“It’s handled,” he says, voice low and calm, like he just took out the trash instead of three dangerous men.
My shoulders sag with relief so sharp it almost hurts. I step forward without thinking, pressing both palms flat against his chest, feeling the strong, steady thump of his heart beneath my fingers.
My hands don’t listen when I tell them to stop shaking. Even with him standing in front of me, solid and unhurt, my chest still feels too tight, like I haven’t caught up to the fact that it’s over.
He’s real. He came back. He came back for me.
I manage to ask if he’s hurt. Just in case he sprained an ankle or something. No, he’s fine. Walker’s fine. Everyone is fine.
Tension flees my body as I realize it’s over. The men who would have hurt me, can’t. In less than an hour, Carter handled the threat I couldn’t manage on my own.
His big hand cups the side of my neck, thumb stroking gently under my jaw.
“I’ve lost people I cared about because I wasn’t there when it mattered. I did three tours overseas and I had three relationships that fell apart while I was gone. Every single one of them cheated. Said I was emotionally unavailable, that I shut down and left them alone even when I was physically standing right in front of them.”
My breath catches. I search his face, the hard lines of his jaw, the dark green eyes that haven’t left mine since I showed up at the lumberyard.
“Carter…”
That’s bullshit.I want to say.How could they not fight for you?I almost ask. Instead, I let him talk. If those relationships hadn’t ended, I wouldn’t have him. I’d have matched with a different man, and while I’m certain there are plenty of good men in the world, none of them would’ve been my Carter.
I wouldn’t have known what I was missing.
His forehead rests against mine, breath warm on my lips.
“I swore I’d never do that again. Never make a woman wait for scraps of me while I’m off saving the world or burying my head in work. When I saw you standing there with grease on your cheek and that look in your eyes like you were ready to run forever, I knew. This time I’m all in. No shutting down. No leaving you to carry everything alone. You’re not going to wake up one day wondering where my mind is at, Angel. I see you. Every damn day. I’m not making the same mistake with you.”
The words sink into me, warm and solid and terrifying in the best way. He’s not just protecting me from the Iron Vultures.He’s protectingusfrom the version of himself he used to be. My fingers fist in his shirt.
“You’re really doing this with me? Even though you didn’t even know I existed a week ago?” I can’t help but ask.
A low, wrecked sound rumbles from deep in his chest.
“You trusted me when you had every reason not to. That’s all I needed.” His thumb brushes my lower lip, voice dropping to that gravel-rough tone that never fails to make me wet. “I’m not emotionally unavailable with you, Sloane. I’m wide fucking open. And I’m going to prove it every single day, starting right now.”
The words sink into me, warm and solid. For the first time since I fled Hollow Creek, the constant knot of fear in my chest melts. No more scanning shadows. No more waiting for the next threat. He did what he promised.
Tears prick my eyes, but I blink them back.
“I’ve never had anyone do that for me. I’ve always been the one fixing things, staying late at the shop, making the hard calls. No one’s ever just stepped in and taken care of me.”
“Bunch of blind fucking fools,” he mutters. “A woman like you? All messy hair and fierce determination? You’re the kind of woman worth dying for, Sloane.”
A tear slips free. I swipe at it, embarrassed, but he doesn’t let me pull away.
“You’re my fucking Angel,” he adds in a whisper.
“I didn’t come here expecting this,” I admit, voice low. “But you made me want to stay the second you called me Angel.”
His green eyes darken with a fierce and tender hunger.
“I want you to marry me,” he says in a gruff pleading tone. “If you’ll have me. Not because you’re scared or grateful. Because you choose this. Because you choose me.”
“I love you, Carter,” I whisper, the confession trembling out like a truth I can’t hold back any longer. My voice is raw and alittle scared, but it feels right. “I know it’s fast. I know I showed up running for my life, but I love you. Not just because you saved me tonight. Because you see me. Because you make me feel safe enough to stop running. I love how steady you are when everything else is chaos. I love you.”
For a heartbeat he just stares at me, those dark green eyes blazing with emotion. Then a low, wrecked sound rumbles from deep in his chest.
“Fuck,” he breathes, voice thick with feeling. “I love you too, Sloane. I’ve loved you since the moment you claimed me in front of the crew.”
