“They offeredyou…?” Sasha’s eyes went wide, but her astonishment quickly faded. “You turned them down, of course.”
Darius shook his head. “I’m considering it.”
“You are?”
Darius laughed at the stunned look on her face. “I asked for more information about the department and the job and said I needed to talk it over with you.”
“I’m sorry, but … what?”
He reached across the coffee table, took her hand. “They’ll match my DPD salary, which is a stretch for them. They’ve also put together a budget for upgrades, training, and building repairs.”
Sasha looked worried. “As much as I would love for us to live closer to one another, I don’t want you to give up your job or your life here. You’ll end up feeling claustrophobic and unhappy and resent me, and that could ruin what we have together. I don’t want that. Besides, you hate Scarlet.”
“I don’t hate Scarlet.”
She frowned. “Who are you, and what have you done with Darius?”
Darius poured a little more plum wine into her glass. “After I was exonerated in Becca’s murder, I wanted to disappear. I wanted to live where no one knew me, where nothing from her murder could touch me. Big cities make that easy. You drive into LA or Denver or Manhattan, and you disappear into the throng, one of millions. No one knows you, and no one cares. After that very public ordeal, I needed anonymity.”
She squeezed his hand. “Small towns don’t offer that, do they? That’s what you meant when you said you’d feel claustrophobic.”
“Exactly. I imagined Scarlet being a little town with small-minded people, where every molehill becomes a mountain and everyone meddles in everyone else’s business.”
“Well… I won’t lie. Thatdoeshappen.”
“What I couldn’t see were the connections between people. You’re not just a bunch of yokels getting in each other’s way. You truly care about one another. The way everyone pulled together to help you… The Team… I’ve never seen that kind of community before. It shows how fucked up I am… or was.”
“You aren’t fucked up. Your life and sense of safety were destroyed by what happened in the aftermath of Becca’s murder. Tempe and the university were your community—and they turned against you when you’d done nothing wrong.”
She started to say more but stopped herself.
“Go ahead. Say it.”
“The first time I stayed here, you said something about the people of Scarlet helping me and how, if you had those kinds of friendships, you wouldn’t want to leave the town, either.”
“I remember. We were in the tub.”
She nodded. “I wanted to tell you then that the people of Scarlet had already adopted you as one of their own, but I was afraid you’d think I was pushing you to like the place. It’s true, though. Everyone who knows you in Scarlet cares about you.”
His pulse picked up, and he steeled himself. He needed to tell her. “Since Becca’s death, I haven’t felt like I belong anywhere. The only place I’ve felt at home was on the job. But when I look into your eyes, a part of me wants to believe I could belong in Scarlet, too. I want to believe I could belong withyou, Sasha. I love you.”
His heart thundered in his chest, but he’d said it.
Tears welled up in Sasha’s eyes. “Dare.”
It got easier from there. “From the first moment I saw you in the hospital, something about you broke through the barrier I’d built around myself. You’re the most genuine woman I know, and your smile—it’s a gift. It lights up my world.”
She laughed, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Am I dreaming?”
“Let’s see.” Darius slid his fingers into her hair, kissed her. “Did you feel that?”
“Mmm. Yes.”
“Then you’re not dreaming, angel.” Because he’d said it once, he found it easier to say again. “I love you, Sasha. I love you with everything I am.”
And for the first time in more than fifteen years, Darius felt whole.
Sasha woketo Darius planting little butterfly kisses along her nape, the hard length of his body pressed against hers.
