She finally went with the burger and almost moaned at how perfect the combination of spicy meat tasted.
“Hadley still hasn’t asked you about what happened that day at her office, has she?” Trey asked, apparently moving on from the topic of Mike and the chief. “During any of the sessions you’ve had with her, I mean.”
Even though she was no longer terrorized by thenachtmahr, Rachel had accepted she still needed help. The monster had found a comfortable home in her head because of the trauma she was still dealing with from the night Horace Watkins had tried to kill her. She’d been worried Hadley wouldn’t want to see her anymore, especially after her office had been destroyed, but the doctor had been fine with it. And the sessions really were helping.
“No, thank goodness.” Rachel took another bite of burger. “The doctors gave her a clean bill of health, so I think she chalked it up to stress.”
A strange part of her therapy sessions—and the death of thenachtmahr—were her feelings toward poor Horace Watkins. After experiencing the terror of the creature firsthand, Rachel’s heart went out to the man, despite what he’d done to her and Hannah. In reality, Horace had been a victim of the creature as much as she had. There was nothing the man could have done to resist the urges that had driven him to go after Hannah. It made her glad thenachtmahrwas finally gone so no one else would end up like that.
She and Knox hung around for another few games of volleyball but then had to bail. They’d moved into a new condo a few weeks ago, and it was still a mess for the most part. This evening they planned on finally getting everything unpacked. Even with thenachtmahr—and the clown—gone, Rachel hadn’t been able to face the thought of living in her old place anymore. It had cost a buttload to break the lease early, but it had been worth it to not spend another night in that place.
Rachel was pulling out pictures of her family and Hannah when she sensed Knox behind her. She turned to find him leaning against the wall in the hallway that led to their bedroom, watching her with an expression on his face that seemed almost like wonder.
She set down the framed photo she’d been holding and walked over to him. “What?”
He pulled her into his arms, wrapping her in his warmth, a smile tugging at his lips. “Nothing.”
“Don’t even try it,” she said, poking him in the chest. “I can tell when you’re keeping something from me. What is it? Are you regretting giving up your room at the extended stay hotel already?”
She tried to keep her tone light, because truthfully, she thought that might actually be it. Knox had no problem making knee-jerk decisions—following through seemed to be the problem for him.
“It’s nothing like that,” he insisted, the smile replaced by a serious expression. “It’s just…”
“Just what?”
“It’s just that I never expected you to pick me over your pack that night. Then, when I gave you a chance to backtrack and you didn’t, I was stunned. Then you told me you loved me. I never expected that.”
The words were beautiful, but she had to admit she was a little confused. “But Diego told me you two had talked about the soul mate thing. He said you knew I wasThe Onefor you. I thought you knew that meant I loved you?”
Knox nodded. “I guess I did. But knowing something in theory is completely different than hearing the words. When you told me that, it meant everything to me. I sort of realized that just now, as I watched you unpack your stuff here in the home we’re going to share.”
She smiled, wondering if she should rag on him for being a total romantic. “What brought on this sudden introspection?”
The grin was back, broader this time. “When I was running from one situation to the next over the past several months, I knew I was looking for something, but I never knew what it was until now. I finally figured out that it’s you and this thing we have now. That’s what I was searching for. You’re my reason—my purpose. The woman I love more than anything.”
There wasn’t a whole hell of a lot she could say after something like that. Going up on her toes to kiss him, she took his hand and led him into their bedroom. So they could talk more about the reason they were together—without saying a single word.
