I’d never been a jealous man. It was a foreign feeling to me, and by this point in my life, I was—should be—far too old for something so juvenile. And yet there it was, sharp and unwelcome, curling in my gut. It was absurd. The man was dead, and competing with ghosts was a losing battle.
Still, the feeling burned.
She was alive. She was with me. Jonathan wasn’t. He didn’t protect Sophie from the danger of his ex-wife and never shielded her from the fallout of her actions. But I would.
My role was to be her protector, and I would rather die than fail at it.
“Jonathan… God, it feels like decades have passed since it all started.” A loose strand of her hair slipped across her cheek, catching in her lashes. I brushed it back behind her ear, my thumb lingering for half a second longer than necessary.
She exhaled and went on in a sad voice, the crashing waves by the shoreline serving as a calming soundscape.
“It started as a crush. I was too young for him.” I let out a soft, strangled laugh. “Ironic, right? Considering our age gap,” she said, smiling. “But I was a teen back then, and Kristoff threatened to murder Jonathan if he tried anything with me. Anyway, we flirted—harmless, platonic flirting. I was so in love I could barely breathe, but nothing ever happened. It couldn’t have.”
Her smile faded as her gaze drifted somewhere past me, back into memory. “Then, out of nowhere, I found out he got Kristoff’s wife pregnant. Just like that, Jonathan was untouchable. Off-limits forever.” She shook her head. “You know how teenagers are. The world ended that day. Everything went dark. But somehow, I kept living.”
I nodded, the weight of it settling in my chest, and let the silence stretch. She needed it.
“A few years ago, we reconnected,” she said finally. “And that stupid crush came roaring back. I fell for him again, but it was the version of him I’d built in my head over the years.” Her fingers tightened in the frayed edge of our beach rug. “But real life doesn’t stay neatly packaged. This time, Jonathan came with so much baggage. And I’m not talking about his son.”
A bitter edge crept into her voice. “The kid was sweet. So responsible. But he was caught in the crossfire, just like I was. I’m talking abouther.” She swallowed. “The psychopathic bitch who seemed to live for making everyone’s life a living hell.”
“Not for long,” I vowed.
“Have you…” She hesitated, chewing on her bottom lip. “Have you found Jacqueline and her entourage?”
Kingston provided an update this morning. Jacqueline was clearly in hiding, but not from law enforcement. Whatever line she’d crossed, it had been lethal. She’d drawn the attention of the Black Oil Syndicate, and now her name sat on the “Find & Capture: Do Not Kill” list.
“No, but we’re close.”
I’d ensured that Black Oil understood to deliver her to me if they got her before me, but knowing Kingston, it was very unlikely.
Chapter 26
Sophie
Ihadn’t realized how much I’d been starving for human connection—for a real, unguarded conversation—until this very moment. With every admission, every careful question, the tight knot in my chest loosened, and my heart felt lighter than it had in a long time.
Everything I told Kian was true.
For a while now, I’d been asking myself whether I’d fallen for the real Jonathan or for the version of him I’d carried with me all those years. And if I was honest, if the accident hadn’t happened last autumn, I could say with certainty that he and I wouldn’t be together anymore.
Shoulders burned and sweat tracing lazy paths down my spine, I jumped to my feet.
“Come into the water with me,” I said, tugging at his hand. “I need protection in case a shark shows up.”
He laughed softly, standing with effortless grace and agility.
“Your shark protector,” he said, offering a grin, “coming right up.”
We waded in until the water lapped at our necks, cooling our heated skin. Kian gathered me into his arms, lifting me effortlessly as I wrapped my legs around his waist. We floated together, bodies aligned,and I vowed to memorize the strength beneath his skin as his sculpted muscles moved beneath my touch.
“Thank you for today,” I breathed. “It’s been amazing.”
“The day is not over yet,zemra ime,” he murmured, lifting my hand to his lips and brushing them against my fingertips.
I stared at him, the air between us charged. I wanted him—all of him. My heart hammered in my chest, and heat pooled in my core, aching for more.
He bent his head and captured my lips in a drugging kiss. His tongue traced mine with a perfect, tantalizing pressure. Oh my God. I could come all over again, just from this.
