Chapter 200: This is Knox

NORA’S POV

"Dad," I whispered into the cold air. "This is Knox."

Beside me, Knox let out a quiet, slow breath.

"He’s the guy who drove four hundred miles through a blizzard with Mom’s sourdough starter in a cooler," I said, tears blurring my vision. "He stayed up half the night hauling wooden peels at the hearth oven so we could win that trophy. And... he... stood up to his father and walked away, choosing me even when I asked him not to."

Knox sat completely still for several seconds.

He looked at the plaque with respect, making my chest tighten. Then, he pulled off his leather glove once more.

Slowly and carefully, Knox reached out and rested his bare palm flat against the weathered wood, right beside my dad’s name.

"Mr. Bennett," Knox said.

His voice sounded calm and low, carrying clearly over the rushing water. He spoke with genuine honesty, without any pride or pretense.

"You built something real down here," Knox said softly. "You gave this town its heart, and you raised the bravest, smartest woman I’ve ever known."

He paused.

"I know what it’s like to grow up in a house without any real warmth," Knox continued. "My dad thought everything in this world had a price tag. But being here... seeing the bakery, seeing how hard Nora fights for the people she loves... it showed me what actually matters."

He looked down at me, his fingers sliding off the wood to take my hand, holding it tight against his knee.

"I give you my word, sir," Knox said to the empty clearing and the rushing water. "As long as I’m around, I’ll protect her. I’ll respect her. And I will never let anyone tear down what you two built."

A broken breath caught in my throat.

The warm tears that had been gathering in my eyes finally spilled over.

I turned into him, wrapping both arms around his neck and burying my face in his shoulder. "Knox..." I choked out, my chest aching with how much I loved him.

Knox gathered me up in his arms, shifting me onto his lap and pulling me flush against his chest.

He held me tight, blocking the mountain wind with his broad shoulders.

With gentle fingers, he tilted my chin up and used his thumb to wipe the tears from my cheeks. "I mean it, Nora," he murmured. "Every single word."

Then he leaned down and kissed me.

It was a slow, deep kiss that tasted like cold air and salt.

It wasn’t rushed, and it wasn’t about heat or playful teasing. It was a Promise... a solid, binding vow spoken right there by the water.

I held onto his coat with both hands, giving him everything I had in return.

When we finally parted, we rested our foreheads together, our breath mingling in little clouds of steam in the winter air.

"Thank you," I whispered against his mouth.

Knox gave me a soft, crooked smile that warmed my whole chest. "Thank you for bringing me here, Bennett," he said quietly.

We sat on the bench for a few more quiet minutes, watching the sunlight dance across the ripples of the creek. In the distance, the church bells in the center of town began to chime, ringing out twelve slow, clear notes for noon.

Knox pulled his glove back on and helped me up from the bench.

He brushed the snow off my coat, straightened my scarf, and took my hand.

"Ready to head back?" he asked.

"Yeah," I smiled, feeling lighter than I had in years. "Let’s go."

We turned and started walking back up the trail, our boots following the packed snow we had made earlier.

We were halfway through the pine woods, almost back to the chain-link gate of the school, when Knox’s jacket started vibrating with a loud, buzzing ring.

Knox stopped on the path, frowning.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

"Who is it?" I asked, leaning in to see.

The screen showed an incoming call from Bear.

Knox’s eyebrows drew together. "Why is Bear calling on a Friday afternoon?"

"Pick it up," I told him. "Maybe Jake set the kitchen on fire again."

Knox tapped the screen and hit speaker, holding the phone up between us. "Yeah, Bear?" he answered, his voice falling right back into his calm captain’s tone. "What’s up?"

A rush of truck noise and cold wind came through the speaker, followed by Bear’s deep, gruff voice.

"Knox? Hey, man," Bear said, sounding tense instead of his usual loud self. "Sorry to bother you guys in Oakhaven, but I need to ask you something."

Knox frowned, looking over at me. "What’s going on?"

"Have either of you heard from Priya today?" Bear asked straight out.

I stepped closer to the phone, my forehead creasing. "Priya?" I cut in. "No, not since yesterday. Why? What happened?"

Bear blew out a frustrated breath on the other end.

"I cooked up a huge batch of leftover turkey pot pie this morning," Bear said, his turn signal clicking in the background. "I drove over to North Hall around eleven to drop off a tray for her, like I promised. Her car is parked right in her spot, buried under fresh snow from yesterday. Untouched."

I smiled. "Yeah, she planned to spend Thanksgiving bedrotting and binging movies. Then last night, she told me she had a bad migraine and was sleeping in."

"Well, she’s definitely not answering her door," Bear countered flatly. "I knocked on Room 304 three separate times. Nobody answered. Then I called her cell twice... straight to voicemail. Not even a ring."

A cold prickle of unease ran down my back.

My mind flashed back to Thursday night... the rushed FaceTime call, the dark hallway wall, the weird way she had hung up on me, claiming her battery died.

Beside me, Knox straightened up, all of his protective instincts locking in.

"Bear, where are you right now?" Knox asked, his voice sharp and direct.

"I’m sitting in my truck outside North Hall," Bear replied gruffly. "Her dorm windows are pitch black, Bennett. And she hasn’t looked at my texts in fourteen hours."