Page 57 of Condor’s Vow

Epilogue

“Well, what do you think?”

Hattie smiled as she felt Clay slip his arms around her from behind and nuzzle her neck with his scruff. “Beautiful.”

Hattie reached her hand up and palmed his cheek as she turned into his kiss. The last four weeks had been slow going, but finally, she was feeling more like her old self again. Spending two weeks in the hospital had proved eye-opening, and she knew she’d use the experience to her advantage when she was nursing.

Everyone had been fantastic, the doctors and the nurses working tirelessly to make her well, but it was the little touches she noticed the most. The extra blanket or pillow and the time they took to make her feel seen. But it had been her friends and family who had kept her sane.

Hattie pulled away, knowing she’d need to reapply her lipstick and not caring. “I mean the table, Clay.”

“I know.”

“You didn’t even look.” Her words had no heat because the truth was, she loved having him look at her the way he did—as if she was the only woman on the planet that mattered.

“Can you blame me when you look like you do in that dress?” It was Christmas Eve, and they were going out with all their friends. It was her first time since the attack that had almost cost her life. Far from being a shrinking violet, Hattie had chosen a burgundy red sequin dress to celebrate not only the season but the fact she was here to celebrate it with the man she loved.

“I’m glad you like the dress. I chose it for you.”

Clay ran his hand down her side, stopping over her horrendous scar as he locked eyes with her. “You look amazing, Hattie.”

He had been reassuring her for weeks that she was beautiful and her scar, which was jagged and ugly, meant nothing to him except as a sign that she had survived. Yet he still hadn’t made love to her since the attack. Hattie wasn’t sure if it was because he thought it was hideous or if he was still worried about her.

He’d been fretting since she’d come home from the hospital, ensuring that either he was here or someone else was. Martin had been mired in guilt, and she knew all the reassurance in the world wouldn’t absolve her brother of what he saw as his failure to protect her. He’d been around a lot in the first few days, driving her crazy until she’d put him to work instead.

Knocking down the walls of her home and getting started on the renovation had been cathartic for him, and as she and Clay stood in their new dining room and she admired the table set for Christmas dinner the following night, she knew it had been the right thing to do.

“Are you sure you’re up to this?” Clay smoothed a hand gently over her side, and she saw the frown appear and lifted her hand to smooth it away.

“Yes, I feel fine. I won’t let that man rob me of anything else. He took so much from so many people who’d just been trying to help people. I won’t let him take any more.”

“You amaze me, Hattie Pollard.”

“Yeah? Wait till you see what’s under this dress, it will blow your mind.”

The flare of desire she saw in his eyes gave her hope that his holding back was because he was worried about her not because he hated what he saw now.

Clay handed her the coat she was going to wear. “Let’s go before I decide staying home and taking you to bed is a better idea.”

Hattie felt a smile curl her lips as he ushered her out the door. “Did you give Mr. Chester his mango root?”

“Yes.”

Mr. Chester was a hero of sorts, coming back from the almost dead and biting Wood on the leg, allowing Penny Singleton, the veterinary nurse who had been kidnapped, enough time to try and fight Wood for the hammer he’d been about to use on Hattie. She knew she’d never know why her dad got the dog, but she believed it had been one of those fateful things that happened at the right time for a specific reason.

Pulling up outside the bar, Clay parked close and came around to help her out as she was still a little stiff. Even though she tried not to show it, he saw. He always would, and that was okay. Allowing herself to lean on him was right, as was him depending on her and their friends. It was what people did when they cared—they took the weight when it was too heavy for you alone.

McGinty’s bar was crowded, and she felt Clay protecting her as he pushed through the crowd to the tables at the back where their friends were already seated.

“Hattie, wow, you look amazing. No wonder my brother’s tongue is hanging out his mouth.”

Hattie laughed as she hugged Callie and then Reid.

“Pack it in, brat,” Clay good-naturedly scolded Callie before hugging her too.

Seeing the love between the siblings was something Hattie would never get tired of. Family was important to her, and knowing Clay had the same was the icing on the cake.

Mack pushed a drink toward her that had a Santa sticking out the top attached to the straw. “I got you a cranberry daiquiri.”