I glance over at Owen, the look on his face telling me he already knows what I’ve just found out.He’s holding Sloane close, his chin resting on the top of her head as he watches me, waiting for my reaction.
I want to fucking kill that asshole.
“Miles,” Owen says, his voice steady, like he knows what I’m thinking right now.
“What?”I snap, harsher than I mean to.“We’re just gonna let him get away with this?He could’ve killed them, Owen, he could have?—”
“I know,” Owen says, weirdly calm as he moves a slow, comforting hand up and down Sloane’s back.She’s watching us, her eyes bloodshot.“The police will take care of it.You have other things to worry about.”
He tips his head ever so slightly at Daisy, and even though every single fiber of my being wants to fight this, I know Owen is right.If I go after Isaac, if I do everything I want to do to make him pay for this, I will be no better than him.
And there is no way I want that.
I nod in acknowledgment, dropping a kiss to the top of Daisy’s head.I feel her grip on my T-shirt ease, almost like she too was preparing to stop me.
I fucking hate that she thought she needed to do that.That I thought it too.
Turning to her, I slide my hands up, cupping her jaw as I tilt her face up to mine and smile at her.“Are you okay?”I ask her again.
“No,” she breathes, her voice shaky.
I lean in, kissing her cheeks, her forehead, and eventually her lips.“Everything can be replaced, Daze,” I whisper against them.“You’re the only thing that matters here.”
“But it’s?—”
“Daisy,” I say, kissing her again.“We have insurance.The shop can be rebuilt.But you...God, I—” A sudden, unexpected sob escapes.
“Miles,” she whispers, her thumbs brushing away the tears I didn’t realize I was shedding.
“If I lost you.Fuck...it would...it would...”
Whatever I am trying to say won’t come.Maybe because there are no words for what would happen if I lost her.
“Hey, how you guys holding up?”
I look up to see Eli standing beside Owen, his hand on his cousin’s shoulder, his usually smiling face awash with concern.
“Okay,” Owen says, his arms still wrapped around Sloane.“Thank you, Eli,” he continues, turning to face him.“Thank you for saving them.”
Eli gives him a tight smile, squeezing his shoulder once before he hooks an arm around Owen’s neck and pulls them both in for a quick hug.Although he’s been off the island for close to a year, I know he and Owen are close.They always have been.
He’s a few years older than us, but he’s always been like a big brother to Owen, the two of them sharing a house before Eli left for Oahu.I know he’s hurting for Owen because Owen was terrified for Sloane, which means Eli was too.
He lets them both go, brushing a quick knuckle down Sloane’s arm before he turns to us.“The police wanna get a statement.I know you probably just want to get out of here, but we need to do this.After that, if the EMTs clear you, you’re good to go.”
I nod, clearing my throat before speaking.“Thanks, Eli, seriously.”
He nods, giving us a smile as he says, “Just doing my job.”
“Maybe, but...well, thank you.”
His grin widens a little as his gaze moves to Daze.“Nice move trying to throw that chair through the window, Daze,” he says with a chuckle.
She huffs out a breath.“Fat lot of good it did,” she replies, clearly annoyed.
He laughs now.“Yeah, glass is surprisingly tough.Might be a good idea to keep a bat or something handy.For several reasons.”
“Fucking bat would be handy if that asshole shows up again,” I mutter.
