Capri stepped forward first, yanking Reva into a hug so fierce it nearly knocked the wind out of her.
“You better call when you get there,” Capri muttered into her shoulder. “I don’t care if it’s two a.m.”
“I will,” Reva promised.
Charlie Grace hugged her next, lingering for a long moment. “You taught me how to stand on my own two feet when it mattered most,” she whispered. “Now it’s our turn to stand steady for you.”
And finally Lila, who simply pressed her face against Reva’s shoulder and cried.
“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered. “So proud.”
Reva kissed the top of her head, holding her tight. “I’m proud of all of us.”
They pulled apart reluctantly, blinking fast against the tears that threatened to unravel everything.
Capri sniffed and jabbed a finger toward the road. “You’d better get moving before I tackle you back into the house.”
Reva laughed, climbing into the front passenger’s seat.
At the last minute, Charlie Grace pulled something from her pocket—a simple white envelope. She handed it to Reva through the window. “Open this when you get to Georgia and get settled.”
Reva tucked it carefully into her jacket pocket. “What is it?”
Charlie Grace grinned. “Emergency plan.” She paused. “Don’t ask details. Just open it later.” She leaned and brushed Reva’s cheek with a kiss, then stepped back.
Lucan waved wildly from the back. “Bye, Aunt Capri! Bye, Aunt Charlie! Bye, Aunt Lila!”
The three women waved back, shouting goodbyes, promises, and I-love-yous.
Kellen nodded his goodbye and started the engine. The truck rumbled to life, a sound so final it made Reva’s chest ache.
She gripped her purse, hesitating.
One last look.
Through the windshield, she saw them standing in the driveway—Capri with her fists on her hips, Charlie Grace dabbing her eyes, Lila blowing kisses.
These women were indeed forever friends.
As the truck rolled forward, Charlie Grace suddenly darted into the yard and grabbed a handful of wildflowers. She flung them into the air, petals spinning like confetti against the rising sun.
Capri and Lila joined in, plucking handfuls and tossing them high, laughing and crying and waving wildly.
Petals rained down around them, bright against the gray gravel drive, a living memory Reva would carry forever.
Tears blurred her vision as she rolled down the window and waved back, heart thudding with the weight of love and loss and gratitude so big it filled every corner of her soul.
The house shrank in the rearview mirror, and before long, the town slipped into the folds of the mountains.
But Reva knew, deep and certain, that she wasn’t leaving anything behind.
The best parts of Thunder Mountain—the laughter, the loyalty, the fierce, stubborn love—were stitched into her now, woven through every beat of her heart.
Wherever life took her next, she would never be alone.
Where roots run deep, the heart finds its way home.
Always.
