Once Laurie and Glen had gone, Eve walked outside with them.
“Thank you again,” Flora said. “Although those words don’t come close to what I really feel.”
“There’s the other hero.” Leon nodded across at Scape, who was standing on top of a pile of logs. When he saw them, the goat jumped down and pranced over.
Stevie and Frankie greeted Scape with pleasure. The animal responded with bleats and headbutts that had them chuckling.
“We owe you our thanks as well.” Flora rubbed the top of Scape’s head. He gave her one of his oblique glances and nibbled the hem of her skirt.
By the time they got home, the twins were asleep. “Cookies and milk for dinner and no bath?” Flora said. “It’s incredible the way standards slide following an abduction.”
When the twins were tucked up in bed, Leon placed an arm around Flora’s shoulders and they stood for a long time, staring down at the boys as they slept. Leon was awash with the most intense relief he had ever known. The fear he had felt when the twins were missing had almost destroyed him. He had lost one child in his life. He couldn’t bear the thought of more pain. Only the need to be there for Flora had moved him forward and kept him going. Now, he was grateful for the depth of his feelings. He was living and loving again, instead of coping in a way that numbed him and shut him away from reality.
Flora took his hand and led him from the room. When they were outside the door, she raised his palm to her cheek and held it there. “What you said...back then—”
“I meant every word. I love you, Flora. You and the boys are my life now.”
She nodded, tears glistening on the ends of her lashes. “My boys have never had a dad, and I’d convinced myself they didn’t need one. That was because I was scared. Not just for them, but for myself. I felt love had let me down when Danny died, and I was afraid to give my trust again. When I fell so hard and fast for you, I had no confidence in my instincts. It took time for me to accept that I couldn’t fight it. You are the best dad my boys could ask for...but it’s so much more than that. You’re perfect for me.” Her smile was radiant through her tears. “Asking me to take your hand, and hold it forever... I love you, Leon, and those are the sweetest words I’ve ever heard.”
He drew her close. After everything they’d been through, just holding her like this was a precious gift he had believed they might never have.
Flora leaned back and looked up at him. “Take me to bed. I want to fall asleep in your arms without worrying about what tomorrow will bring.”
Chapter 19
The next two days were a form of therapy. Leon and Flora didn’t really talk about what had happened. Instead, they concentrated on loving each other and caring for the twins.
Although Flora watched the boys like a hawk for signs that their ordeal had adversely affected them, it didn’t seem to be the case. They were as lively as ever, tumbling with Tiny, playing together one minute and squabbling the next, funny, curious, demanding, and delightful.
The daycare center was temporarily closed, but Beth and Steffi had called to offer their help. The boys enjoyed dividing their time equally between the animal sanctuary and Beth and Vincente’s lakeside home. Flora had called Tegan to find out how she was and learned that there was a plan underway among the daycare staff to reopen the center.
“We don’t want all the good things about the place to go to waste,” Tegan had explained.
“I don’t know if I want them to go back there,” Flora said to Leon when the call was over.
“We can decide that when it happens,” he said. “And we can see how the boys themselves feel about it.”
Having eaten dinner, they were spending the evening in their favorite place on the porch, watching the twins play on the grass. The knowledge that they no longer had to look over their shoulders was a form of therapy in itself. As a doctor, she knew that true healing would only take place when they explored and shared their emotions. That might be with each other. Possibly the twins would need professional help, as might she and Leon. They could take their time to find out.
“How did your conversation with Alan go?” she asked.
Leon’s mouth turned down. “Much as you’d expect. He didn’t try to hide anything, and he’s full of remorse. I can’t see him returning to Stillwater, which means, of course, that the Main Street Clinic will definitely close.”
Flora knew how hard it had been for him to make the call to his former boss, but she admired him for doing it. In his meeting with Laurie, Alan Grayson had admitted to multiple cases of medical malpractice. He faced an uncertain future littered with lawsuits and a lengthy battle with his gambling addiction. Although he couldn’t condone his actions, Leon wasn’t prepared to turn his back on the man who gave him a chance when most people had written him off.
The silence was interrupted by the sounds of an approaching car engine. Leon shielded his eyes against the evening sun. “Cameron and Laurie.”
“I guess we had to hear more about the investigation sooner or later.” Flora sighed as she got to her feet.
Although an officer had been out to the house to talk to Stevie and Frankie, the encounter had been low-key, and the boys had been untroubled by it. They had chatted easily about Daisy taking them from the daycare center and leaving them near the waterfall in the darkness. The only person who had been upset by the details had been Flora.
This was the first time any of
