Lock’s jaw clicked. “She said she neededtime.”
That single word burrowed inside him, hollowing him out. Why did that word sound so ominous?
Maybe because so much time had already passed, and that time had done too much damage.
“Okay, so give her time.” Eastern said it like it was the easiest thing in the world.
“How much?”
“As much as she needs.”
That’s what he’d been afraid of. The problem was, he wasn’t sure how much longer he could survive without her.
CHAPTER 8
Lock ran through the mountains, the air whipping over his face while his feet sank into the earth.
Time…the word had been repeating in his head over and over again, and itstillfelt wrong.
Two years ago, he’d had to shoulder losing Callie and his teammate in the span of an hour. It had been so much. But the one thing that had gotten him through, the thing that had kept him alive and breathing, was the unwavering faith in his reckless love for her.
But now, being here, seeing the shadows under her eyes, experiencing her pushing him away time and again, he was questioning whether his love was enough.
And to make it worse, she was receiving those fucking notes. Had she received more since that day in her studio? Was she safe?
He forced his body to move faster, pumping his arms and pounding his legs.
There were so many moments in his life for which he’d like a do-over. So many seconds he wished he could take back or replay. But the way he’d handled that morning with Callie…that was his biggest regret. It would always be his biggest regret.Because maybe if he’d done something differently, maybe if he’d given her more of a hint as to why he needed them to take a break, things would be different now.
By the time he neared his house, his chest was heaving, the air soaring in and out of his lungs.
A truck in front of the house had his eyes narrowing. Kayden’s truck. What the hell was he doing here, and how had he figured out where Lock lived?
Kayden rose from the steps in front of his door, brows lifting. “Looks like you pushed yourself a bit hard, brother.”
Lock stopped in front of him. “How’d you know where to find me?”
“Eastern followed you home from the bar last night.”
The fuck? He’d had a tail and he hadn’t noticed? He wastrainedto notice that stuff. Sure, he hadn’t been in a good headspace, but that was no excuse.
“Don’t take it too hard,” Kayden said, as if reading his mind. “When Eastern wants information, he gets it.”
Lock rounded his brother and moved into his house, leaving the door open after him.
“Aren’t you going to ask me why I’m here?” Kayden asked, the click of the door closing sounding after him.
“I know why you’re here.” He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and downed half of it. “You want to know when I bought this house and why. And you probably want to know why I didn’t tell anyone. You were sent by the others because they thought you’d have the best chance at getting the information, being the oldest sibling.”
Kayden smirked and muttered, “Fucking know-it-all,” under his breath.
Lock threw him a second bottle. “No, I just know that my brothers are nosy assholes. Nylah would probably be in on it too if she were here.”
“I was just on the phone with Nylah, actually. I promised to call back and update her on your house stuff on the way home.”
Of course he did.
Lock’s phone vibrated on the counter, and just like every other time, there was a second of wild hope that it would be her. That Callie was calling, ready to work things out.
