Page 106 of Silver Sanctuary
“Yup. You can yell as loud as you want. Clear across to the other side if you can. The fish don’t care one bit, and as long as it stays a thing we only do at the lake, I don’t mind either.”
His sweet daughter looked out of the lake. “It sounds like fun.”
“Do you want to give it a go?”
“I can’t—Oh shit!” she blurted out. “There’s a fish on your line!”
Nash was so stunned that he burst out laughing, before handing the reel to Embrie.
“All right, potty mouth. Let’s catch some dinner!”
The cold Montana air nipped at Lacy’s nose as she sat bundled up on the porch of Nash’s parent’s cabin. It had become her own slice of paradise—a calm sanctuary in the chaos of trying to heal after everything that happened in Silver Springs.
“It sure is pretty out here, ain’t it?” Nanny walked up onto the porch, handing a plate of cookies out to Lacy.
“Yes, ma’am. It really is.” Lacy smiled as she held the plate on her lap, her mouth watering at the sight of her favoritelemon drop cookies. Would it be rude to eat one before Nanny even sat down?
“Now, we’ve talked about this. Ma’am is for old ladies. I may be pushing up against those pearly gates, and my hair may be gray, but I don’t feel a day over forty-five. So don’t you go thinking you need to address me any other way than my grandson does. Nanny is perfectly fine.”
Come to find out, Nash’s grandmother wasn’t called Nanny just because she was a grandmother. The nickname had been given to her as a little girl by her parents, who, according to Nanny herself, found it easier to shout than her full name, Nadine, when she was mischievous.
“Thank you so much for letting us come up here. I think Montana has been so good for all of us—for healing.”
“It’s the fresh air.” Nanny patted Lacy’s leg as she sat on the porch swing beside her. “You know, you’re always welcome to stay. We’d love to have you here, forever and ever if we could.”
It had crossed Lacy’s mind—something she brought up with Nash a time or two in the last month that they’d been visiting his family. Everything felt right in Goldfinch Falls, but her husband wasn’t ready to leave his team—their friends and family. Truth be told, as much as she loved the peace and quiet the small cabin they were staying in provided, she missed them too.
And she wasn’t ready to call it quits on her flower shop. She’d had to close the doors to Petals for their extended stay in Montana, but Lacy was determined to have it up and running again as soon as they got back.
“Our lives right now are in Texas, but I’m going to make Nash bring us up here to visit so often you’ll be sick of us.”
“Never, doll. I haven’t seen my grandson this happy in decades. Having you, getting to be Embrie’s dad…” Her eyes filled with tears. “What a blessing the both of you have been for him. We’re so happy to have you in our family.”
“I know Nash has shared some of what my childhood was like, but I’ve never had family like this—that loves me. That wants me around. That doesn’t think of me as a burden. I’m so grateful for that man you raised. He’s incredible, Nanny. The love of my life.”
“Well, I love the sound of that.” Nash rounded the corner of the house, Embrie giggling as he carried her on his back.
“Mom! Dad let me ride Apples all by myself today! We went out to the western fence line and he showed me where he used to fish with his dad and Pops!”
“Sounds like you both had a great morning.” Lacy watched Embrie slide off of Nash’s back, only to run straight for Nanny.
“Will you show me how to make apple fritters now?” Embrie asked, eyes as wide as her smile.
“I was just coming to ask your mama if it was okay to have you over for the afternoon. We can make apple fritters, and then I’ll show you how Pops and I make Sunday night steaks. The whole family is coming over for the goodbye cookout.”
Embrie’s eyes flew towards her. “Oh, Mom. Please! Can I go with Nanny?”
“Of course you can. Just keep your phone with you.”
“I will!”
Nanny held her hand out to Embrie, who helped her stand up from the swing. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s go through the house. We can take the back path and see if there are any brambles or twigs we can force Pops to make into a centerpiece for us.”
Nash laughed as Nanny and Embrie went off, hand in hand, to create as much chaos for Pops as possible.
“I love the special bond they have already,” Lacy admittedas Nash sat on the swing. He reached over, wrapping his hands around her ankles to pull her feet onto his lap.
“It’s hard to believe we’re leaving tomorrow. Feels like we just got here.”
