif-plan-it and Jonah-pay-for-it style, they had made a simple stick-a-beribboned-shovel-in-the-dirt into a grand affair. An enormous tent stood center stage with rows and rows of white acrylic chairs beneath. At the back of the tent, a caterer set up rectangular tins of food on tables draped in royal blue. Delicious aromas wafted across the field, making his mouth water. A bluegrass band had set up shop on a forty-foot trailer attached to a five-yard truck. Cotton candy vendors and balloon sculptors worked the crowd, and large conceptual plans of the center and surrounding property lined one wall of the tent.
“Holy Mother,” Britt muttered when he turned off Old Blue. “This is going to take a lot longer than five minutes.”
“Chin up, Steele.” Randi’s lips twitched before she jumped out of the truck. “Game on.”
* * *
Hand in hand, Randi and Britt made their way to the front of the tent where the rest of the Steele clan had already gathered. The moment Joan Steele clapped eyes on her eldest son, tears gathered in her eyes. She strode into his arms, squeezing him tight.
“I’m so proud of you, son.”
Emotion clogged Randi’s throat when Britt rested his chin atop his mother’s salt-and-pepper head. She experienced a pang of regret for lost moments like this that she would never share with her mother. They had missed so many opportunities to make memories. If she were ever lucky enough to have a child, she would not make the same mistakes with her second chance at happiness.
“I think your baby boy deserves your tears,” Britt said. “He made all this happen, with his generosity.”
“Jonah and I have already had our mother-son moment.” She leaned back. “It’ll be your handiwork that’ll make this facility successful.” In perfect Mom Steele tradition, she adjusted her son’s tie and swiped off nonexistent lint from his camel-colored sports jacket. “Now, go get ’em.”
Before taking the stage, he bent to kiss Randi. “Twenty bucks?”
She smacked his behind. “Get up there.”
Britt shook his brothers’ hands, giving Jonah a man hug before kissing Evie, Brynne, and Carlie Beth’s cheeks.
Randi smiled at his procrastination technique.
Finally, he climbed the stairs and took the stage, tapping the live mic a little too hard. A loud thump blasted through the large speakers. Everyone quieted.
Britt’s mom urged Randi down beside her and held her hand. They both waited in tense anticipation for the man they both loved to break his silence.
“Thank y’all for coming today. Your support for this project means a great deal to me and my family.” He retrieved a crumpled, folded piece of paper that Randi had never seen before from an inner pocket of his jacket. Using his palm, he smoothed out the paper.
For a long time he stared at the words he’d written. Joan glanced at Randi, worried. Randi mustered a reassuring smile she didn’t feel.
She wanted so badly to climb up on the stage and put an arm around his waist and whisper words of encouragement. But she knew that kind of help would only cause him embarrassment.
After raking a hand through his hair, Britt mumbled something beneath his breath before cramming his speech back into his pocket.
“Listen,” he said. “Many of you know me well enough to realize that I’d rather be eating a bowl of snails right now than standing up here.” Laughter erupted through the crowd. His gaze sought Randi’s, and she gave him a you-can-do-it nod. “Thanks to my brother Jonah, Steele Ridge’s wildlife research center will participate in a nationwi
de effort to safeguard the critically endangered red wolf. Now that the breeding female has been reunited with her pack, the center is set to partner with a dozen environmental agencies to ensure the red wolf, and other endangered species in Western North Carolina, won’t sink into extinction.”
Joy filled Randi’s heart as she listened to Britt forge on, his voice growing stronger with each spoken word. His passion for the wolves rippled through the crowd.
“The Steele-Shepherd Wildlife Research Center is dedicated to my good friend and mentor, Barbara Shepherd. Without her amazing knowledge of the environment, I wouldn’t be in the position I am today to help the wolves. I miss her sharp wit and infectious passion for the natural world. I’m only sorry she couldn’t be here to celebrate this moment, with me and her daughter, Miranda Shepherd.”
Emotion clogged Randi’s throat. She wished her mom could be here to cheer Britt on. He’d worked hard to get to this moment. His passion and honor were his guiding force. When he finished speaking, applause thundered inside the tent, and Britt’s stoic features lightened in a way she’d never witnessed before.
Once the congratulatory handshakes and back pats ended, Evie sent her an excited eye-widening head bob. Randi wove her fingers through Britt’s and guided him away.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
She escorted him to a sheet-covered easel. Evie joined them, her whole body vibrating with anticipation.
“What are the two of you up to?”
Evie’s smile broadened.
Wariness crept across his face.
“Don’t tense up, knucklehead,” Evie said. “You’re going to love our surprise.” She glanced at Randi. “Now?”
“I think you’d better.”
Evie carefully removed the sheet, uncovering a large foam board beneath. The board depicted a beautiful illustration of the History of the Red Wolf, starting from the days before the settlers arrived, when wolves were plentiful and roamed the entire southeastern part of the United States, to the present, when fewer than fifty reintroduced wild wolves called the Alligator River Wildlife Refuge and Steele Conservation Area home.
Britt stared at the artwork, a muscle twitching in his cheek.
She and Evie shared an uneasy glance.
“We thought this would look wonderful painted on a wall in the center’s main lobby,” Randi said. “So all who visit will learn about their courageous fight for survival.”
One blunt masculine finger reached out to trace the female wolf surrounded by her pups.
“Do you like it?” Evie asked, a note of uncertainty in her voice.
“You did this…for me?”
“Deke provided the historical facts and the artist we hired turned it into a story.”
Leaning close, Britt studied the young blond man and older long-haired woman sitting on the bluff’s edge overlooking a den of wolves below.
“Is that—?”
“You and Barbara Shepherd,” Evie blurted out. “The moment the two of you found the Steele-Shepherd pack.”
From the moment Evie lifted the sheet, Britt’s eyes had not left the beautiful rendering. Other than the muscle flicking in his jaw, he displayed no other emotion.
“If there’s anything you’d like changed,” Randi said, “we can have the artist tweak the image or the historical narrative.”
“No, it’s perfect,” he whispered.
The pressure on Randi’s chest lifted, and she sent Evie a relieved smile.
“We have one more surprise for you.” Evie held out a letter-sized manila envelope. “Open it.”
“This is too much.”
Randi smoothed the backs of her fingers over his clean-shaven cheek. “No, it’s not.”
He covered her hand with his and kissed the inside of her wrist.
“Save it for later,” Evie said. “Open the envelope so I can go flirt with Deke.”
“Find someone your own age,” Britt said without heat.
He slid a finger beneath the envelope’s flap. Reaching inside, he pulled out several sheets of paper. His eyes wove back and forth as he read the top page, an e-mail confirming his participation in a three-week-long wildlife conservation program in Zimbabwe.
“You’ll patrol the reserve with the park rangers every day, learning how to find snares and how to use smartphones to ensure poachers are prosecuted.” Evie bounced on her toes. “The program also works with the local community, educating them on ways they can provide for their family without poaching.” She arrowed her hands over her nose and mouth. “Why am I telling you all of this? You probably know it by heart. Call me excited!”
Swallowing hard, he asked, “How did you manage this?”
“I swiped the completed application off your desk and colluded with your sister,” Randi said. “She shared with me your long-held desire to visit Africa and do something to help save the rhinos and elephants.”
“So we mailed the application for you,” Evie said. “A plane ticket’s inside the envelope.”
“You leave within the week.”
“But the construction—”
“Will hobble along without you. It’s all paperwork right now anyway, and your brothers and sister have agreed to watch over everything until you return.” Randi tangled her fingers with his. “No more excuses.”
“That’s my cue to scram.” Evie flew into his arms. “Go, Britt. Do this for yourself. We’ll take care of things here.” Rising on tiptoes, she kissed his cheek, then winked at Randi before making good on her promise to flirt with Deke.
Britt thumbed through the sheets of paper. “There never seemed to be enough time—and in the early days, money—to go.” He looked up. “You wave your magic wand, and—bam—I’m on my way.” He shook his head. “It’s all happening so fast.”
“For once, somebody—or several people, in this case—is taking care of things for you.” She tugged the packet out of his grip and clasped his hands in hers. “You deserve time away, doing something you love.”
“But—”
“No buts. There’s never going to be a good time. You must carve out moments for yourself and enjoy them.”
“There’s only one ticket. If I’m going, you’re going.”
“As I told Evie, who’d insisted I go too, this getaway is yours, and yours alone.” She smiled. “I’ll tag along on your next adventure.” She smoothed a thumb over his knuckles. “Take lots of pictures.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“Say you’ll go. If not for yourself, for Evie. She’s been so excited and anxious about this surprise that she hasn’t slept for two days. She wants you to be happy.”
Inhaling one long breath, he released it, slowly. He drew her closer, urging her arms around his waist. She caught the slight tremor in his hands when he traced his fingertips along her jawline.
“I love you.” His words came out on a raw whisper.
It was Randi’s turn to be rendered speechless. Ever since taking down Norwood, they’d spent every available second together, though neither had said those three words to each other.
She’d been certain he would grow frustrated by the long hours she kept and the times she was too tired to make love. But he hadn’t. At least not that she could tell. He’d adapted.
Some mornings he would stop by her coffee shop, order a large black coffee, kiss her temple, and head out to a job site. Friday nights he hung out with his brothers and their girlfriends at Triple B’s bar, eating, drinking, and listening to the newest blues band. Sometimes, Randi would join them for dinner.
Lunchtime was their time. No matter where his work took him, she would bring him lunch. They would sit on his tailgate and talk about whatever came to mind as they ate their food.
Their lives had fallen into an easy, comfortable rhythm, but Randi lived in constant fear of the “It’s not you, it’s me” conversation.
She hadn’t allowed herself to think about a future with Britt because she worr
ied there would be none. Even so, she hadn’t been able to stop herself from falling in love with her bear of a guy, more and more, every day.
Unable to stop herself, she kissed him. The warmth of his lips, the boldness of his tongue, the sweet gentleness of his hands, the solid weight of his embrace—all reassured her as nothing else could.
“I love you, too.”
Something hot and possessive flashed in his eyes before his mouth covered hers. His rigid length pressed against her stomach, sending a spike of need straight to her core.
No doubt remembering a crowd of friends and family hovered nearby, he eased away. “I’m not going to make it three weeks without you.”
“You must, and I expect you to enjoy every second you’re gone.” She kissed him. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
“When I return, I’m going to ask you to marry me. So be prepared to say yes.”
Randi blinked. “Did you just propose?”
“No, I’m giving you fair warning about my intentions—in case you need to warm up to the idea.”
Incredulous laughter bubbled into her throat. Her eyes watered with the effort to hold it at bay. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was laughing at him. But damn, he never did anything the prescribed way.
“I feel a hug coming on.”
“We’re already hugging.”
“No, a real hug.” He pressed his forehead against hers. “Randi?”
She closed her eyes, inhaling his intoxicating scent. “Hmm-mmm?”
“I found my spark.”
Randi set her grin free.
More Steele Ridge
Coming in 2017
Breaking FREE
Roaming WILD
Stripping BARE
* * *
The BEGINNING, A Short Prequel, Book 1
* * *
Going HARD, Book 2
* * *
Loving Deep: Steele Ridge Series Page 29
