Only not fast enough to save any of her things.
She had insurance, and now with Rachel’s name being attached rather than an unknown, her insurance could start helping. There hadn’t been another unknown phone call that set her on edge, but she still didn’t know if all of that was connected. She also didn’t know if the note was from Rachel, or why it would have been sent to Jackson, but Everly had a feeling it was all connected. It had to be.
She’d be able to rebuild from the ground up, but she’d lost so much. Even with the Montgomerys’ help, rebuilding couldn’t bring back the way the old stone had looked against the pale cream of the walls. It couldn’t bring back the hours and hours of work she’d put into building the shelves and picking out her inventory. It wouldn’t bring back the tiny decorations she’d put in for the fairies that the children loved to imagine existed within the walls of her store. It wouldn’t bring back the memories she’d had with her children within these walls.
Everything was gone.
Even her staff had been forced to find other work while she waited to reopen. She couldn’t pay them with no income herself, and they’d understood. But now, she felt just that much more alone in what remained of her home away from home.
Storm kissed the top of her head, and she was reminded that no, she wasn’t truly alone, even if the ash-soaked walls wanted her to feel it.
“Jesus Christ,” Austin muttered under his breath.
“I’m so sorry, Everly,” Sierra, Austin’s wife added. She owned the boutique named Eden a few doors down and could have lost her place, too if the fire had spread.
Every one of the Montgomerys except Marie and Harry who had chosen to stay at their place with all the grandbabies—including her twins—was with her in her shop so she wouldn’t feel alone. Even Jillian had come to hold her hand, and damn it, she’d needed it. The two of them had grown close over the past few weeks—something that completely surprised her. But they both loved Storm—if in different ways—and that connected them.
Wes and Decker moved through the place in front of her, looking at the damage with their technical eyes. The others moved around, as well, taking photos and notes for her on what the insurance company needed. The adjuster had already been out, but no one was taking any chances. Tabby had brought coffee for everyone and kept hugging Everly as they both tried to hold back tears. It was all just too much.
But with the fact that Rachel had been the one to do this, everything had come full circle. They were still searching for her, as they couldn’t find her at home. Clay was inconsolable and had called to apologize over and over again. She never blamed Clay for how their lives had been connected through Storm and would never blame him for his aunt. But with Rachel’s cruel streak coming to light, Everly now knew what she had to do about Jackson’s other children.
There was no way her twins could have anything to do with Rachel, but with Clay and his grandparents, she’d find a way for the five siblings to get to know one another. That would happen eventually, but first…first, she needed to make sure her store was salvageable.
Storm kissed her temple, and she sighed. “Love you.”
“Love you, too,” she whispered. She couldn’t believe that she loved Storm Montgomery, or that his entire family had rallied around her when she’d needed them. Somehow, she’d gone from her own tiny island to the continent that was the Montgomerys.
Shocking didn’t even begin to cover it.
But she wasn’t alone. She had her sons and the man she loved…and perhaps a future she could depend on. Even a few months ago, she never would have thought that would be the case, but now, here she was, in Storm’s arms. She was even happy, despite where she stood. Because in the end, she could rebuild.
She would.
“I’m going to rebuild,” she said softly. Only it must not have been as soft as she thought because everyone stopped what they were doing, mixtures of pride and understanding showing in their eyes.
“We’ll make it exactly what you want. We can’t replace what you have, but we can make it work.”
She turned into Storm’s arms and kissed his chin. “Yes, we can.” She wasn’t sure when they’d become a we, but she wouldn’t change it for anything. We can do this, she told herself. As long as she had Storm and the Montgomerys, she could do anything.
****
Storm was one lucky man. He didn’t know how it had happened, but somehow, he was living a life he’d never even dreamed of. Nothing like what he had with Everly and the twins had been on his radar, and yet he knew it was the life he’d always needed.
He was in love with a woman with so much courage and strength, his own paled in comparison, and all of that just made him want to be a better man. He didn’t know exactly what would happen next, as neither of them was ready for marriage, but they were finding their way through this new aspect of their relationship and enjoying it.
At least, he was.
And from the happy smile on her face right then, he figured she was, as well.
“Okay, so the diner for dinner then?” Storm asked as he and Everly buckled the boys into their car seats.
“I’m craving country-fried chicken and gravy,” she answered with a laugh. “I know it’ll go right to my hips, but I had dreams about that black pepper cream gravy.”
Storm’s mouth watered, and he snorted. “That sounds amazing. I guess we’ll just have to get a workout in tonight if we’re going to have all that fried food.”
Her eyes darkened, and he winked. Damn, he loved this woman.
James grinned up at him from his seat, and Storm buckled him in. “You ready for dinner, buddy?”
“French fries!” James squealed, his voice sounding clearer by the week. His speech therapy was working, and his body had taken to the cochlear implant amazingly well.
“Yay! Fries!” Nathan clapped his hands as he said it, his voice loud and bright. His lungs were doing well that week, and that was another thing in the plus column.
“Can Randy come?” James asked. The boys loved his dog and considered the puppy theirs, as well.
“Not in the restaurant, but he’ll be with you when you sleep tonight.”
“Good,” Nathan said solemnly. “He shouldn’t be lonely.”
“No one should, buddy.
As Storm got into the front seat and took Everly’s hand as she got into the truck with them, he smiled. Their lives had been in the negative column over and over again recently, but now things were looking up. He and his family were talking about the accident and getting everything out in the open. Both of the twins were getting healthier and loved the fact that Storm was around more and more. Everly’s store might be in shambles at the moment, but that wouldn’t always be the case. The Montgomerys would help rebuild and had all rallied around her the moment she’d needed help—probably even before she realized it.
The only thing hovering over them was Rachel. He held back a scowl at that thought. The police hadn’t found her yet since she’d apparently gone to ground, but Storm knew they would. There wasn’t another acceptable outcome.
“You’re frowning,” Everly whispered. “What’s wrong?”
Storm kept his attention on the road but pulled their clasped hands to his lips to leave a soft kiss on her even softer skin. “Just thinking, but I’m pushing those thoughts from my head and am going to focus on gravy.”
Everly gave him a worried look that he caught out of the corner of his eye but smiled anyway. “And mashed potatoes. And possibly apple pie.”
Storm groaned. “All the food, Ev. All the food.”
“All the food!” James repeated.
“Food! Food! Food!” Nathan chanted.
Everly laughed and turned on the sound system. “How about a song?” She leaned closer to Storm and lowered her voice. “They’re hyper at the moment, so we might as well let them sing a song rather than scream about food.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
She turned on the song they’
d played about two hundred times since he and Ev had started dating, and the boys began to sing along about dancing and feelings. James and Nathan were also addicted to the brightly colored and shiny movie that the song came from, so Storm had the words down by heart.
The kids were enthusiastic if not adept at their singing, so Storm shrugged and joined them. Everly laughed and did the same, and soon, the four of them were singing and laughing and on their way to dinner as…well, as a family. He wasn’t their father and never would be, but he loved those boys and loved the woman next to him. That was all he needed.
Storm squeezed Everly’s hand, feeling the happiest he’d been for a long time, and if he hadn’t had his eyes on the road, he would have missed the bright shine of headlights coming at the car head-on.
Only he didn’t have time to turn out of the way or hit his brakes. Everly screamed, and the boys cried out. Metal smashed, and rubber burned. Glass shattered around them, and for a moment, he thought he was back where this had all started. But that wasn’t the case. He was here…with his family…with Ev and the boys…and the world had shattered around them.
A sharp pain radiated down his arms and legs, then nothing.
There was nothing.
Only numbness.
And darkness.
And nothing.
Chapter Twenty
Everly blinked her eyes open, her head a little fuzzy and something sticky coating her hands, but she could breathe, and she could feel. And once she focused, she could see.
Everything.
Something had hit their car. Something had made them crash.
Her boys.
“Mommy!” James was crying, and Nathan was doing the same. She turned, ignoring the ache in her head to see that her boys were still in their car seats and from what she could tell, didn’t have a cut or bruise on them. That could all change though in an instant.
“Everything’s fine, babies. Someone will come and help us soon. Are you hurt? Tell Mommy where it hurts.”
“I’m scared,” Nathan said with a cry.
“I want hugs,” James cried with him.
She tried to soothe them, but she couldn’t reach her boys. They had to be okay. They had to be.
She pressed her hand to her head and winced, knowing she had to have a cut there. People were screaming around her, but it was like they were in a vacuum. She needed to make sure her family was safe.
Storm.
She turned to him in the front seat, and he sat still. His eyes were closed, and his breath came in labored pants. Tears streamed down her face, and she tried to reach for him but couldn’t as her seatbelt stopped her. She couldn’t get her hands to work right to undo the buckle, and she winced with each movement.
“Storm,” she gasped.
He opened his eyes slowly, his gaze dark with pain. “Hey, baby, are you okay? The kids?”
“I’m fine,” she lied. She wasn’t fine, and wouldn’t be until she had her family in her arms. “Can you move? Can you help me get the boys out?”
“Storm?” Nathan cried. “I want Storm.”
“Mommy!” James cried.
Her body shook as sobs took over, and she tried to be strong, but she was so tired. No, she reminded herself, her exhaustion didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was her kids and Storm. Once they were safe and healed, then she could break down. Not now. Not anytime soon.”
“I’m right here, boys,” Storm said calmly, though she knew he had to be anything but calm. He looked directly at Everly and lowered his voice. “I can’t reach the boys.” He took a deep, shaky breath. “I can’t feel my legs right now, baby, but we’ll get out. Everything will be fine. I love you, Everly. I love you so fucking much.”
Tears fell in earnest, and she choked back a sob. He couldn’t feel his legs? Oh, God, his back. “I love you, too.”
With the way the truck had been crushed on Storm’s side, she was just far enough away from him that she couldn’t reach anyone. She’d never felt so helpless.
“We’ll get out of this,” she promised, her hands shaking, and bile filling her throat as her head throbbed. “We will.”
“I know, baby. I know.”
The sirens came closer, and she looked back at her boys, doing her best to keep awake. People were coming to help. They wouldn’t be alone.
She wouldn’t lose everything.
Again.
She had a partial concussion but not a full one, and the boys were perfectly fine. So fine, in fact, they were cuddling on Marie’s and Harry’s laps after having cuddled on Nancy’s and Peter’s. Her in-laws had shown up at the hospital after Marie had called them—somehow finding their number—and had not only wanted to ensure their grandsons were okay, but Everly and Storm, as well. Nancy had gone so far as to hug her softly and cry on her shoulder.
Apparently, almost losing the last of Nancy’s family after everything had changed had altered her thinking. Everly wasn’t sure what to think about that because she had more important things to worry about just then, though she would keep that in the back of her mind.
“He’s going to be fine,” Jillian whispered from Everly’s side. The other woman had shown up with the rest of the Montgomerys—minus the few that had stayed home to take care of the children—and she hadn’t left Everly’s side since. They held hands tightly and would every once in a while hug even if they didn’t speak.
“I know.” She put force behind her words, willing them to be true. “He’s just been in surgery for so long.”
“And he’ll make it out when the doctors are done,” Wes said, his voice hollow. “Because he doesn’t get a choice. He’s going to be grumpy and growly when he gets out, but he’s going to be fine.”
“Surgeries take time,” Austin said from Sierra’s side. “But I’m fucking tired of our family having to constantly figure that out in a waiting room that looks just like this.” He winced and looked over at Jackson’s parents as well as the boys.
Peter waved him off, and the twins were asleep. If Everly had had any left over energy in her body, she’d have probably smiled. But she couldn’t find a way to smile at all, not when she didn’t know if Storm was going to be okay or not.
Because of the size of the Montgomery family, they had the entire waiting room to themselves. There were a few others on the surgical floor, so she knew others were taken care of, but she was still trying to get over the fact that she wasn’t alone in this. This entire family had not only dropped everything for Storm but for her, as well.
How her life had become this, she didn’t know, but she’d focus on it later and even say her thanks for that blessing. For now, she could only worry and try not to think about the throbbing in her head. Her doctors had only let her out of bed because the entire Montgomery clan had said they’d make sure she didn’t overdo it, but if she looked like she was in pain, she knew all of them would push her back into the hospital bed where she wouldn’t be around to hear what happened with Storm. She couldn’t let that happen.
The doors opened, and everyone stood, only to see two detectives walk in, not the doctor. “Mrs. Law?” the older one asked. “May we have a moment?”
Everly looked around at the people in the room and knew everyone was exactly where they should be. “They can stay. If that’s all right. How can I help you?”
The detectives looked around again before giving her a nod. “We’ve ID’d the other driver. Unfortunately, they didn’t make it.”
Everly’s breath caught. “They died? What happened?”
“From what we can tell, she hit you head-on without hitting the brakes on purpose. And, as it turns out, she’s connected to another ongoing investigation you’re involved in. It seems the same woman who sent your deceased husband that note to your shop that you gave us, was also the one who hit you tonight. The same woman who set fire to your bookstore. The arson investigator will be in touch shortly, but based on fingerprint analysis, we know that she sent Mr. Jackson Law the letter. We assum
e it was to get you to open it and scare you, as Mr. Law didn’t own the shop with you, though we haven’t pieced together what she meant by the message. We also found a burner phone in her vehicle that only called one number over the past few weeks. Yours. And now that we know it was her DNA found in the shop at the time of the fire, we know that it’s all connected.”
She blinked, her head throbbing. “Rachel? Rachel did this?” And now, she was dead. The first thing Everly thought of was Rachel’s children, the second…the second thought filled her with rage, which only made her head hurt more. Why had she done this? For money? How could she gain anything by taking away Everly’s livelihood or trying to kill her and her family? None of it added up. There was no logic to any of it. What… What was wrong with that woman? No, what had been wrong with that woman? She had to be crazy. It was the only reasonable explanation.
“Rachel did this,” she said again.
“Yes, ma’am. We have a few questions for you.”
“Can they wait?” Wes asked. His voice sounded a bit stronger this time, and for that, she was grateful. “She’s hurt, and we’re still waiting on news about Storm. Plus, her kids might be sleeping, but they’re still in the room. Rachel isn’t going anywhere,” he growled, not kindly.
The detectives nodded and explained to Everly that they’d be seeing her soon before leaving the waiting room. Everyone let out a collective breath, and Everly just wanted to curl into herself and cry. Instead, she shoved down the emotions, stood up slowly, waved off Jillian’s glare, and went to where her babies slept.
“Thank you for holding them,” she whispered to the elder Montgomerys as well as Jackson’s parents. “Just…thank you.”
Inked Expressions Page 20