Epilogue

Four months later

 

Savannah tightened her hand around Rosie’s lead. Sensing her fear, Rosie leaned in against her.

“We got this, girl.”

“If you need more time, we can wait a few days,” Logan called out from the porch. He walked to the open front door, holding the tablet out in front of him so Molly could see her.

“No, she’s okay,” Molly said. “You can do this, Savannah.”

Savannah nodded. She could do this. She could now open the door and look outside without a panic attack ensuing. It was time to try and step outside.

“Logan, move back and out of the way. Give her space,” Molly ordered.

Logan pulled a face at the tablet and Savannah had to turn away to hide her grin. Funny, the last thing she expected to be doing this morning was smiling.

“He’s making faces at me, isn’t he?” Molly complained.

Logan quickly stepped back out onto the porch.

“You okay, love?” Max asked from beside her. “I can walk with you.”

She shook her head. “I have Rosie. I can do this.”

“I know you can.” Max squeezed her shoulder. “You’re strong, and you’re tough. You look after her, Rosie.”

Rosie barked at him quietly as though she understood. The service dog had been a godsend. Savannah knew she wouldn’t have gotten this far without Rosie to help her.

It also helped that things had become much quieter and more settled. Max no longer stressed as much about money and he’d actually started talking to them about the ranch. The three of them usually used dinnertime to discuss what had gone on that day. She was learning far more than she thought she would about ranching just listening to the two of them talk.

She hadn’t returned to her old job. She’d decided that taking over the ranch’s bookwork would really help her men out and she’d noticed Max seemed relieved to have that off his plate.

Things weren’t magically better, of course. It would take a while for the ranch to truly be profitable. But they were turning things around.

“All right, Rosie. Let’s do this.” She bit her lip, feeling her breathing grow faster as they neared the door. Rosie whimpered and leaned into her.

She patted the dog’s head. “It’s okay. I’m all right.”

“That’s it, Savannah,” Molly said from the tablet. “Remember your breathing techniques. Just one step in front of the other. If you feel yourself starting to panic just stop for a moment and breathe.”

Savannah paused. Her heartrate was elevated, sweat was gathering on her forehead. Rosie barked, and she looked down at the dog with a smile.

“Good girl, Rosie.” She didn’t know how the golden retriever knew when a panic attack was brewing, but she usually managed to bring her back from the brink.

“All right. I’m okay.” She took another step forward. Then another. And suddenly, she was outside. And it was overwhelming. Exhilarating. Terrifying. Then her men were there, surrounding her with their bodies, their protection, their love.

“Hey! Hey!” Molly called out from the tablet. “Where’d you all go?”

She glanced over to see the tablet lying face down on the porch. Logan picked it up, and Molly glared, clearly disgruntled. “What happened? Where . . .” Her eyes widened. “Savannah! You’re outside!”

“I am.”

Molly smiled. “I knew you could do it.”

Savannah grinned. “I did it. But I couldn’t have done it without you two.” She reached up and kissed Max then moved across to Logan. “Or you, Molly.”

“All right, put me back down,” Molly said, sounding disgruntled. “Clearly it’s time for me to leave.”

Max picked Savannah up in his arms. “Bye, Molly.”

Logan waved down at her. “See ya, Molly.”

She looked down into the tablet. “I owe you, Molly.”

 

Molly switched off the computer screen with a smile. But her smile soon turned sad. She was going to miss those guys. Savannah was going to need her less and less.

It was a good thing. For Savannah. For Molly and her lonely existence, not so much.

“She’s your patient, not your friend,” she reminded herself.

But perhaps after she stopped being her patient, they could be friends. Maybe then, Molly would take a trip to Haven, Texas and find out if all the men there were as good-looking and protective as Max and Logan.

It was time to tick some things off her bucket list.

Especially as she didn’t know how much time she had left.

 

Thanks for reading Saving Savannah. Look for Molly and Jake’s story in March/April 2018.