He does. Our lips come together, and he wraps me up in his warmth, his arms circling my body, but his heart securing my soul.
“You saved me.” I hug him harder, the tears flowing down my face.
“I will always save you,” he says.
Ridge’s men lead three of the attackers out of the warehouse, each of their hands tied behind their backs with white zip ties. I glare at each one. From here on out, Nate will never need to do anything to save me again. I’ll live a nice quiet life where I never leave our little yellow house. Definitely no more hanging out with Katy.
Nate pullsa few strands of my hair back, tucking them behind my shoulder, and runs a thumb against the skin behind my ear. It started out cute. I thought he was caressing me in a loving way, but the way his head moves closer to one area as if he’s studying me it’s easy to figure out this is something different.
I bat his hand away. “Nate, it’s been twenty-four hours. I’m fine.” The man has hovered around me since my rescue yesterday. At first I thought it was wonderful. I loved having his attention. Now I kinda want to go back to work. He’s even checking over Emma and she wasn’t even there.
“I thought I saw a bruise forming.”
“The only thing bruised,” I say, bashing my phone as hard as possible against the granite countertops in my new kitchen, “is my phone.”
I hit it on the counter two more times before Nate carefully grabs it from my hands.
“They said this case was indestructible, but there’s something wrong with it.”
Nate inspects the case and the top of the phone for any cracks, but I told him the case is supposed to be indestructible. “It did get flung onto the road from a moving car,” he says still studying the spotless phone.
“Indestructible case.” It’s the only way I dare own a smart phone, which cost as much as an expensive laptop when you’re a parent.
He slips the phone in his back pocket. “I told you your carrier sucks. It won’t work in this part of Pelican Bay. I’ll get you a new one.”
“Everyone always says phones don’t work in Pelican Bay, but that is crazy. It doesn’t make sense. It worked before how can a cell not work here now?” Sure, I had a bad signal in the bakery, but I thought it was the brick building.
“They work. You just need the right carrier.” He shrugs, leaning across the counter and getting close again. “Forget the phone. I’ll fix the phone. Are you okay?” he asks, staring into my eyes.
“Yes.” I remind myself not to get frustrated because at one point in time I had a husband who didn’t care if I was okay. I can’t be looking a gift horse in the mouth. If Nate wants to fawn all over me, then so be it. I’ll be fawned over. It’s not a hardship.
He leans over the counter ticking one finger from his hand out. “I promise you we are going to hunt Antonio down and stop his organization. They won’t set foot within one hundred miles of Pelican Bay when I’m done with them.”
A shiver runs through my body and I flex my fingers before bringing them into a fist. My pinky throbs.
Why did he have to be named Antonio? I can never eat my favorite pizza place back in Bangor again.
“So, what’s on the agenda this week?” I ask Nate, trying to bring some normality back to our lives.
He thinks for a moment, tapping his finger on the counter. “Number one, absolutely no drama.”
I nod, on board with this plan. No more drama, ever.
“Number two, I want you and Emma to stay here and enjoy the new house while you can.”
I smile. “What are you going to do?”
Nate grabs my hand, pulling me close, and places a kiss on my lips. “I’ll go to work every day to make this town safe and spend every night making you scream my name in pleasure.”
Yes,this will be a very good life indeed.
Epilogue
Nate
A few weeks later
Sunlight shines through the thin curtains Josie picked out to go in our master bedroom. They’re a light color she calls rose and I call pink. I’m not sure what happened to my fucking manhood that I’m allowing pink curtains in my bedroom, but I plan to run with it for the time being.
