Page 37 of No Going Back

Graham put his arm along the back of Aisling’s chair and kissed her hair. “Things between us have always been a little weird.” They shared a smile, and Sean wondered about their story.

Piper grinned. “We’re in a town called Phail. It doesn’t get much weirder than that.”

Even Branna smiled at that comment.

Piper continued. “I had trouble follow me here when I arrived. I didn’t know I was involved in something dangerous. Everyone here is amazing, and I’ll always be grateful for how everyone banded together to help me out.”

Seemed there was a lot more to the town of Phail than just their own story.

Troy grinned. “Anyway, I’d promised Aisling a while back that I’d get her input whenever I started renovating old buildings around here.” He turned to the woman. “Sean does construction and interior renovations. He’s got tons of experience and is really good. I’m going to assume he’s already come up with plans for this place, but I don’t welch on promises, so I brought you both in.”

Troy turned back to Sean and Branna. “Graham is an electrician and a mechanic, so he can look over the wiring panel for you.”

Sean nodded, pleased that his friend hadn’t brought these people in to pressure Branna to tell her story. He bumped her shoulder with his. “We’re in the midst of creating a game plan. When you came in, we were working on a new floor plan for the upstairs. We want to add baths to all the bedrooms.”

Aisling’s eyes lit up. “Good idea. The lodge at Midnight Lake has that, even though it hadn’t been touched since the seventies before Tansy arrived. I’m about ready to start on some bathrooms and have been looking at fixtures. I also have a connection with the closest building center a couple of towns away, so I can loop you in. They’ll deliver right to the door here. At Midnight Lake, we still have to truck everything in a couple of miles, but he can pull up right here to you.”

Graham squeezed her shoulder. “Breathe, honey. If it’s okay with them, you’ve got all day to talk shop.”

Beside him, Branna relaxed and smiled. At his raised eyebrow, she nodded. “Let’s get started.”

* * *

Branna had been more than a little concerned when Troy showed up with Aisling and Graham. She knew Sean trusted him completely, and was glad she hadn’t allowed herself to descend into panic.

Troy hadn’t had an ulterior motive. He wasn’t trying to sabotage her safety or push her to share more than she wanted. He hadn’t even said whether it was her or Sean behind the reason they were keeping quiet at the farmhouse.

From the way the others had spoken, they’d all been through some difficult things themselves. One day when she was comfortable sharing her own, she’d like to hear their stories.

Branna’s life had revolved around the pub for as long as she could remember. She’d lived there, worked there, and socialized there. Most of her friend circle had been people who enjoyed coming into the pub for an evening. She’d rarely gone elsewhere, rarely gone out with friends.

Not once had she thought about calling one of those people to let them know where she was or that she was safe. She hadn’t been that close with even one of them. Her family and the pub had been what mattered.

Now, her tiny circle was growing.

She could imagine being good friends with Piper and Aisling once she could live her life openly again.

They spent the rest of the morning going through the plans Sean had drawn up and making minor adjustments. Aisling had her tools in her truck, and it wasn’t long before they were tearing down walls upstairs to make way for the new layout and additional bathrooms.

Branna was having a blast.

Charlie would have fit right in. Her mom and dad would approve of the group’s attitude. Work hard and make work fun.

Had she found a place where she fit so far away from home? The thought warmed her heart and eased some of the grief smothering her.

Sean stroked his hand down her arm. “You okay?”

She smiled up at him. “I am. Just thinking how much Charlie would have liked this group of people.”

Sean kissed her forehead. “You’re right. He would have fit right in with these people and the rest of my team. I like to think that he pointed me in the right direction after he died.”

“What do you mean?”

His smile held a hint of wistfulness. “When I returned to the Army after Charlie’s funeral, my unit commander approached me with an opportunity to join a special forces unit. He was going to nominate the pair of us before that IED hit, but he wanted me to move forward in Charlie’s honor.”

Branna hadn’t heard that before, and her heart swelled. Her brother’s commander had sent her an email of condolence but hadn’t mentioned this. “Charlie would have loved doing that.”

Sean nodded. “I think so too. He was proud of the job we were doing, proud that we were keeping people safe. Joining the special forces team would have been a natural for him.”

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