GRACE

After Stella and Wilder leave, I need to go into town for more formula and groceries. I waited a while, thinking Bear might come down to talk, but he doesn’t.

I gave Wilder the fifth degree before he left, but he told me Bear and Virginia’s business isn’t his to share. That I should ask Bear for the truth, not him.

But after waiting an hour, I know I need to get into town before too long. The babies are changed and fed, so it’s now or never.

I leave, hating the fact that Bear and I haven’t spoken. When I finally return from my errands--exhausted from lugging car seats and grocery sacks, I see a note on my kitchen table.

I reread the note a dozen times, wishing that he’d said more -- said anything at all. But he didn’t. And so, I’m left pacing the cottage with the twins, feeding them, and changing them, and rocking them to sleep. The whole time, all I can think about is the fact Bear lied to me.

He was living with another woman, yet he wants me to believe we will just get through this? No wonder he didn’t tell me he loved me... he had a woman already.

I feel like such a fool.

The next morning I’m invited up to Stella’s for a BBQ and I’m glad to have something to think about besides Bear. Once the babies are both napping, I make a few peach pies knowing seeing my friends will be the best way to avoid thinking about the man who hasn’t explained himself.

It’s awful, thinking about him and someone else. When I’m with him, my entire world makes sense. Is it possible that woman, Virginia, feels the same way?

The effort involved in getting the twins ready for Stella’s is a little overwhelming, but finally, a diaper bag is packed, and the twins are in their car seats and I drive away, the peach pies in the empty passenger seat. There are going to be a million questions to field, and as I drive, I try to think through my answers.

Thankfully, the people who will be there tonight are my closest friends in the world, and I don’t need to pretend around them. There is no pretending that Bear leaving like that hasn’t hurt me.

At the house, Harper and Honor run out to my car to help me with the babies, squealing in excitement over how precious they are.

“I can’t believe it,” Harper says, giving me a warm hug. “We’ve heard the whole story and, sweetheart, what a whirlwind!”

“I know,” I say hugging her back. “I can’t really believe it’s my life, to be honest.”

In the kitchen, Rosie and Josie ooh and ahh over my pies. “Are you kidding me with these, Grace? Homemade crusts when you have newborns to look after? You’re a domestic goddess, that’s for sure.”

I shake my head, laughing as a gaggle of little boys thread between us. “Every mother on this mountain has been a shining example of how to juggle everything.”

“Well, let’s get this sweetheart out of the car seat so I can hold her.” Rosie unlatches Laura’s buckle and coos over her plump cheeks and bright eyes. Two of Rosie’s little ones are at her side, smiling up at the baby in their mama’s arms. I take Abel from the other infant seat and tuck him into a sling snuggling him close to my chest, so he can finish his nap.

“Now that we know the whole story, we can all pitch in to help,” Harper says as she kneels to wipe her son Cedar’s face. He just made a mess out of a chocolate chip cookie. “In fact, I already made a Google calendar assigning everyone dinner duty.”

“Of course, you did,” Honor says, laughing with a toddler on her hip. “You are the matron of this mountain, you know that right?”

“Hey, ladies,” Wilder calls from the back porch. “The burgers are ready!”

Carrying platters of hamburger fixings and bowls of potato salad and coleslaw, along with babies everywhere, we head outside.

The patio is lined with picnic tables and out in the yard, kids are playing tetherball and some of the older ones are jumping on an enclosed trampoline. There are Nerf gun bullets flying through the air and shrieks of laughter as the kids play.

James has his guitar in his lap and is plucking the strings, and Jaxon is grabbing ice cold beers from the cooler and then handing them to Hawk and Buck. Around me, couples are laughing, and I lock eyes with Jonah, the only other single person here.

I kiss Abel’s head, wishing I weren’t alone as James comes over. “Looks like you’ve been busy,” he says with a lazy smile.

“Yeah, it’s been a little insane.”

“Hey, do you know who that is?” he asks, pointing to the back entrance. I look over and my heart stops.

“That’s... that’s... Bear.” I scan the porch for Stella and she is looking straight at Wilder. Clearly, they are speaking in the silent way couples can, but it’s clear she didn’t have any idea Bear was coming.

He walks out to the porch, and two women come out behind him. One is Virginia, and the other is a woman I’ve never seen before. Wilder walks over and claps Bear on the back, greeting him. It’s strange seeing Bear here for so many reasons, but I’m struck by how big he is. He towers over all the mountain men here at the BBQ and I’d be lying if I said my heart wasn’t pounding in my chest at the sight of him.

He does things to me that I hardly understand. He showed up here with two women, and yet all I can think about when I look at him is his arms wrapped around me; his eyes locked on mine.

I wish I was his, plain and simple.

“Grace,” he says, walking over to me. “Can we talk?”

Stella is by my side. “Sure, but you need to explain yourself to all of us if you want to stay.”

“Wilder didn’t...” Bear looks over at Wilder, who just shrugs.

“I told her it wasn’t my story to share. Besides, why the hell did you wait so long to clear that up, Bear? Figured you’d have done it the moment the cops left the cabin yesterday?”

“Well, we had to drive east to get Laila, Virginia’s best friend. Before we left I stopped at Gracie’s place but she wasn’t there, and we couldn’t wait around. We knew Laila would be taken by whoever was left of the Badlands once they heard Ricky had been arrested. So we drove all night to get to her first.” I’m trying to keep up with his story, but it’s confusing. He looks over at the women he brought with him and motions them to come closer. “Grace, this is my sister Virginia.”

My mouth falls open. “Your sister?”

“Yeah, the motorcycle gang found us because she had made a few calls to her best friend who was still with them. After everything went down yesterday, Virginia and I knew we needed to go right away to get her to safety.”

“How much of that did you know, Wilder?” Stella asks her husband.

“I told you: none of it. I thought you women would have talked it all out already, didn’t think you needed me butting in. But when Bear called asking if I knew where you were, I told him to come on over to the house for the burgers.”

“Hey, enough you two,” Jaxon hollers. “Let these two kiss and make up.”

Everyone snickers, and several kids are sitting down at the tables, watching with interest.

Bear steps closer to me. “I should have told you Virginia was up there with me, but you had so much you were dealing with, I didn’t want to burden you with anything else. And my sister was too scared to leave the cabin, and then there’s the fact, that it’s all happened so fast.”

“What’s happened?” Finn, Stella’s son, asks, causing the adults to laugh softly.

“I fell in love, little man,” Bear tells him. “That’s what happened.”

“Love?” I ask, biting back the tears.

“Yes, Grace. Love. I love you. And I’m sorry I left the way I did, and I’m sorry for not saying more sooner, but I’m saying it now, and I’m saying it forever. I love you. And I won’t leave again.”

Laura starts fussing in Rosie’s arms and she unceremoniously hands her over to Bear.

I blink hard, tears welling up in my eyes.

“Here’s the thing, Grace, neither of us knows much about family. I have my sister, and you have the folks on the mountain, sure, but we’re both missing an awful lot. The thing is, I want to fill in the gaps with you. I don’t want to be a rock, all alone in the world. I want the painful memories of our pasts to be chiseled away so we can create new ones, together. I want a life with you and Laura and Abel.”

“What are you saying?” I ask him, every fiber of my being shaking with dreams I want him to fulfill.

“I’m saying I need you as my wife. I want to be your Grizzly Bear, protecting you and our family. Marry me, Gracie. Be my sunshine and let me be your shelter when skies are gray. Let me be yours, now and for always.”

His words are more than a balm to my heart, they are the song to my soul, the lyrics to my anthem. “I love you,” I whisper, as tears fall down my cheeks. “And yes, I will marry you, Bear.”

The patio fills with raucous hollers and hoots, cheers and clapping, as everyone I love gathers around rejoicing with us. It’s overwhelming, my heart is about to burst as Bear wraps his arm around me, Laura and Abel tucked between us, our eyes filled with tears and our future filled with hope.