We walked through the crowd, surrounded by families bundled up in scarves and hats, kids running around with red cheeks and bright eyes. Floats rolled down the street, covered in snow—both fake and real—and glittering ornaments, and I took a deep breath. For the first time in years, a weight had lifted off my chest.

Tanner and Rae stood off to the side near one of the stands, with little Hunter bouncing in Rae’s arms, his tiny fist wrapped around a candy cane that was already sticky and half-eaten.

“There they are,” Cami said, and she tugged on my hand, dragging us closer.

Rae saw us a moment later, and relief flooded her features.

“Cami!” Rae called, and when we joined them, Cami hugged Rae, squashing Hunter between the two of them. The little tyke just squealed with delight, being surrounded by so much love.

Yeah, this was the kind of life a kid ought to grow up in, I realized. One with only safety and love and nothing horrible.

Maybe one day, with Cami…

“Are you okay?” Rae breathed, letting go of Cami and studying her carefully. “I wassoworried. I knew the guys could handle it, but God, that was no joke.”

“It was wild,” Cami breathed, not knowing what other words to use. Shit like that just couldn’t be explained to someone who wouldn’t get it. “But I’m okay. We all are.” She reached for me, taking my hand again.

Rae nodded. There weren’t a lot of people around these parts who would understand, but Rae would.

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” Rae said. “Tanner says it’s been taken care of.” Rae turned her eyes to me, a question. She wanted to be sure that Tanner was right and that the worst really was over—for Cami’s sake, more than anything.

“Yeah, it’s over,” I said firmly.

Cami glanced up at me, her eyes filled with emotion. It would take a while for her to deal with the aftermath. That kind of trauma didn’t just blow over. But we would get through it together.

Rae nodded, finally satisfied. “This little town seems to be a magnet for drama.”

Cami laughed. “You can say that again. Good thing we have the guys to protect us, right?”

“Oh, you bet,” Rae said, and she nudged me. “I know there’s still some healing ahead. And it’s okay to not be okay. Okay? But you’ll be fine. You’re stronger than you know, and you’ve got us. Always.”

Cami smiled warmly and squeezed Rae’s hand. When Hunter kicked, wanting to be a part of the affection, Cami pinched his cheeks.

“And little Hunter, of course,” she added.

“Exactly,” Rae said.

I was glad Cami had a friend like Rae on her side. Shit like this was tough to process and having no one who understood it made life so much harder. But Rae got it—she and Tanner had been through their fair share of hell, and Rae would be there for Cami to lean on when she needed it.

I was grateful for Tanner, too. I didn’t know how I would have taken out the assholes—Viktor and Wallace had been a thorn in my side for a long time—and even though I would have tried to figure something out, it really helped to have someone like Tanner have my back.

Rae and Cami continued talking, fussing over Hunter when he started to squeal and look for attention.

Tanner stepped up beside me, his arms crossed as he watched the two women. “Glad to see you two made it out of that mess,” he said, a twinkle in his eye.

I nodded, glancing over at him. “Thanks for having my back, man. I don’t know that I could have done it without you.”

He shrugged, a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Anytime. You would have done the same for me. In fact…” He glanced at me, thinking back to when Rae had been kidnapped. “You did.”

I nodded. When you had people who meant everything, you sacrificed it all to keep them safe and keep them close.

I leaned in closer, lowering my voice so the girls wouldn’t hear any of it.

“What did Sheriff Johnson say? How’d it go down after we left?”

Tanner let out a slow breath, his gaze shifting toward the street as one of the floats rolled by, kids waving from the top. His eyes were still sharp, and he kept an eye out for danger but we both knew it was well and truly over.

“Called him right after we took care of Viktor and Wallace,” Tanner said. “He was shocked about the danger right under his nose, and he was pissed they fucked with the Christmas parade, but I told him we’d taken care of it. He was a bit surprised when he saw the state of them, but when I told him they’d threatened Cami, he turned a blind eye. Everyone around here loves her.”