Epilogue
As he drove toward the property, Rory knew he should have outright said he wasn’t interested to Jace and Tyson. Nothing about the look of the massive cement compound rising in the darkness before him could make him feel this was his place. Not even temporarily.
It wasn’t the most welcoming sight he’d ever seen. Nothing like the family ranch.
Then was that important at this stage of his life?
Hell, yeah. Like the other men in his unit, he’d been lost this last year. Maybe more lost than they’d been. Michael had had his own place where he’d holed up, and Jace had come to the ranch to help out Rory’s family. An act Rory much appreciated, considering he was keeping the family ranch afloat while his brother, who’d been hurt in a tractor accident, recovered.
Rory would have gone to the ranch sooner if he’d known he’d been needed. But, damn it, how was he supposed to know if no one said anything? He hadn’t lived in Texas anymore, which was where the ranch was. He’d stuck to California, even after leaving the military. Mostly because he didn’t know where else to go. But having a reason to come home made it seem less like an excuse and more like a purpose.
How could he tell them that he was lost and wanted to return to his roots? That would bring up a mess of questions he had no intention of answering.
Thankfully his father had called and told him what happened. Rory had flown home immediately to help out until Dennis was back on his feet. Rory intended to be there for a few months but had ended up there almost nine. He’d enjoyed those months. And then it was time to go.
His brother was back on his feet. The ranch had the boss back, and Rory was an unpaid ranch hand, getting in the way and struggling to let go of the reins and handing control back to Dennis.
After one particular argument he realized the problem was him. This wasn’t his place. He was always welcome to visit, but it wasn’t his home.
He didn’t have one.
And the sense of being lost returned in a vicious wave.
He turned off the engine and stepped out of his battered pickup truck. He tilted his beat-up cowboy hat back off his forehead and looked at the imposing structure. The longer he looked at it, the better he felt. It was massive, ugly, and cold-looking, but it had a timelessness to it. It was solid. It had been built to withstand the world, the elements, time, basically anything Mother Nature could throw at it. It no longer looked ugly as much as it looked immovable. There was a certain comfort in that.
But he had to remember it wasn’t his home. Michael might have bought property bordering it, but that was Michael. Not Rory. Michael had put down roots.
Rory was afraid he didn’t have any to put down.
A nearby door opened suddenly, and he could see shadows as several people walked out. A security lamp turned on, highlighting the men standing in front of him.
Jace, Tyson, Michael. Easy men to identify. So many more stood beside them. And women …
Suddenly shy, he tilted his hand and, in a husky drawl, said, “Good evening.”
“About time you got here,” Jace said, stepping forward to slap him on the shoulder. “I was hoping you’d make it. How’s Dennis doing?”
“He’s back on top, so I figured maybe you guys could use a hand.” Rory stepped forward, only now seeing Ice and Levi.
Ice’s face lit up. “Rory?”
She raced toward him and threw her arms around him. “I’m so happy to see you. Levi told me that he’d offered you a job but hadn’t said you’d answered.”
“I didn’t. I just arrived,” he apologized and stepped back. Ice had adopted him into her friend group a long time ago. He studied her face. “This suits you.”
She beamed. “It does indeed.” But her gaze was intense, searching, and she wouldn’t let him back away. Ever since she’d heloed in and picked him up, badly injured from a mission that had gone wrong, she’d kept an eye on him. She’d dragged him out with her friends time and time again for a few beers.
Levi stepped forward and shook Rory’s hand with a grin on his face. “About time you got here.”
And some of Rory’s initial uneasiness dropped away.
Ice turned to look at Levi. “You didn’t tell me that he was coming.”
“I didn’t know when he’d get here. I just let him know the door was always open. I figured he’d find his way eventually.”
Ice’s smile was so damn beautiful as she stared at Levi that Rory suddenly wished someone was in his life who looked at him the same way. But he needed to get his own shit together first.
Levi swung his arm toward the doorway. “You’ve got a lot of friends here. Welcome home.”
The wording stopped Rory for a long moment. Did Levi realize that was exactly what Rory was missing? A sense of home. And someone in it to share his life with.
Then a series of odd yips filled the air. He glanced down to see a fat puppy barely walking with several siblings behind it, all waddling toward them.
“Sorry,” a tall brunette woman said. “They’ve had their bottle and now need to go to the bathroom, so I brought them outside. I didn’t realize you were all out here.”
“No problem. Rose, come meet Rory, the newest member of the team,” Ice said.
Rory squatted down as one of the puppies struggled to make it to him, his nose quickly pushing into Rory’s hand. He chuckled and scooped the pudge up. “What’s this guy’s name?”
“We’re trying to come up with some,” Levi said. “These guys are from Anna and Flynn’s place. The mother has no milk, and Anna needed help feeding them, so we’re fostering them until Anna can find homes.”
Rose laughed. “Good luck with that.” She smiled at Rory and reached out to shake his hand. “I’m a vet. I came to check out these little guys.” She walked to her car as she said, “I can see they are all well looked after. I’ll come back in a few days.”
Rory, his arms full of adorableness, watched her drive away. When he turned to the others, he found a speculative look on Ice’s face. He raised an eyebrow. “What’s the matter?”
Jace snorted and said, “Don’t worry about it. Give in now. It’ll happen no matter what you do, so surrender to it from the start. It’s easier that way.”
Rory stared at him in confusion.
Levi grinned. “Come on inside. Looks like you’ll fit right in.”
This concludes Book 12 of Heroes for Hire: Jace’s Jewel.
Heroes for Hire Series