I spent much longer in the village than I intended. I listened for hours as Moki talked about a life here that I don’t remember, much like my life now. I now have a beginning to my story, but I’m still missing the middle. It’s bittersweet telling Moki goodbye today, but I need to face my life head-on now. Keegan can have peace that he found Wolfe’s sister, but what utter disappointment he will feel when he finds out I’m not his wife. I never opened the envelope with the test results. I don’t need to now. I know who I am; Dyani Rowan, at least in name.

Several men from the tribe take me back down the mountain to my Jeep. A deep feeling of sadness hits me, knowing I will never see this place or its people again. I keep my phone off, not wanting to share any of this with Keegan until I am face to face with him.

I’m sad that I’m not his wife. I’ve fallen in love with him in the short time that I’ve known him. He’s everything I could want in a man, but I’m not everything he wants in a woman. He wants Timber, and I can’t give him that. Tears slip down my face as I make the drive back into town. My tears turn into sobs that blur my vision. I pull over on the side of the road and let my heartache take over. So many emotions are rolling through me. Do I go back to being Shay Fox? Do I try to replace a woman I can never be? Or, do I go back to my roots and find peace as Dyani? I feel like all three of these women are gone now. Even though I’ve finally been found, I’m more lost than ever. Resuming the only life I’ve known for twelve years is the only one that makes sense. Shay Fox I can manage.

It will break my heart to tell Keegan. He was so sure that I was Timber. He will lose his wife for the second time. He will never be able to look at me and not see her. If I stay with him, my life would always be a comparison to her. I would never get to fully be myself with the man I love without him seeing another woman in me.

Thank God he never told his daughter. At least she won’t have to feel the loss again too. I wipe my face on my sleeve and pull back out on the long lonely highway. I turn my phone back on and call Paul.

“I’ve been worried sick,” is how he answers the phone. “I bet Keegan is ready to send out an army of men.”

“I know, I’m sorry.” I sniff.

“Are you okay?” His voice is calmer.

“Yeah, for now.”

“Did you find out anything?”

“I found Wolfe’s sister.” I half laugh.

“That’s great news, Shay. Where is she?”

“She’s been under our noses the entire time.” I tell him Moki’s story as he listens in silence.

“This is incredible. You’re Wolfe’s sister? What a fucked-up story. Wait. That means you’re not…”

“Timber,” I finish his sentence.

“Wow.” I can hear his hand wrestling through his thick hair. “It’s going to kill him.”

“I know.”

“Do you want me to be there when you tell him?”

“No. I think it would be better if I did it alone.”

“You know where I am if you need me, cupcake.”

“Thanks, Paul. I’ll let you know when I’m coming home.” With those words, I hang up.

Instead of going back to the hotel, I call to change my flight to the next one headed to New Hampshire. I don’t need to put off the inevitable.

The flight was long, and I couldn’t control the floodgates of my emotions. I’m sure I looked like a crazy woman, crying, clutching an unopened letter to my chest. But as I leave the airport headed to Jackson, I’ve shed my last tear. I don’t want to be a blubbering fool in front of Keegan. It will be hard enough to let him go.

I don’t have the cottage reserved anymore, but my gut tells me that’s where I’ll find Keegan. His Wrangler is parked out front. The hood and windshield are covered in snow, making me think he’s been hiding out here.

As soon as I place the truck in park, the front door to the cottage flies open. Keegan’s facial expression is flat. He has a blanket draped over his shoulders, and his hair is unkempt. I can see from here that he hasn’t shaved in days.

I slowly amble toward him, thinking he will say something. Instead, he opens his arms, and I freely walk into them feeling his warmth.

“Are you okay?” He kisses the top of my head.

I nod, already fighting back the tears I swore I wouldn’t shed.

He walks backward with me still in his arms, and he closes the door with the heel of his boot. We stand there like statues, holding one another. I lift my head off his shoulder and look at his glassy eyes. I want to comfort him so badly. I place my hand on the back of his neck, drawing his lips into mine. Our kiss turns into something raw and needy. I push the blanket off his shoulders as he’s stripping me of my coat.

“I’ve missed you,” he says between kisses.

“I’ve missed you, too.” I peel the layers of shirts off my body as he reaches down and takes off his boots.

Once we are both naked, our hands are all over each other. He picks me up, and I wrap my legs around his waist. His lips trail over my breasts and my nails dig into his shoulder. He starts to walk up the stairs with me, but he goes to his knees on the third step up. Beads of sweat are already forming over his body from the intensity flowing off him. He groans when his hand finds my core already wet for him.

“I need to be inside you.” His voice is laced with desire.

I reach down, placing my hand on his shaft and guide him to my entrance. “I need you inside me.”

He shifts slightly and slides inside me. His forehead rests on mine, and our eyes are locked on each other. “I love you,” he whispers.

I swallow hard, but I can’t keep the words from flowing out of my mouth. They tumble out before I can draw them back in. “I love you, too.” He captures my mouth with his, and he starts to move inside me. His tongue devours my mouth, but his hips have a slow rhythm. He gently slides in, then eases out of me. The sensation is so sensual. It’s like he’s pouring every ounce of love he has for me in his movements. He’s holding on to this moment, treasuring it. Making love to me. I finally understand what that feels like. It’s not just sex. He's reaching inside me, claiming every inch of me as his. Right at this moment, I want nothing more than to be lost in this man.

There are so many things in my life that I don’t remember, but this is burned into my memory. I will never forget it. I block everything else out and focus solely on him. His pace is driving me insane with need.

“Harder, David,” I beg.

I feel his smile against my neck. “Not this time.” His voice is gravelly. His lips surround my nipple and roll it in between his tongue. I arch my back off the floor when my orgasm thunders through me, my muscles kneading his cock that’s deep inside me.

He stiffens when I can’t control the throbbing. He yells out my name as he frees himself inside me. His deep thrust peaks another ripple that squeezes me tighter around him. I’m totally out of control of my body. All I’m left feeling is him. He twitches inside me, just as out of control as I am. I can feel his heart beating frantically with mine until we both come back down to earth. I find my calm when he’s kissing me again, little nips to my lips and face.

He pulls out of me and picks me up in his arms and carries me to the bedroom where he starts the process of making love to me all over again.

We fall asleep in the wee hours of the morning, wrapped up in each other’s arms. I think neither one of us wanted to let go of the other.