Page 63 of Sean

“Good morning. How’s the arm?” he asked.

Sean glanced her way, and she could now read the mix of emotions in his expression. He clearly felt guilty that he hadn’t been the one to ask how she was doing. The other part of his expression was more complex, but she thought it was more guilt of a different kind along with something she couldn’t decipher.

“Hardly even hurts,” she said. It did. It had stung in the night, but she wasn’t admitting to that.

“Make sure someone takes a look at it later. You don’t want infection to set in. Sean’ll—”

“They’re coming on now,” Sean interrupted before his father could continue. “Take a seat.”

Sean managed to orchestrate it so that Joe was between her and him. The laptop screen came to life split between Sophie and Owen and Helen and Ethan. Both couples sat close together, causing a spike of ridiculous jealousy to go through Julia.

“Hi,” Sophie said. “It’s so good to see you all. You must be Joe. I’ve heard so much about you.”

A few minutes of introductions and banter followed. Julia did her best to take part. The truth was that she just wanted this over with. When Sean launched into a succinct and impersonal retelling of what had happened the other day, she had to work to keep her face emotionless. Sean certainly was.

“You got shot,” Helen said, her eyes wide as she focused on Julia.

“I’m fine, there’s no permanent damage.” Julia forced a smile. “The important thing is that we’ve got my mother safely at the ranch.”

“That’s not all,” Sean jumped in. “We also learned that Wilson is escalating. With that in mind, no one is safe.”

“Sean and I have talked it over,” Joe said. “We think it would be best to get everyone in the same location.”

“That gives Wilson one point of attack. Not always the greatest plan,” Owen said.

“Agreed, but this is a defensive mission,” Joe said. “We could use some safety in numbers—and the chance to work together to strategize.”

They talked a bit more before agreeing that they should converge on one spot.

“The ranch is the obvious place for everyone to hunker down until Wilson is caught,” Sean said. “We have plenty of room for everyone.”

“We’re remote enough that Wilson will have to work to find us, but we’ve got medical care nearby if anyone needs it,” Joe added, and Julia wanted to thank him for thinking of Charlotte and Helen, who was pregnant.

“Does that make sense to you, Julia?” Sophie asked.

“Absolutely.” She forced a smile. “I can’t wait to see you all in person. It’s been so long.”

“That’s true,” Helen agreed. “We have lots to talk about. When is all of this going to happen?”

“The sooner, the better,” Ethan said. “I can take immediate leave.” He was a SEAL trainer stationed near Virginia Beach.

“Today, then,” Owen said. “We’ll travel together. Convoy style.”

They talked logistics and directions for a few more minutes before ending the call. Julia stood as soon as the laptop was closed.

“I’ll go let my mother know about the changes.”

A little while later, Kelly came in from the barn and they all worked to get ready for four additional people to be at the ranch. By early afternoon, they’d done everything they could, and Julia went to spend time with the kids. She found them playing with building blocks in their bedroom while Charlotte supervised. Julia was glad to see her mother’s fine motor skills had returned well enough for her to manipulate the blocks. That was a win. Having her friends on the ranch would be, too. She should be content, and she might be if her heart didn’t hurt so much over Sean.

She sat down on Amos’s bed and the boy soon crawled into her lap with a book.

“Read to me,” he said.

She smoothed his hair and gave him a kiss on the head before picking up the book. It was one she hadn’t read before—it must belong to Tara’s girls. The front cover showed a mom and dad with two little kids at the seashore. She opened to the first page and began reading about a family’s trip to the beach. While reading about building sandcastles and playing in the water, she tried to inject enthusiasm into her voice, but she knew it was falling flat.

That picture perfect family life was what she wanted. She just hadn’t known that about herself until she’d taken responsibility for the kids and met Sean. She’d always seen herself exploring and traveling with her work, living independently with no ties. Suddenly, a life with a man, the right man, and raising kids together seemed the best way for her to find happiness.

That’s silly, she told herself. She didn’t need that life to be happy.

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