Page 95 of The Hardest Part

“Nothing, love.”

“Spread your legs for him, sister.” With a soft chuckle, Fallon winked at him. “That will ease the worries from his mind.”

It did for a time, but his slumber was fitful. He woke up tired, and just as troubled as he’d been the day before.

After breakfast, the camp packed up in silence. Too weary, no one chattered as they resumed the grueling journey. Without the river to guide them, Taghee, Hawkes, and Tyndall scouted out their route up ahead.

They’d just stopped for a brief nooning when Cooper came racing back. “Hurry and eat your damn beans, you’re all gonna wanna see this.”

A mile ahead, maybe two, an alpine lake fed a clear-running stream. A green, fertile valley lay below them, and a mountain with three peaks loomed above their heads.

“It’s just as my father saw it.” Tears ran down Lucy’s beautiful face. “I told you, husband.”

It seemed as if no man before them had ever set foot upon this earth.

“This is the place,” Levi shouted, a jubilant fist in the air.

He kissed Lucy, then gathering Fallon to his chest, he kissed her, too.

Elijah picked up Elizabeth and, spinning in a circle, hugged the child who still hadn’t cried for the mother she lost, her sister, or her father. He held her tightly to his chest, the twins hanging onto his arms. Victoria glanced up at him. Lifting her chin with his finger, he lowered his lips to hers.

Ha! I knew he was sweet on her.

But then, he bestowed a kiss upon Mary Alice, too.

His lips twitching, Taghee tried to hide a smile.

Behind their hands, Lucy and Fallon just giggled.

He gave them a pointed look.

“Didn’t I tell you?” Lucy kissed his cheek and grinned. “Everything that comes in threes is perfect.”

“Look at this place. We have been generously favored. The earth has given us its blessing.” Her arms wrapped tightly around him, Fallon laid her head on his shoulder. “Don’t fret, husband. All is as it should be.”

Levi glanced at Elijah. He’d have a word with him later. Right now, they had to prepare for winter. And after that, a town to build, crops to plant, and cattle to breed.

“Welcome home, Levi Gantry.” And she kissed him. “I love you.”

“I love you.” Gazing into her warm chocolate eyes, his fingers caressed her cheek. He reached for Lucy, and holding the sisters close, he whispered, “My bluebird and my butterfly.”

The West was a place where their dreams had been tested, where the land itself seemed to challenge every one of them who’d been brave enough to cross it. But the journey wasn’t just about reaching a new home, it was about discovering the strength they didn’t know they had. They lost everything they thought they could never live without, but they gained something far greater: resilience, trust, and a bond that defiedthe world’s expectations. The frontier wasn’t just a place; it was a test of will, and for them, the rewards weren’t just land or riches, but the unshakable knowledge that not only had they endured it, they had survived.

The blood, sweat, and tears—the love—of those who came before them is the reason they were all here. Levi, Elijah, Taghee, Archer, Cookie, together with every man, woman, and child worked to build a place that not only sustained itself but thrived. All because they heeded the words of a crazy old mountain man.

He told them if they kept the ways of the people, listened to the mountain, and respected the earth, that they would flourish and prosper.

They shouldn’t have survived, but they did.

Prosperity, which continued to this day, had been granted to all of them.

An outsider, someone who didn’t know their history, would never understand, but for nearly two hundred years, their ways had served them well.

Jake got out of the truck and breathed in deep. The scents of clear spring water, wild meadows, earth, ozone, and pine reminded him how favored he was, and how lucky they all were to belong to this place.

Brookside might not be Eden, but it was pretty darn close as far as he was concerned. The world outside the gate could keep their bullshit. He wanted no part of it. Here, at least, they could live a life filled with abundance, absolute love, and the purest joy.

His wife stacked foil-wrapped aluminum pans in his arms. “Got it?”

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