Cade climbed off his bike and began to walk toward the clubhouse yet came to an abrupt stop when he saw her.
Jane stood still for a heartbeat then took off running toward him, almost slipping in the snow before she was caught up in his arms.
“You came back. You came back!” Her tears mixed with the snow.
“Of course I came back. I said I would.”
“I didn’t know. You left without a word…”
“What are you talking about? I left a fucking note in my room.”
“No one found it. It doesn’t matter now. All that matters is that you’re back.”
“It does matter, Jane. I wouldn’t have left without telling you why.”
“All I care about is that you’re here now. I understand that you wanted some time to think—”
Cade cut her off. “Jane, let’s go to my room. I have something to tell you.”
Was he going to leave again? Had he come back only to pick up his bike and tell her it was over?
When Jane followed him inside the clubhouse, everyone at the table went quiet as they saw Cade. Sex Piston and Killyama both flung back their chairs.
“I’m going to talk to Jane first, and then I’ll explain to the rest of you. But she deserves to hear it alone and in private.” Cade looked at Stud. “My old room still open?”
Stud took a moment before answering, “Always, brother. This is your home as long as you want it.” Stud ignored his wife’s gasp. “Skulls, quick hogging the ham and pass it here.”
Cade took Jane’s cold hand, leading her to his bedroom. The short walk didn’t last long enough for Jane, who was already preparing herself for his goodbye.
He shut the door to the bedroom before releasing her hand.
“Let’s sit down.” Cade’s gruff voice had her following his direction.
Once she took off her coat, laying it on the chair before sitting stiffly on the bed, Cade sat down next to her on the bed, placing his arm around her. “Darlin’, I have some bad news.”
“Cade, if you’re going to break up with me, just do it. I can take it. I’m not a child.”
Cade shook his head. “I’m not breaking up with you ever, Jane. I plan to marry you.”
“What?” Jane went from heartache to glee at his words. She threw herself into his arms, but Cade pulled back, staring down at her happy face.
“Jane, I need to tell you what was in my note. After you left that morning, your father called me. Bailey had disappeared again. Montgomery searched her computer and phone records and found out she had sneaked away to go back to Raul.”
“Oh, God.”
Cade put his arm around her shoulders. “He asked for my help, darlin’, and since they were your family, I couldn’t turn them down.”
Jane’s body tightened in fear at his words. “Were?”
“I caught a plane to Corpus Christi, but I was too late. Raul had already managed to get her across the border. Your dad flew down, determined to go inside and get her out again. I tried to warn him. I said I would go and went to get supplies, but when I came back, he was gone.”
Jane started crying.
“Raul had contacted him while I was gone and told him, if he didn’t give the money back, he would kill Bailey. He said he wouldn’t transfer the money until he saw Bailey, so he went out to meet them without waiting for me to come back. It took me two weeks to find them. Their bodies are being flown back tomorrow. I’m sorry I couldn’t save them for you.”
Her father and sister were gone.
Numbness at his words quickly gave way to grief, and Cade held her as she cried, gently rocking her back and forth, whispering over and over how much he loved her. His words finally penetrated her sorrow.
“Bailey didn’t want to be saved. She always believed that nothing bad could happen to her. Dad was the only one who could have made her change, but he wouldn’t face what the true Bailey was like.”
After a while and finally calming down, Jane stood up, taking his hand. “We’re going to have dinner with our family and enjoy the rest of Christmas. Tomorrow, I’ll make the arrangements…” Jane’s voice broke.
They went back to the front room where everyone stopped eating as Jane and Cade took a seat at the table.
“Stud, can you pass the ham?” she asked politely, feeling like the food would choke her if she took a bite. She was trying to keep a brave face, not wanting to ruin their Christmas dinner with the sad news.
She filled her plate with all her favorites as Cade filled his.
“Skulls, can you pass the turkey?” Cade asked, reaching his hands out.
“Brother, you don’t want the turkey. Try the ham.” Skulls’s wiggling eyebrows looked like a caterpillar moving across his brow.