Page 36 of Mountain Protector

“It looks nice,” I agree. “Looks like Winter really put Enzo to work.”

“I was thinking about ribbons like that,” she replies. “And lights on the little balsams around the cabin. There are these cute wooden deer—” Cutting herself off, her expression falls as she adds quietly, “Well. Maybe next year.”

Shit.

It’s not just Thanksgiving that’s different for her. Knowing how much Lark loves Christmas, of course she had all sorts of plans for decorating the little houseshe loves so much. And now she’s here, celebrating the holidays away from home and her dad…

A seed of an idea takes root, and I give Lark a gentle squeeze as I say, “You never know.”

Puzzled, she asks, “What do you mean? I?—”

But we’re interrupted by a loud, “Knox! It’s about time you got here!”

Hawk jogs down the path from the house, grinning as his gaze sweeps over Lark and me. He comes to a stop in front of us, humor glinting in his eyes as he says, “Knox. Good to see you.”

Then he turns his attention to Lark and extends his hand. He gives her a friendly smile as he says, “Hi. I’m Hawk Jamison. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Hi.” Lark steps away from me and shakes his hand, wincing a little as she does so. “It’s really nice to meet you.”

Hawk’s expression immediately shifts to one of concern. His forehead creasing, he says, “Shit. Sorry, Lark. I forgot that you’re hurt. You didn’t have to?—”

“It’s okay.” Her face lights with one of those breathtaking smiles. “It’s not too bad now. Don’t worry about it.”

His gaze shifts to mine for a second, his brows rising in silent question. I shake my head slightly, and he frowns, not pleased with my unspoken answer.

When I talked to Hawk a few days ago, I filled him in on Lark's case—what happened and our plans to catch the man who shot her. Unfortunately, we haven’t made any significant progress yet, and neither have the police. But it’s not all bad. Alec is still searching for some shred of evidence, and he has several of his tech friendshelping out. And Lark is safe on the GMG property until we solve it, which is the most important thing.

“Well.” Hawk covers his frown quickly. “I’m glad you’re doing better. Now let’s get inside. It’s freezing out here.” He claps my shoulder as we all head toward the house. “Why didn’t you guys just drive over here instead of trekking through a freaking snowstorm?”

Laughing, I say, “This isn’t a snowstorm.” Glancing up at the flakes floating lazily down, I add, “This is just flurries. Basically nothing.”

“I wanted to walk over,” Lark tells him. “It looks so nice out, and I wanted to get some fresh air.”

Hawk snorts. “I guess it’s nice enough. But after spending the last couple of years in Alaska, I wouldn’t mind something more tropical.”

“Texas is warmer,” I offer. “Have you stopped by the new Blade and Arrow yet? Niall tells me it’s going really well. Once we get things off the ground here, I’m hoping to head out there for a visit.”

And maybe, if things with Lark go in the direction I’m hoping, I could bring her along with me. Introduce her to my old teammates, Xavier and Rhiannon and Niall, who are heading up the Bravo team branch of Blade and Arrow Security out in San Antonio.

Hawk hesitates, finally answering just as we step onto the front porch. “Maybe. I have some other people to visit before I’m due back in Alaska. If I have time, I will.”

He sounds about as thrilled at the prospect as he would getting a root canal, and not for the first time, I wonder just how well—or not well—he’s dealing with everything that happened before we left the Army. Butnow’s not the time to get into it, so I just lift my chin as I say, “Well, you’re always welcome here. And you know, if you decide to settle in one place, I’m sure everyone would love for you to join GMG.”

“Thanks, Knox.” He gives me a quick chin lift in return. “I don’t know if I’m ready for that yet, but I’ll let you know.”

As I’m about to ring the doorbell, the door is yanked open by a beaming Winter. “Come in! You guys must be freezing.” Her gaze moves to the wrapped pie tin in my hand. “Oh, you didn’t have to bring anything. I’m just glad to have you here.”

“I had to bring something,” Lark replies with a smile. “It’s apple-caramel. Hopefully it’s good.”

Winter lifts the foil and takes a tiny peek. “Well, it looks amazing. I’d better hide it before the guys try to eat it before dinner.”

Lark laughs. “Knox kept trying to sneak a piece last night. When I woke up after midnight, he was lurking in the kitchen.”

“I was looking for a drink,” I retort. “I wasn’t planning on stealing any pie.”

Winter’s eyebrows shoot up to her hairline as she throws a questioning glance at me.

Yes, I’ve spent the last few nights at Lark’s cabin. But it’s perfectly innocent. I stay on the couch and if Lark sleeps better when I’m there, I don’t see anything wrong with it.

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