“Just so none of us have any doubts, you aren’t getting a divorce, right?” Laura’s gaze dances between Autumn, me, and our joined hands, and the smile on her face says she’s happy with what she sees.

“I’m not leaving Autumn, ever. She’s the best thing that’s happened to me, and I’d be stupid to let her go.” I press my lips to her forehead, and a calm settles in my heart.

“That’s the best thing I’ve heard,” Laura says in a throaty voice, tears swimming in her eyes. “We’ll leave now. Before Grandpop and Grandma hear about the fire from someone else, we’ll tell them what happened here.”

Laura and Jasper get up, and we follow them to the main entrance. Autumn hugs her parents, and Jasper shakes my hand before giving my shoulder a squeeze. Laura, on the other hand, takes me by surprise. She kisses my cheek. “We love you for who you are, Lukas. A righteous man who doesn’t care about his own life when it comes to our daughter. You’re an important part of our family now. Your past doesn’t matter to us, except that you had a tough life.”

Emotions bubble in my throat, and after a beat, I nod.

“You told them?” I ask Autumn after her parents’ car leaves the inn’s parking lot.

“I wanted to show you that what you consider your biggest disadvantage, is irrelevant to most people. They love you for who you are.” I pull her into my arms and soak up her words, burying them in my memory. I know it won’t happen overnight, but I eventually do want to believe what she’s saying.

When we walk back into the dining room, it’s only Gavin, Minnie, and Chiara, who’s grilling the superstar, asking anything and everything in a hysterical voice.

“Minnie is going to regret staying here,” Autumn whispers before she calls Chiara. “Chi, can you help me with something over here.”

Chiara makes an annoyed sound and lumbers toward us. I give Autumn’s hand a squeeze before walking to the round table to meet Gavin.

“Can I have a word with you?” I ask.

“I can’t leave Minnie,” he drawls, saying the words I never thought I’d hear from his mouth.

“Excuse me?” My eyebrows rise more in confusion than surprise.

“I can’t leave her in the room alone,” he explains, which makes slightly more sense, but I still don’t understand what dangers he’s expecting in this room.

“It’s about work. Can we at least move aside?” I nod to a corner before glancing at our famous singer, who’s staring at her coffee. “Minnie, I don’t mean to sound rude, but for our clients’ safety, I prefer we discuss our work in private.”

She nods. “I understand, Mr. Spencer.”