Sweet Surrender

Willow's sudden departure from Nashville's country music scene shocked most people. But the bright lights, fake smiles, and false promises of the people she should have been able to trust, left her cold and empty. 

Returning to Sapphire Bay has been good for her soul. She's built a new life and surrounded herself with kind-hearted people who go out of their way to make the world a better place.

Zac has spent the last ten years working as a doctor in refugee camps around the world. His last assignment in Afghanistan has taken everything from him. He returns to Sapphire Bay hoping to find peace and solitude in the home he rarely gets to visit.

When he meets Willow, the quiet life he anticipated disappears. In its place is an emotional roller coaster that shatters the structured world he’s created and makes him reevaluate what's really important.

But, like most things in Willow and Zac's lives, nothing is as it seems. They both have secrets and people they need to stay away from. Will Sapphire Bay bring them the peace they crave or make their lives even more complicated?

Zac shot bolt upright in bed, his ears straining to hear what had woken him. 

The hair on the back of his neck stood on end as a scraping sound echoed through the house. Wiping his hand across his eyes, he forced his brain to focus. 

He was home. 

In Montana. Not sweltering in a hot Afghanistan summer. 

The noise could have been anything. Deer, elk, squirrels, or even wild cats could sound like humans. And then there were the bears…

He was sure he’d locked the front door before he’d gone to bed, but—

There it was again, only this time it sounded like something heavy hitting the floor.

With his heart pounding, he pushed off his blankets and reached for the baseball bat beside his bed. 

He’d arrived home late last night, exhausted after a thirty-hour flight from Kabul. It was ironic that, after working in refugee camps around the world, it was here, in Sapphire Bay, where he felt unsafe.

Raising the bat to his shoulder, he moved into the hallway. Sunlight trickled through the gap in the curtains. He glanced at his watch, surprised to see it was already eight o’clock.

Silently, he moved down the stairs. His sweaty palms gripped the bat, holding it tightly as if waiting to hit a home run.

Was that running water?

Whoever was here had to be human—unless a thirsty bear had decided a kitchen faucet was better than drinking from a creek.

Eliminating the wildlife didn’t mean he was safe. He lived in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by pine and spruce trees. On any other day, if someone broke in, no one would stop them. 

That wouldn’t be happening today.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed his back against the wall beside the living room doors. On the count of three, he spun around the edge of the doorframe. Apart from the furniture, the room was empty. 

As quietly as possible, he crossed the room. When he stepped into the kitchen a flash of red turned him toward the butler’s pantry. Before he could move, a woman stepped through the doorway.

The loaf of bread in her hands dropped to the floor. Her wide-eyed gaze shot to the bat, then returned to his T-shirt and boxers. “Who are you?”

For a few seconds, all Zac could do was stare at the pretty brunette standing in his kitchen. When she took a step backward, he figured he’d better lower the bat before she panicked. 

“I’m Zac. I own the house you’ve broken into.”

The woman’s shoulders sagged in relief. “I’m not a burglar. I’m Willow Clarke. I’m restocking your pantry and refrigerator with fresh food.”

Zac had no idea what was going on. He’d never heard of Willow or met her before. “Mabel Terry looks after the house. She doesn’t know I’m here.”

Willow picked up the loaf of bread. “Mabel wanted to make sure the house was ready for you, but she’s busy in the store for the next couple of days. I offered to help.” She sent him a confused frown. “I thought you weren’t arriving until tomorrow night.”

“I caught an earlier flight home.”

“I guess that’s a good thing.” Willow left the bread on the counter and picked up her jacket. “I’d better leave. There’s fresh milk, butter, and yogurt in the refrigerator, and Mabel gave me half a dozen frozen meals for your freezer. If you need anything else, Mabel said to call her at the general store.” She stuck her hands in her pockets. “I’m sorry if I gave you a fright.”

Zac didn’t know what it was about her, but his brain was having trouble forming words. “I was asleep. I thought you were a burglar.”

“You don’t need to worry about that in Sapphire Bay. We must be one of the safest places in the world.” She handed him a set of keys. “I won’t need these anymore. Welcome home.” And with a quick smile, she walked out of the kitchen.

“Thanks for leaving me the food,” he yelled after her.

“That’s okay. Have a great day.”

As the front door closed, Zac shook his head. It wasn’t the start to the day he’d expected, but at least his house was safe.

His hand tightened around the keys. Now that he was out of bed, he might as well have breakfast and decide what he would do today.

At the top of his list was calling Mabel to let her know he was home. After that, he’d go for a run. If that didn’t blow the jet lag from his brain, nothing would. 

* * *

Willow drove back to her house thinking about her neighbor. With his short brown hair and close-cut beard, Zac was closer to forty than the sixty-year-old she’d imagined. And even though he looked like death warmed over, there was something in his deep brown eyes that was calm and reassuring. Something that made her wonder why he hadn’t come back to Sapphire Bay sooner.

When she’d bought her property three years ago, she’d visited his home to say hello. But each time she’d made the trek through the forest, no one had been there. At first, she’d thought the house was a vacation home. But when no one stayed there, she wondered if it was an investment property. It wasn’t until Mabel told her Zac worked for Doctors Without Borders, that she’d offered to help look after the property. 

Even though she didn’t know Zac, she admired what he was doing. When she read news reports about what was happening in the war-torn countries around the world, she thought about her mysterious neighbor. And when his friends stayed in his home, she restocked the pantry with fresh food and added some of her preserves and jams, doing what she could to make their visit to Sapphire Bay more enjoyable. 

As she turned into her driveway, she smiled. Her home was the complete opposite of Zac’s. Instead of a wide, wrap-around veranda and towering gable roof, her single-story house looked like an English country cottage, transported into the middle of the wilderness. 

When she’d first seen the white picket fence, the ancient birdbath, and the colorful window boxes, she knew this was where she wanted to live. After calling Nashville home for eight years, her cottage soothed her soul and reminded her of all the good things in the world.

And one of those good things was standing in front of her garage. Brooke had made Sapphire Bay her home about the same time Willow had returned. They’d quickly become friends, sharing the ups and downs of moving to another town and settling into a different way of life.

In a few days, Brooke was marrying the man of her dreams in a barn not far from Willow’s cottage. Hopefully, the notoriously fickle mid-March weather would be kind and not bring a late snowstorm to Sapphire Bay.

She rolled down her window and smiled at the package her friend was holding. “You brought some fudge?”

“I’m trying different recipes. Would you tell me which ones you like the best?” 

“I’d love to. I’ll just park my truck.” By the time Willow stepped out of her vehicle, she had goosebumps on her arms. “Come inside before we freeze.”

Brooke laughed. “It’s not that cold. You were out early this morning. I thought you’d be working on your exhibition.”

Although Willow enjoyed making preserves and jams, it was a small part of her life. Three years ago, she’d started her own photography business. Most of her work focused on the wildlife and scenery around Montana but, occasionally, she took commissions for other work. And this morning, Brooke was here to discuss her wedding photos.

Willow unlocked the front door and placed her jacket on the coat stand. “I’ll do more work on my prints after we’ve finished. I’ve been at my neighbor’s house, restocking the pantry.”

“Is someone staying there?”

“Zac was supposed to arrive tomorrow, but he caught an earlier flight home. He was asleep when I arrived.”

Brooke followed Willow along the hallway. “Sounds intriguing.”

“It would have been better if he didn’t have a baseball bat in his hands. He thought I was a burglar.”

“Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, but Zac looked exhausted. I don’t know how long he was asleep, but it wasn’t enough.”

“It probably has something to do with working in Afghanistan. For a long time, Levi was the same.” Brooke stood in the middle of Willow’s studio, staring at the canvas in front of her. “Is that photo going in your exhibition?”

“It is.”

“It’s incredible.” 

The awe in her friend’s voice humbled Willow. She’d spent a lot of time layering eight digital images on top of each other, erasing part of each photo, and changing the transparency. The result was a landscape of the Rocky Mountains that was so real, you could almost feel the sunshine on your face. 

“Why didn’t you become a professional photographer years ago?”

“Music was my life. I never thought about doing anything else.”

Brooke sighed. “I’m glad you changed careers. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have created this canvas. If you’re not careful, a fancy-pants gallery owner will want to exhibit your work in New York City.”

“That would be amazing, but they’ll have to wait. I have a special wedding to photograph.”

“I like the way you think. Did you know Zac’s coming to our wedding?”

Willow frowned. “No, I didn’t, but that makes sense.”

“We weren’t sure if he would be able to make it back in time. Something big happened in Kabul and it was difficult for him to leave.”

Willow held out a chair for Brooke. “Is he going straight back to Afghanistan after the wedding?”

“I don’t know, but it’s a long way to travel for only a few days.” Brooke studied the images on Willow’s workbench. “More beautiful photos.”

Willow pushed Zac to the back of her mind. Whether he was staying in Sapphire Bay was no one’s business but his own. “They’re a sample of the images I’ve taken at other weddings. If you like any of them, I could include something similar at your wedding. Have you thought about who you want me to photograph?”

Brooke took a piece of paper out of her pocket. “We used our guest list and came up with these combinations.” She pointed to three photos sitting on the left-hand side of the table. “I like those group shots, but the guests are standing on the church steps. Would it be difficult to do something like that at our wedding?”

“Anything’s possible. I spoke to the man who owns the ranch. He can provide some hay bales for people to stand on, or there is another alternative.” She pointed to one of the photos. “That aerial photo was taken using a drone. It gives you a lot more flexibility.”

“I like that idea,” Brooke said decisively. “I saw the photos you took of the tiny homes using the drone. They’re terrific.”

The tiny home village was a community project led by Pastor John. Eventually, twenty-five houses would be built by volunteers to help people who were unable to find accommodation. To attract more corporate sponsorship, Willow had taken a series of photos showing the progress they’d made. To her delight, another sponsor had stepped forward to help.

“I like these group photos, too.”

As Brooke told her what she liked about each image, Willow made lots of notes. She wanted to create photos that Levi and Brooke would cherish. Even these last-minute suggestions would make her job a lot easier.

“I’ve got something else for you.” Brooke pulled another sheet of paper from her pocket. “This is the timeline for the day of our wedding. As well as a master list, there are separate sheets for before and during the wedding, and at the reception.”

Willow took one look at the timeline and smiled. “Did your mom make this?”

Brooke grinned. “She thought her days of creating spreadsheets were over. Mom made this schedule in half the time it would have taken me.”

“Are your parents looking forward to the wedding?”

“I think they’re more excited than I am. I’m so busy at the candy store that I haven’t had time to think about Saturday.” 

“At least Easter only happens once a year. Once it’s over, you won’t need to make another chocolate egg for months.”

“There’ll be plenty of other holidays to keep me busy.” Brooke picked up the box of fudge she’d brought with her. “While we’re talking about candy, would you like a piece of fudge?”

Willow closed her notebook and smiled. “I thought you’d never ask.” 

Later tonight, Megan, one of their friends, had organized a surprise evening for Brooke. If the bride-to-be wasn’t looking forward to her wedding after their secret celebration, nothing short of postponing Easter would make a difference.

And that would never happen.