Noah’s slight touch on her elbow had her coming back to herself. She was still standing in the entry, staring at nothing. She shook off her stupor.
“Should I check on Charlotte?”
“She’s asleep. Jasper texted a few minutes ago.” Noah’s voice was low in keeping with the house’s stillness. “He stayed with her until she drifted off.”
Jasper had given his statement first, then brought Charlotte home to put her to bed. Noah and Delaney had been questioned a little longer before getting a ride back from the police station.
Noah stepped in front of her and studied her with an intensity that made her skin prickle. His eyes were dark with something she couldn’t quite read.
“I’m sorry about that.” He nodded to her hand, which was pressed against her sternum. It had been better, but being tackled had brought the pain back.
“I’m okay.”
But when he mentioned it, she felt the pain again. She needed Tylenol. She walked toward the kitchen, where she grabbed a glass, added ice and water, then shook two tablets into her hand and swallowed them. All while trying to ignore the man standing on the other side of the peninsula, watching her.
“Why would you do that?” he asked. “Why would you put yourself between Charlotte and a gun?”
Of all the questions. “I’m her caretaker.” She set down her glass, the sound too loud on the granite countertop. “It’s my job to keep her safe.”
“Most people’s definition of that doesn’t include using their body as a shield.” His gaze bore into hers as if he weresearching for something. “Her previous nanny would have tossed Charlotte toward Lena and dived out of the way.”
The words surprised a chuckle out of Delaney that sent pain through her chest. “We’ve already established that she wasn’t very good at her job.”
Noah’s gaze remained intense. “You could have died tonight.”
As if she needed the reminder. “You were the one with the gun aimed at you.”
“It’s different. Charlotte’s my niece. She’s no relation to you. Most people’s instinct is self-preservation.”
Was it? When Delaney had seen the gun, her body had moved before her mind could catch up.
She wasn’t sure how to explain and didn’t think it needed explanation. “Most people’s instinct is to protect the innocent.”
“Only truly heroic people.”
His kindness threatened to dissolve her anger. She looked away from the intensity in his eyes. Danger lurked there.
Focusing on the kitchen wall, she was able to come up with a coherent answer.
“When I was eight,” she said slowly, “my family was in DC to visit my dad.”
“Didn’t he live with you?”
“His mail was delivered to our house. But did he live there? Did he truly dwell with us? No.”
“Oh. That’s…” Noah seemed unsure how to finish his sentence.
“We were going to a show, but we had a little time before it started, so we stopped at this shop. It was a beautiful day—one of those perfect summer days when the sky is so blue it hurts to look at it.” The memory washed over her, still vivid after all these years.
Noah leaned against the table behind him, his expression softening.
“Dad stayed at the store’s entrance. My older sisters wanted to look at something, so Mom asked me to stay with Kenzie. She was five, so she and I looked at toys in the back of the store. When I saw my mom and sisters headed for the cashier, Kenzie and I followed. We were close when I told her to go to Mom.”
Delaney could still picture it. Mom had been no more than six feet away. Delaney had pointed to her and her other sisters, and Kenzie had headed in their direction.
Or so she’d assumed. But she hadn’t made sure.
Delaney’s throat tightened. “I just wanted to look at the hair ties. Then they called me and said it was time to go. I ran after them, and we all walked away. We’d been walking for ten minutes when I realized Kenzie wasn’t with us.”
