Extended Epilogue

Bozeman Montana

1868

Lily stood on the other side of the barn, where Rosey, Buck, Berta and Gunner all grazed in their corral. She looked at them, and smiled. She was still so grateful that they’d found their horses that day. She knew that God had looked down on them when Tucker Morgan had tracked them down and taken her.

It had been terrifying.

Being taken, Jamie being left behind, the thought of ever being forced to marry that man.

It was also scary to be the one to pull the trigger, and she prayed every day to never have to see or do anything like that again. But Zane had been there, her protector; a man sent by God to her and Jamie. A perfect husband and father.

And he’d brought her horses back.

These beautiful horses.

She sighed, dreamily, overjoyed with her life. It almost was enough for her to stave off her anxiety as nervous acid drew up into her throat.

But not quite.

She sighed heavily, one of her hands flying up to her brow, shading her eyes as she scanned the trail that wound through the valley below them. Her other arm held her precious daughter, Amy, as she slept softly against her bosom. Lily’s heart was in her throat. Nerves. A lot of nerves.

The anticipation had been building for weeks. Her father was coming.

It had been nearly two years since she’d last seen him. Nearly two years since she’d left her father’s home in the dead of night with Jamie in her arms. Nearly two years since she’d begged Clive Dawson to let her join the wagon train.

It had all led to a life she never could have imagined. A life she wouldn’t have traded for anything.

“Still no sign of him?”

Zane’s voice came up behind her as his hands settled gently on her shoulders before rubbing small massaging circles into the blades.

She sighed and leaned against his touch. “Not yet,” she all but moaned, leaning back against his solid chest. “But the letter said he’d be here today. He has to be coming.”

Zane’s arms circled her waist, careful not to disturb the precious bundle she held against her chest. Amy was only two months old, and was sleeping soundly despite Lily’s restlessness—which was more than enough incentive not to disturb her since she’d not been doing a whole lot of sleeping yet.

They welcomed moments like this. Quiet moments. Soft moments.

The baby’s little fist was curled around Lily’s dress fabric, and her rosy mouth moved slightly in her sleep, as if she were dreaming of eating.

“He’ll be here,” he whispered against the top of her head before pressing a kiss there. “He wouldn’t have written if he wasn’t coming.”

Lily closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to settle the butterflies that continued to flutter inside her gut. The letter had arrived three weeks ago, travel-worn with her father’s handwriting. It had been brief, but it had contained the words she’d been longing to read the entire time they’d been corresponding: I’m coming to see you and Jamie. To meet my new granddaughter. To make things right.

Those last four words had made her cry when she’d first read them. To make things right. Part of her had carried guilt about leaving the way she did, taking Jamie in the middle of the night, stealing provisions and her mother’s old rickety wagon—the one that she’d ended up having to leave behind on the trail—but the fact that Tucker Morgan had pursued her so violently meant that she had been right to leave.

She was right to take Jamie and get out of there because Jamie deserved a better life.

And Lily was leaps and bounds happier for the decision she’d made. She would have never survived being married to a ruffian like Tucker Morgan.

“Lily! Lily!” Jamie’s voice carried across the yard, high and excited. “Someone’s coming!”

Lily’s heart lurched, her head snapping back up to look at the trail. And there it was, sure enough, a cloud of dust from rumbling horse hooves. A rider was approaching.

“It’s him!” she breathed sharply. Zane squeezed her hand.

“You ready?” he asked.

She nodded.

More than ready.

They walked together toward the front of the house, Jamie bouncing beside them like an excited puppy. Lily’s steps felt strange, as if she were walking through a dream. Like all of this happening to her wasn’t real. Like life wasn’t meant to be this happy.

Part of her still couldn’t quite believe this moment was even happening, that her father was actually here, coming to see them. But when she glanced back over her shoulder, the rider was close enough now that she could see his face.

It was a weathered man. Older than she remembered, but unmistakably her father. And honestly? Even though he was older and looked different than he had the last time they’d seen one another, he looked more like her father than he had back then; the man she knew as a little girl.

His eyes were all over the land, her, Jamie, Amy, and then Zane as he dismounted. And they were full of wonderment and sincerity. “Wow…” he mused, looking around in awe. “Y’all have a nice place out here.”

Lily beamed as her father pulled his horse toward their porch to tie it off. Then Jamie bounced off from the side yard and over to him. To the man who was really his father. “Jamie,” he said quietly, his voice rough with something resembling sadness as he bent down to his knee. “Look how you’ve grown, son.”

“Grandpa!” Jamie yelled out.

Lily’s heart caught in her throat, and she could see her father wince slightly at hearing it. But his “papa” was Zane Lancaster now. Daniel smiled, catching the boy in a hug, standing up with him still tightly in his arms.

“I’ve missed you, boy,” Daniel murmured into Jamie’s hair. “I’ve missed both of you so much.” He looked at Lily as he took his first step up on her porch, his eyes glistening with tears. She could see the regret written all over his face. But also happiness.

“Lily,” he sighed, pulling her into a hug, but being careful not to squish Amy or to disturb her. He was gentle, but still strong and her head rested on his shoulder for a moment. Tobacco and leather. A scent she remembered from her childhood.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered against her ear. “I’m so sorry.”

Lily pulled back to look at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. “You’re here now,” she said. “There’s no more need to apologize.”

Daniel nodded, then his attention was caught by the small bundle in her arms. “And this must be Amy,” he said softly, his voice cracking just slightly as a stray tear dripped down his face.

“Would you like to hold her?” Lily asked, already shifting to hand her over to the man on whom she had almost given up. He smiled, almost sadly, as he took her in his arms.

“She’s so beautiful,” he breathed, more emotion in his throat now. “She looks just like you when you were a baby.”

Lily’s heart almost stopped.

The way he looked at Amy so lovingly. She wondered if he had looked at her that way when she was a baby. She was sure he did. But she hadn’t seen that look from that man in so long. And then Zane cleared his throat, pulling her—and Daniel’s—attention toward him.

Lily watched as her father studied Zane carefully, his eyes taking in the man who had married his daughter, and after a moment he nodded once, his jaw tense as he held out his free arm.

“To you, sir, I owe a debt I can never repay,” Daniel said. “You protected my children when I failed to do so.”

“They did pretty good on their own,” Zane replied. “I just had the privilege of being there, too.”

Daniel nodded slowly, respect growing in his expression. “I’d like to hear the whole story, if you’re willing to tell it…”

“Absolutely,” Zane agreed, as he opened the door to the cabin and gestured for everyone to walk inside. Lily stood back for a moment, watching Jamie dart in like a bullet, her father following with Amy in his arms.

“You coming?” Zane asked. Lily nodded and carefully took a few steps inside the small, homely cabin. She sighed contentedly, knowing one thing: she was blessed. They were surrounded by family and love. And hope. So much hope. The Montana sky had deepened to a purple that night and she could see it just outside the window as they sat around the supper table.

One difficult choice had led to this moment.

One difficult choice had led to the happiest home in the world.

Her home.