I glance around, and literally, everything around me sparkles. Whoa, if this is what it means to be taken care of and given five O’s in one night, then sleeping with the hard-muscled, chiseled body of my husband curled around me does to me, I’m not complaining. I throw off the covers, push my legs over the side of the bed and sit up, then spot the note on the nightstand.
Gone running with Adam. Tiny is with me.
-your husband
PS: I’ve set up your phone so you can track my location anytime.
A happy sensation bubbles up my chest. I’m grinning again, and I’m not going to control it. My husband. My husband. My h.u.s.b.a.n.d. Gah! I loooove, love, love the sound of that. That’s how he referred to himself last night, too. A blush creeps up my skin. He didn’t make love to me, but he pleasured me. He paid attention to me and touched me and made me very, very happy. My brain cells are definitely wearing big grins today, and my pussy is purring. Definitely.
I glance around and miss him. He’ll be back soon, but you know what? It’s my turn to surprise him. I grab my phone, which he’s placed next to the note and plugged in—that man, swoon! And my handbag is on the floor next to the nightstand. Whoa, he’s so thoughtful. And I knew he would be. I knew he was the real thing. The one. My other half. And he’s acknowledging it, too—by actions. The words can’t be far off, right?
I snatch up my phone, and when I unlock it, I see the app. Oh wow, he pulled it up for me on the screen so I wouldn’t miss it. My eyes begin to sting. This is such a huge step forward. The fact that he trusts me with this information? A warmth blooms in my chest. He’s showing me, through his actions, how much faith he has in me. And that, combined with how attentive he was toward me last night—my breath catches. This…is everything I dreamed for but didn't dare to hope would happen.
What a change a month has made, though? This complex man is slowly sharing parts of himself with me, parts he hasn’t shown anyone else, and damn, but it’s real and emotional and heart-rending and… I love him, and I want to tell him so again. This time, I know he’ll respond in kind. I jump out of bed, run to my room and pull on my as-yet never used running gear that appeared in my closet. I race out of the penthouse.
I confess, I slow to a brisk walk very soon—I’m not a runner. I’m not going to pretend I am. But I’ve always loved walking, and this city, with its parks and the many woods dotted around the boroughs, is perfect for it. The dot on the phone that pinpoints his location comes to a stop up ahead. Guess he’s stopped by the bank of the river for a break? I hasten my steps. It takes me ten minutes of power walking to round a bend and spot him. He’s sitting on a bench, one hand on Tiny’s collar. Both man and dog are staring ahead. My heart leaps in my chest.
I break into a slow jog. Guess I lied. When there’s incentive enough, I can run, apparently. My breath comes out in puffs and sweat beads my forehead as I close the distance to him. As I come up behind him, he turns and says something. I know he’s speaking because I can see his lips move in profile. But there’s no one next to him. Adam must have left. I guess he’s speaking to Tiny. Only… Tiny is on the other side of him, lying down in the grass, also facing away from me. I’m too far away to make out what he’s saying. As I near him, he faces forward again.
Tiny is the first to scent me. He jumps ups and barks. Knight turns and spots me. His features soften. He releases Tiny, and the big Dane lumbers toward me. He pauses, and when I reach him, brushes his head against me very gently. Both dog and man have learned how to interact with me without hurting me. For some reason, that makes my eyes sting. I greet Tiny, then continue past him toward Knight. When I come to a stop in front of him, he widens the space between his legs, and I step forward. He plants his big hands on my hips and looks up at me.
"Missed you," he murmurs.
"Me, too." I lower my head and brush my lips over his. He doesn’t pull back. I whisper my nose up the side of his cheek, drawing in the scent of sea breeze tinged with the musky notes of his sweat. "You always smell so good," I murmur.
He chuckles. "I’m all sweated out."
"I like that." I press a kiss to his temple, then straighten. "Where’s Adam?"
"He left."
"So, who were you talking to?"
He blinks. "What do you mean?"
"I saw you turn and say something as I was walking up."
He swallows. "You did?"
"But there was no one here; guess you were talking to Tiny."
He releases his hold on my hips, then slowly shakes his head. "It wasn’t Tiny."
"Eh?" I tilt my head.
"I was talking to Adam."
70
Knight
She chuckles. "You told me he left."
"He left a long time ago."
"He did?"
I force myself to speak through the knives’ edges that seem to line my throat. "He was never here."
She frowns. "I’m not sure I follow."
My heart begins to pump so hard, I can feel the blood slam against my temples, my wrists, my ankles. Every pulse point in my body speeds up. This is it. You’re going to tell her the truth. No more holding back. You’re going to share with her the one thing you’ve never said aloud to yourself. I curl my fingers into fists and take a deep breath. "Adam never made it back to London."
"Eh?" Her frown deepens. "So, he was taken captive with you… But he didn’t return with you?"
I swallow around the lump in my throat. "He was hacked to pieces in front of me."
She gasps.
"My best friend. My brother in every way, the one who had my back in every one of my missions, was murdered in front of my eyes, and I couldn’t do anything." I dig my fingernails into the palms of my hands and break through the skin.
"Oh, my god, that must have been so traumatic for you, Knight." She throws herself at me, straddles my lap, and wraps her arms and legs around me. Tiny walks over to plant his butt on the ground next to me. He whines, and goddamn, but the sound is as forlorn as I feel.
"He was the last to die. The bastards took out the other three in our team, one by one. Adam and I kept each other going. We promised each other that we’d make it out alive. But as the days wore on, he began to sink first. It got to him, I guess. They realized his weak spot was his wife and his daughter. They used it to break down his mind. I, of course, had no such blood ties. Not even Abby, as I knew she was safe with her husband. I was the emotionless one. The strong one. The unbreakable one. They kept at it, though. They tried everything, and when it was clear Adam was sinking, they used him against me. And when they realized our friendship was my weakness, they killed him. Slowly. His cries, his begging for mercy, his voice as he screamed for his life haunts me at night. Before he died, he made me promise I’d take care of his wife and child."
"Oh, Knight." Her tears bathe my throat as she tucks her face under my chin and weeps.
"I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, Penny. There were so many times when I wanted to, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it aloud. I knew if I did, I’d never see Adam again. But I also knew I had to tell you. It was the only way to show you how much you mean to me. It was the only way to move on."