Maverick was drinking coffee on the porch swing on Sunday morning, Shadow at his feet, when Nina let herself out of the house, a cup of coffee in her own hand. ‘Good morning,’ she said quietly, and turned to guide the door closed so that it didn’t bang.
‘Morning.’ Though he didn’t say anything or close the distance as he would have liked, he felt deprived when she took her coffee to the top step and sat down, her slender legs stretched out in front of her, her back against the porch railing post.
Shadow immediately stood up from where she lay and stretched, and then walked over to Nina and plopped back down. When Shadow placed her head on Nina’s thigh, she absently raised one hand to stroke the dog’s ears.
‘Did you sleep okay?’
She made a so-so motion with that same hand, and when Mav only waited patiently, she turned to look out over the ranch, avoiding his gaze. ‘Nightmares,’ she explained. ‘I can’t seem to fall asleep, and then when I do, I imagine variations of the attack and wake up with the feeling of his hands around my throat.’ One of her own hands unconsciously rose to lightly grip her neck.
‘Have you tried taking something? We have some sleeping pills lying around here somewhere. I could ask Sierra …’
‘No.’ Nina shook her head firmly. ‘I’d rather be tired but aware of my surroundings, you know. Cognizant. Just in case …’ She resumed stroking Shadow without finishing her train of thought.
Maverick leaned forward and placed his forearms on his knees. He thought about what to say to that but couldn’t find anything that was quite right. He couldn’t ask her what she meant without snooping. He couldn’t offer comfort though he wanted to. There was only one thing he could promise her. ‘I know it’s not my place to demand the details. But I’ll be here – when you’re ready.’
Nina smiled sadly. ‘You’ll think less of me when you know everything.’
Her despair was so great, so suffocating, that Mav had to force himself to stay put when, really, all he wanted to do was wrap her in his arms. Instead, he reminded himself that if she’d wanted to be touched, she would have sat down next to him. ‘I could never think less of you.’ He said it with the vindication he felt coursing through him.
‘How can you say that?’ she asked, and this time her eyes burned into him,throughhim. ‘How can you say that when you don’t even know what—’ she took a moment to recompose herself, finished with: ‘—what happened?’
‘Because I know you.’ She shook her head, denying it. But he only repeated. ‘I know you. I’ve watched, Nina, and though I sure like looking, it’s obvious. You’re a Night Rider. You’re running from something. Or, in this case, someone.’
Her gaze snapped, but not with anger. With panic.
Mav gentled his voice, but he didn’t stop. ‘But instead of figuring it out, I’ve come to know you. I’ve seen you spend endless hours trying to help a rescue horse that nobody else has cared for in a long time. I’ve seen you groom her and love her and sneak her extra grain when you thought nobody was looking.’ Nina blushed, but Mav kept going. ‘I’ve seen you muck stalls and clean tack, even though you’re on vacation. I’ve seen you sing to my kid at a barbecue and braid her hair. So, I know that whatever happened wasn’t your fault. And that isn’t saying anything for the bruises you arrived with because even if I didn’t know you, it is inexcusable for anyone to raise their fists to someone that doesn’t have an equal chance of laying them flat. So, unless a five-four woman put those bruises on your face …’
He waited, and when Nina shook her head, he only said, ‘Well then.’
‘I’m not pushing,’ he told her. ‘But I am reminding you that I don’t care what happened, and that I am one hundred per cent in your corner. And when the time comes for you to face whatever it is you’re running from, you call me.’
She angled her face away, so he said, ‘Nina. Look at me.’
When she did just that, slowly brought her eyes to his, his heart broke at the tears streaming down her cheeks. ‘I don’t care how long it takes. But whenever you’re ready, you call me. Okay?’
She didn’t speak. But she nodded and sent him a small smile that he instinctively knew was all the thanks she could manage just then.
Nina had never felt such an intense mix of emotions. It was as if a tornado was whirling through her, flinging them all together so that, combined, they were unstoppable and destructive. She felt so safe and warm, and because she knew he absolutely meant every word, she felt comforted. Because shewouldneed him. And that terrified her, considering she had promised to brave it alone. And even then, when put up against her guilt and shame, she couldn’t quite embrace all the good Maverick offered her.
She wanted to.
Desperately.
And when she had calmed enough to meet his eyes again, and saw the quiet rage he held, forher, she pushed up from the top step, dislodging Shadow, who watched her curiously as she approached Maverick.
He didn’t reach out to her even though she wished he would, and she knew it was because he was too conscious of everything he didn’t know and, so, erred on the side of caution.
It was Nina who took that step. She moved to him, and when he sat back and opened his arms, waiting for her to decide, she didn’t hesitate. She crawled onto his lap like a hurt child might. She tucked herself against him, rested her head against his chest, and felt that solid, dependable heart beat furiously beneath her cheek.
His strong arms wrapped around her, holding her close, in safety. His familiar scent surrounded her, calmed her. He set the swing into motion, controlling the gentle sway of it with his feet firmly planted on the ground.
Nina had climbed out of her spacious bed with her heart racing and panic crawling up her throat. So, it was the oddest thing that her pulse steadied and her panic calmed the moment that she was in Maverick’s embrace.
She didn’t cry. She was too tired, too dried up inside. She sighed, closed her eyes. And fell asleep instantly.
She didn’t sleep long. Only deeply. And when she woke up forty minutes later, Maverick’s arms were still around her, but there was a blanket thrown over both of them. Markus sat on the bottom porch step, his camera and a huge lens set up on a tripod in front of him.
She should have been embarrassed. But she wasn’t. She should have climbed off Maverick’s lap and made some excuse for going inside. But she didn’t. And when Maverick saw that she was awake and gently stroked her bare waist where her pyjama shirt had risen, she snuggled back against him beneath the blanket, welcoming his touch.
