Yours to Hold: Ribbon Ridge Book Two (27 page)

Sara and Kyle broke apart, and she turned to Maggie. “I’m so glad you’re with my brother. I can already see you’ve had a good influence.”

Maggie was flummoxed by Sara’s kindness. As much as they might talk about there not being blame, she still struggled with guilt over Alex’s death, and maybe she always would. “Thanks.” She looked around at all of them. “I just want you to know that I love Kyle so very much. In a way, it feels to me like maybe Alex brought us together. That maybe our finding each other through him was fate. I’m incredibly grateful to him for bringing Kyle into my life.”

Kyle turned to look at her, love shining in his blue-green eyes. “I hadn’t even thought of it that way, but you’re absolutely right.”

A peace settled over Maggie, and she knew in that moment that whatever happened, she’d be okay. “I know it’s going to take time for all of you to adjust and accept me—but I hope you will. I’ll wait as long as it takes.”

Kyle put his arm around her. “I may not be quite so patient. As you can see, I’m pretty anxious to get on with my life.”

“Clearly,” Hayden said, half-smiling for a brief moment before becoming serious again. “What about the gambling? What do you need us to do?”

“Just understand and support me. I’ll be going to Gamblers Anonymous meetings—which I did in Florida. And I’m going to find a therapist who isn’t Maggie.”

“Good call,” Derek said. “And I don’t mean offense by that,” he rushed to add. “Just that you being a couple and all, seems like you’re already playing the role of therapist.”

Chloe smacked him on the arm. “Are you saying that’s our job as women?”

Derek laughed, rubbing his bicep. “Ouch, no. Kyle’s just a handful.” He winked at Kyle. “All right, people, I need to get my bride home—to the Archer house, I guess—so she can get the beauty sleep she doesn’t really need.” He hugged Kyle and then surprised Maggie by hugging her, too. “Welcome to the family.”

Everyone slowly began filtering out, even Liam, who—to his credit—came over and spent a few minutes talking to her while Kyle was speaking with his parents. “I suppose you know all sorts of nasty secrets about us,” he said.

“Not as many as you might think.”
And mostly about you.

“What . . . what was he like?” The question threw her off guard. He asked it with an intensity and a vulnerability that rattled her.

“Funny—he had a very dry sense of humor. Smart, thoughtful, though I know that must sound bizarre given his actions. He spoke very highly of his family.”

Liam’s expression turned skeptical. “I doubt that included me. He wasn’t angry?”

Maggie considered whether she should answer that. She’d already shared more than she ought, but did it really matter? She wasn’t a practicing counselor anymore, and Alex was dead. If she meant to have a relationship with Kyle and his family—and she did—couldn’t she share certain things?
Not everything
, she thought, especially with Liam. “Yes, he was. He hated his condition. He struggled with anger management and depression. I thought we were making progress.” The familiar wave of emotion crept over her, but she swallowed it back. “I was wrong.”

“For what it’s worth, I don’t think it mattered,” he said flatly. “I’m sure you did your best. Alex had a plan, and he was going to execute it no matter what. I know that like I know myself.”

He was absolutely correct. Alex had possessed a singular drive, but so many of the things he’d wanted to accomplish were physical and therefore beyond his reach. In this, he was able to dream big—establish this trust, draw his family home again, and provide a legacy that would last a lifetime and beyond.

“Will you ever come back—permanently?” she asked, knowing that had been one of the most important things to Alex, even though he’d never said so.

“I doubt it. Not to live, anyway. But I pop up all the time. I’ll be back in a few weeks to run Hood to Coast, and then I’ll head up to Washington for the Dave Matthews Band shows.” He smiled. “That’s my annual end-of-summer Northwest jaunt.”

“So I’ll see you then?”

“You’ll see me tomorrow.” He shook her hand and left, leaving her to reflect on the fact that Liam Archer was a very complicated person—so much like Alex.

Maggie joined Kyle with his parents. Both of them eyed her dubiously. They’d met earlier in the week, but now that they knew who she really was, Maggie was suffused with anxiety.

His mom spoke first. “I’m happy you have a girlfriend, Kyle. I don’t remember you ever having a real girlfriend before.”

Kyle slid his arm around Maggie’s waist, giving her some much-needed comfort. “Because I haven’t.” He looked at her. “Never had a reason to until now.”

His mother’s features softened. “I want to be upset about this, but I just can’t be. I’ve spent too many months in darkness, and I don’t want to go back. We’ll figure this out, Maggie.” She took Maggie’s hand between hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. Then she turned and left, leaving them alone with Rob.

“Is she going without you?” Kyle asked.

His dad nodded, looking weary. “She’s pretty mad at me right now. I told her about your granddad the other day, and now this. She thinks I’m keeping secrets and is wondering about our entire marriage—what else I’ve kept from her.” He shook his head. “Never mind, that’s our problem. I’m glad you came clean tonight, son.”

“Thanks. You encouraged me to do it—about the gambling and Maggie. You have to know, Dad, I was so worried about how you would take this. It’s important to me that you’re okay with it, but at the end of the day, I’m going to choose her. I love her.”

Maggie’s heart swelled, but she also held her breath.

Dad pressed his lips together. “You never knew this, but my folks weren’t always a huge fan of your mother’s. And no, that’s not a secret. She’s well aware of that. Your mother broke up with someone in order to date me, and the way it went down . . . well, this is a small town; people talk. My parents came around eventually—I didn’t give them any choice. So I can’t fault you. I won’t.” Rob’s eyes crinkled at the corners as his face relaxed into an almost smile. “I can already see that she’s good for you.” He looked at Maggie. “Keep him in line, no matter what.”

She tucked her hand around Kyle’s waist. “I will.”

Rob and Kyle hugged, and then Rob left. The tension whooshed out of her like a balloon going flat. Kyle took her hand. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“Better than a firing squad.”

He laughed. “That’s not a good comparison. What were you and Liam talking about? Was he being a dick?”

“Actually, no. We were talking about Alex. There are a lot of unresolved issues there.”

“Yeah, I suspected there would be. They always had this weird twin thing—very push-pull. The six of us sort of had our pairings—me and Sara, Tori and Evan, and then Alex and Liam. Except it wasn’t the same. It was a love-hate relationship, if you really want to know.”

“I know I’m not supposed to reveal things, but I can tell you, right? You’re my boyfriend.”

A sexy smile spread over his face, lighting his eyes. “Absolutely. Of course you can tell me things. And my lips are sealed.” He zipped his fingers over his mouth.

“Alex talked about all of you, but it was the conversations about Liam that stuck with me the most—the competition he felt, the inadequacy, the utter depression he struggled with over not being like Liam.”

“Wow.” Kyle’s eyes darkened. “You can’t ever tell him that.”

“I know—and you can’t either.”

“In the vault.” He pulled her against him and stroked her back. “I want you to tell me anything and everything. I don’t want any secrets like my parents.”

She tipped her head back and looked up at him. “That’s going to take effort. You’re a guy who likes to keep things close.”

“Not as close as I like to keep you.” He brushed a kiss against her forehead before notching her chin up and claiming her mouth.

She sighed into him, twining her arms around his neck and kissing him back. When they broke apart, she gazed up at him with love and joy, so ready for the future awaiting them. “Keep me as close as you like—in fact, don’t ever let me go.”

Epilogue

K
YLE COULDN
’
T REMEMBER
a better day. The wedding reception was in full swing. The placed looked fantastic, especially the exterior lighting design Maggie had insisted they add. It allowed the guests to wander out to the garden and just enjoy the spectacular summer night. In fact, he saw Dylan and Sara doing just that.

Maggie came up behind him and slid her hands around his waist for a quick squeeze. “What are you looking at?”

He watched them curiously, a bead of apprehension wending down his spine. “My sister and her boyfriend. Out there at the pergola.”

Maggie moved around him to look and gasped. “He’s down on his knee.”

“I see that.” He smiled as he turned and gave Maggie a quick, fierce kiss. “Let’s go congratulate them.”

“Wait! Is she going to say yes?”

He stared at her like she’d grown a second head. “You’ve seen them together, right?”

She laughed. “Yes. Just give them a few minutes. Oh my goodness. He’s putting a ring on it!” She clasped Kyle’s arm and tried to turn him around. “We should give them privacy.”

He resisted, his eyes glued to the romantic scene before him. “It’s forty yards away. In the middle of a wedding reception. If he wanted privacy, he should’ve taken her to the underground tunnels.”

“Good point.” Maggie sidled up to him. “Maybe we should get popcorn.”

Tori joined them, smoothing the skirt of her purple bridesmaid dress. “What are you guys staring at?”

Kyle’s eyes misted. “I think our baby sister just got engaged. I have to say, I’m a little choked up. I guess she’ll be the first of us Archer kids to get married.”

Tori started coughing. She brought her hand to her mouth and tried to recover, but it became a full-blown fit.

Kyle patted her back. “You okay?”

“I’ll get you some water,” Maggie offered, disappearing.

“I’m fine,” Tori wheezed. “Just inhaled a bug. Happens all the time when I run.”

Kyle laughed as Maggie came back with a glass of water. “Here.”

Tori took several gulps. “Thanks.”

Kyle turned back toward the pergola in time to see Sara and Dylan coming toward them, both of them wearing the biggest shit-eating grins he’d ever seen. “Something you want to tell us?”

Sara’s blue eyes rounded. “Did you see?”

“We did. It was quite a show.” He wiped a finger under his eye and affected a mock-anguished voice. “You almost had me in tears, right, Tor?” He glanced back at his other sister, but she wasn’t there. He looked at Maggie, who only shrugged in response.

“Was Tori here?” Sara asked. “Don’t mind her. She’s been in a mood all day. It’s like she took an antilove pill this morning.”

“Congratulations to both of you,” Maggie said. “Can I hug you?”

“Of course!” Sara hugged her, laughing. “I don’t know why I’m laughing. Just have to let the happiness out, I guess.”

Kyle shook Dylan’s hand. “Well done. I hope you asked Dad first.”

Dylan chuckled. “I’m not stupid.”

“Let me see the ring.” Maggie grasped Sara’s hand and held it up. “Oooh, so sparkly.”

Kyle peered over at it and exhaled. “How are any of us going to live up to that?”

Dylan shrugged. “Not my problem.” He put his arm around Sara. “We should go tell your mom.”

She looked up at Dylan, her eyes practically glowing with love. “Yes, we should. See you guys!”

“Hey.” Kyle stopped her with a quick, fierce hug. “I’m so happy for you, Sara-cat.”

“Thanks.”

Maggie twined her hand in his. “What do you think is up with Tori?”

“I don’t know.” He looked at her in question. “Have you talked to her?” He’d noticed that for the most part his family had been very welcoming to Maggie today, and he couldn’t be more grateful.

“Not about anything important. I think I make her a little tentative. She has a lot of questions about Alex, and I think she’s afraid to ask.”

“Would you answer them?”

Late last night, after going back to her house, they’d discussed whether she ought to talk about Alex with the family. He understood there were things she didn’t want to disclose, especially to Liam, but if she felt comfortable sharing information, he had no problem with it.

“I’m not sure. It depends on what they are, I suppose. I just sense that she’s seeking some closure.” She shook her head and looked down at the ground for a moment. “Sorry. I promise I’ll stop therapizing someday. Hard habit to break. I need more landscape jobs to get my brain rewired.”

He led her farther out into the garden, to a shadowed area, and drew her into his arms. “You’re a caring, intuitive person, Maggie. Don’t confuse that with being a therapist. And please don’t rewire your brain. I love it just the way it is. I’m the one who needs fixing, remember?”

She slid her hands up his shirtfront. He’d long ago shucked his jacket, and now she was fiddling with his tie, which ignited his insatiable desire for her. “No, you don’t. You’re hilarious and thoughtful and sexy and perfect. For me. And I’m the only one who matters.”

“Now
that
is very true. You told me once that I maybe didn’t like myself very much, and you were right. But you taught me how to do that again, how to accept who I am and be comfortable—something I’m still working on.”

“We’re all still working on that,” she said quietly but with infinite warmth. “We’re all just works in progress, and we’re lucky enough to have found each other for the journey.”

His gaze connected with hers and held. As they stood on the edge of the hillside, the stars sprinkled above them in the ink-black sky, he thought of how miraculous it was that two beings could even find each other. From the corner of his eye, he saw a shooting star. He sucked in a breath. “Did you see that?”

“I did,” she breathed, her head turned toward the sky where the streak had already faded.

“I was just thinking how lucky we are to have found each other. And I can’t help but think that was Alex.”

She said his name at the same moment he did. They faced each other, smiling.

“Thanks, bro,” Kyle said just before his lips met Maggie’s.