Page 169 of Micah

Maybe she already found exactly what she's been missing.

A place to belong.

The thought hits me harder than I expect.

For months, I've watched her carry the weight of the world on those pretty shoulders.

Working herself to the bone.

Smiling for customers while everything else in her life slowly came apart.

Now she's in my cabin.

Laughing.

Not the polite bartender laugh she gives strangers.

The real one.

The one that reaches her eyes.

The sound drifts through the open kitchen window, and I'll be damned if it isn't the best thing I've heard all day.

A slow smile tugs at my mouth.

Hell.

Maybe they're good for her.

Maybe I am too.

I watch through the kitchen window as Bit says something that has all three women doubled over laughing.

Esme nearly spills her coffee.

Sloane throws her head back, one hand over her heart, laughing so hard she has to grab the counter for balance.

God.

She's so beautiful when she laughs.

Not the polite bartender smile she gives customers.

Not the one she probably forced for Patrick while carrying the weight of his mistakes.

This one is real.

Carefree.

Free.

Yeah, maybe this is exactly what she's needed all along.

People who show up. People who expect nothing from her except herself. Who don't make her earn their affection.

She belongs with them. With us. With me.

Yeah, she belongs here. She’s my girl. My Princess.