Piper woke to the knowledge that in the early hours of the morning she’d told Dylan she loved him. Testing the words inside her head, she found she liked them, even if he hadn’t. Had it been a laughing moment, then she would have, because the terror on his face at her words had been almost comical.

“Then he turned and walked away from me,” she whispered. Flipping on her back, she stared at the ceiling.

Piper always believed in saying what she thought, even it if caused her pain. She’d realized how she felt about Dylan when she’d seen him standing there looking up at the mountains. Shoulders down, he’d looked defeated, and the pain inside her had told Piper what she’d been too scared to acknowledge. Her feelings for Dylan ran deep.

His hold on her after they’d made love had been fierce, almost like he never wanted to let her go.

“And yet he will never acknowledge what is between us,” Piper told the light hanging above her head. This thought had her getting out of bed.

Even after this mess that was his life had settled, Piper couldn’t be sure he would want her and Grace, so she needed to focus on the things she could control.

Pulling on her dressing gown and slippers, she made her way downstairs. Grace was seated in her high chair, and Mr. Goldhirsh, dressed in his running gear, was feeding her.

Piper didn’t like to give too much thought to the fact that he’d probably been here all night, and what he’d been doing while she’d been making love with Dylan. So instead she placed kisses on his head and Grace’s, then made for the coffee.

“Sleep well, baby?”

“I did, and thanks for getting Grace up, Mom.”

“You need a break now and again, and we enjoyed having some time with our grandbaby.”

Piper gave her mom a squeeze, then sat and thought about Dylan even though she’d just told herself she wouldn’t.

He couldn’t face this... whatever it was alone. He needed support and help, surely he had to understand that. One of his colleagues was coming to Ryker, which was good, but Piper hoped he accepted her cousins’ help, and surely he would speak to Chief Blake?

“Morning.” Jack ambled in. Hair all over the place, eyes squinty, he wore sweats and looked like a sleepy bear.

He kissed the women and shook Mr. Goldhirsh’s hand before falling into the seat beside Piper. He then leaned over and rested his head on her shoulder.

“Why are you up if you’re still tired?”

“Work,” he said around a yawn.

“What work?”

Before he could answer they heard the sound of a car pulling up outside.

“What the hell?” Jack got up, moaning, and headed for the door. “We don’t usually have visitors before coffee.”