Page 9 of Silent Partner (Pine Falls 3)

I bolted up in bed and grabbed my chest, heaving to gulp down all the air I could. My eyes tried to adjust to the dark, but I felt as if it would consume me. It took me a moment to realize it had only been a dream and that I could turn on my bedside light. I fumbled for it, desperate to be out of the dark. Once the light illuminated my bedroom, I felt as if I could finally catch my breath.

“It was just a dream. I’m not alone,” I said out loud to remind myself.

I grabbed my phone and looked at the time. It was two in the morning. That meant it was nine in London. I smiled to myself and fired off a text to Tristan.

Good morning. You’re probably in a meeting, but I just wanted to say I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. Don’t forget to pack your coat and gloves. It might snow while you’re here. Love you. xoxo.

I wasn’t sure I was ready for snow in October, but that was Colorado for you.

I set the phone on my nightstand and let out a deep breath. Tristan would be here tomorrow to celebrate my thirtieth birthday, along with my niece Gemma’s fourth birthday. I found it quite serendipitous that we shared a birthday. We all knew it was meant to be when Dani and Brock adopted the girl who had captured everyone’s hearts with her curly brown hair and those big brown eyes that could convince me to do anything. I was a sucker for both of my nieces, Whitney and Gemma, and my nephew, Samuel Dean, a.k.a. Sammy, our Fourth of July baby who was all of three months old. Ariana and Jonah had done well. Sammy was going to be a charmer, with his daddy’s green eyes and Ariana’s strawberry blonde hair.

I snuggled back under the covers, finally able to breathe normally. For some reason, lately I had been having frequent nightmares about the night my parents died. They were always the same: we were in the car, rolling over, and I could hear my mother scream while I desperately tried to get to her. How I survived that rollover car accident, no one knew. My parents had died at the scene, while I escaped with only a few cuts and countless bruises. Everyone called it a miracle, but at the time, I wished I had died too. I’d been left with no one in the world. I’d had no idea what would happen to me. Then Grandma Kay and Grandpa Sam entered my life. They weren’t my real grandparents, but they were my saviors. They’d brought me back to the very house I was living in now.

I’d had to move out of the loft I loved so much at the beginning of the year once the lease was up. I couldn’t afford the rent by myself, and even though Dani and Brock had offered to continue to pay for her half, it didn’t seem right to take their money. Luckily, my grandparents’ tenants had moved out and they’d given me a deal I couldn’t refuse, so I was now living in a house that felt too big for only me. Maybe that was the reason for the dreams.

I rolled over and curled into a ball, hoping I might be able to fall back to sleep. I left my light on, though. It felt less lonely that way, in my grandparents’ old master bedroom with its wood-paneled walls. Dani had helped me paint the paneling white when I’d moved in so I wouldn’t feel like I was living in the seventies. I breathed slowly in and out, reminding myself I wasn’t alone. I had my family and Tristan, even though I hadn’t seen Tristan in two months. But we talked frequently. Okay, so not as frequently as we used to, but he was busy at work right now. I understood that. He was an editor for the largest publishing house in London. Their biggest client, Taron Taylor, known here as Miles Wickham, was getting ready to release his new medical thriller, Blood on the Line. Both of my brothers-in-law had helped him with the medical aspect. My restaurant would be catering his launch party at the end of the month.

I was hoping this weekend Tristan and I would talk about our future. We’d been together for a year now. It almost seemed like a dream, complete with an English prince. Well, not quite—Tristan was only a baron, and he didn’t like to mention it as he thought it sounded pretentious. I didn’t care about his title. I loved that he was genuine and had made me a priority in his life. Not only that, but he had given me a reason to get a passport and had shown me some of the world. I’d been to London, Ireland, Scotland, France, and Germany. During our travels, Tristan had waxed poetic about the history of each place, making it all come alive for me. It was truly a gift. This past year had been a gift.

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