Page 23 of Wounded Hearts

Chapter 12

Drew was scrollingthrough some of the data they had amassed on Brayden Wells when the door to the tech room opened and Kanan walked in. His friend plonked himself in the adjacent chair and sighed as he rubbed his face.

“Rough night?”

“Kinda. Natalia is having trouble with a girl at school and it took everything in me not to go around to her parents’ house and tell them what a little brat their kid was. Can you believe Roz talked me down?”

Drew felt his eyebrows hit his hairline. Roz was many things, but peacemaker wasn’t one he’d normally associate with her. “Really?”

“Yeah, really. Apparently, I’m going to make the girls soft if I keep stepping in.”

“So, what did you do?”

“Roz told her how to handle it herself instead. I have to say every single day that woman surprises me.”

The look of love on his face when he spoke of his wife was clear for anyone to see. They hadn’t had a fairy tale start to things, spending years apart with Kanan loving her and never giving up on them, while Roz ran from her feelings. Now though, they were one of the most solid couples he knew. His mind went to Mara and he wondered how she was doing and if they would ever get to that place or if fate had other ideas for them.

“How did you know?”

K looked up with a tilt of his head. “Know what?”

“That Roz was worth the fight. That she was the one?”

Kanan leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees as he appraised Drew. “The minute I laid eyes on her she stole a piece of me. It was like I recognised myself at that moment. Not that our situations were in any way similar, but she was home to me. I didn’t see her again for years, but I kept tabs on her, and when I thought the time was right for us, I ran into her again. That time she seemed to feel it too and we were happy on our island, but the timing was still wrong, and she got spooked and ran. But I never once doubted she was it for me. It’s not the same but you miss your leg, you feel it still, and yet it isn’t there. That was me and Roz. She was a missing piece of me, and I never felt complete without her.”

Drew nodded having heard the story before and had even been a party to the last part.

“As for knowing, I can’t say there was any doubt. I knew when I saw her, I’d die for her and it wasn’t like I would for a friend or teammate. I would lie down in the road if that woman asked. But don’t tell her that, I need her to think I have some backbone where she’s concerned.”

“Yeah, I won’t say a word.”

“This about Mara?”

Drew nodded. “Yes, I feel this pull between us like she was meant for me. I felt it before, but I waited too long and missed my chance and the timing isn’t any better now, to be honest. I just feel this sense of urgency to make her mine, to tell her how I feel.”

“But?” Kanan went straight to the heart of it.

“But she just came out of one intense relationship and I don’t want to scare her.”

Kanan’s face darkened at the mention of what happened to Mara. “My advice, for what it’s worth, is to tell her. You, better than anyone, know that life can take unexpected turns and you might regret not laying it out for her. Then let her come to you when she’s ready.”

“I already did that, kind of.”

“You told her you’re in love with her?”

“Well, not exactly but I laid it out that I wanted us to be together and I was there for her and cared about her.”

“Then just wait and see. I have a feeling with the way she turns to you every single time you walk into the room that it won’t take as long as you think. Certainly not as long as that infuriating woman I married.” His words were said with so much warmth it was impossible to miss how he felt for Roz.

“Speak of the devil.” He took out his phone and answered. “Hello, Kitten.” His smile fell and Drew stiffened in his chair as Kanan’s gaze landed on him.

“We’ll be right there. I’m with Drew now.” K hung up. “Mara had a note left for her at the back of the shop they were in and a woman from the party that had scared her was there.”

Drew was out of his chair and across the room in a second. “I never should have let her go.”

K stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “No, you did the right thing. She’s already had one man control her and she won’t let it happen again. You have to rein that shit in now or you’ll lose her before it starts. Just take a breath and I’ll drive.”

As K drove Drew thought about what he’d said. His instinct was to lock Mara away and keep her safe, but he knew that to even suggest it was a betrayal of the trust she’d shown him. Feeling calmer, he hopped out of the car as it pulled up outside the shop and loped in, leaving Kanan to park. His eyes zeroed in on her the second he walked in and she turned her pale face to him. The instant Mara saw him she was on her feet and running. Her body crashed into his as his arms came around her and then the sobs erupted from her as if she couldn’t hold back a second longer.