A low hum vibrates in his chest before he speaks.
“I’ve seen you before.”
My stomach drops.
“You… you watched me?”
He doesn’t flinch.
“Your brother asked me to keep an eye on you. We served together. I gave him my word.”
The words settle.
Of course.
Derek.
I stare down at my mug.
“So you came because you had to,” I say.
“It was a promise.”
That isn’t the same as choosing.
Heat crawls up my throat.
I nod anyway.
“That’s good,” I murmur. “I’m glad he found someone he could trust.”
Someone like you.
He studies me, too closely.
“You think that’s the only reason I walked into that club?”
I hesitate.
“You said it was a promise.”
“It was.”
Silence stretches.
“You didn’t have to carry me out,” I say quietly. “You could’ve just gotten me outside. I would’ve figured the rest out.”
His jaw tightens.
“I don’t leave things unfinished.”
My pulse skips.
“You said I was yours.”
“That man needed to hear it.”
“And me?”
