Jennifer’s POV
The sound of laughter still clung to the cabin walls even after the door shut behind Liam and his family. Their voices carried faintly into the night as they disappeared into the woods, a chorus of children’s giggles and Ava’s soft tone weaving into the crisp forest air. I stood just behind the corner of the kitchen wall, unseen, my eyes fixed on the shadowed outline of Jack leaning against the frame of the door. His shoulders were squared, rigid, his hands gripping the edge as though the wood itself had offended him.
I could tell by the way his jaw tightened when Liam clasped his shoulder before leaving. I could tell by the silence that had followed, thick and weighted, like the fire had lost some of its glow. He was brooding. And not just quiet in the way I’d come to exp
