“No, I mean, why didn’t you call the police? You were in danger. Why didn’t you call for real help?”
“I did call for help. I called you because I knew you would get to me faster. You’re always telling me to call you if I need anything, and I’m sorry I’m always depending on you?—”
“You can depend on me. I wouldn’t let a storm keep me from you.” He turned to her with hurt in his eyes. “I prayed for you. I didn’t know what I was doing, but I needed help. If anything happened to you…”
Lauren stared at him. He’d prayed—prayed to the God he believed didn’t care about him. He’d asked for help instead of thinking he could handle everything on his own.
“And the weirdest thing was that someone was helping me. Helping you.”
She rested her hand on his arm. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that God helped me. I know it sounds ridiculous, but I know what I felt. I was afraid I would lose you, but something was telling me you’d be okay. And I have this…” He pressed his eyes closed. “I don’t know what it is, but I can’t even look at you without wondering…” He paused and stared at the fire.
“Wondering what?” she asked. Zach was onthe verge of something huge, and she had to tread carefully.
His shoulders sank, and he inhaled a deep breath. “I don’t know what love is,” he confessed.
Lauren froze. Zach was talking about God and love, and she might as well have been standing on the edge of a cliff again. Her heart constricted as she waited for him to say something.
“But I was afraid I’d lost you, and I can’t let that happen. I can’t screw up again. There’s too much at stake.”
She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. “You’re not losing me.”
He shifted to kneel beside her and lifted her from the floor.
“What are you doing?” she asked, grabbing onto him.
He moved her to the couch before picking up the blanket and pillow from the floor. “You need to sleep.”
The thick blanket draped over her, warming her to the core. “I guess you can’t get home because of the storm.”
He motioned for her to lift her head before putting the pillow behind her head. “The snow is already over the bumper on your car, so you’re stuck with me for a while.”
Zach lay on his back on the floor by the fireplace. He rested one arm behind his head and the other over his abdomen. “Good night, angel.”
“Good night, Zach.”
They’d have plenty to talk about in the morning, but for now she’d savor the peace they’d found by the firelight.
34
Zach
Zach lifted the mug of water to his lips as Lauren’s shoulders rose and fell for the ten thousandth time. There was no way she had any idea how close she’d been to danger last night. She knew about the storm, but she’d been mere feet from the devil’s lair.
He could protect her from them, but not if he didn’t even know she was there.
Secrets. Truth. She’d been preaching about feelings and honesty for months, but he was about to get the whole story. He’d let her rest through the morning, but they were stuck in this house together now. It was time for a reckoning.
She rolled over on the couch and her eyes flickered open. Her arm slowly reached over her head in a lazy stretch before she spotted him in the recliner.
Her brows furrowed as she looked around.The fire was still roaring in the fireplace, and despite the light outside, the curtains and blinds were closed.
“Good morning,” she whispered sleepily.
“Morning. Not sure if it’s a good one yet,” Zach quipped.
He’d spent the last evening and night reeling, letting the what-ifs run free. She’d chewed him up and spit him out, and she didn’t even know it.
