“You’re not going anywhere.”
She couldn’t move.
“And I don’t mean that in a hostage sort of I-got-you-now way. I mean…” He drew in a breath. “Please, please, don’t think you need to run from this. From me.”
Aw.He couldn’t look at her that way if she hoped to keep her resolve.
She pulled her hand from his grip. “Don’t you see? I’ve put you at risk. If I leave, they’ll follow me and you’ll be safe. You’ll be?—”
“What? Are you kidding me?” He frowned, his jaw tightening. “Then they’ll be after you! And you’ll bealone. How is thatbetter?” He inhaled hard, then shook his head. “I’m serious. You’re not going anywhere.”
He appeared almost fierce, and if not for the sudden glaze in his eyes, she might have gone cold. Instead, his words, his tone, simply wrapped around her, settled inside her.
No, no, she wasn’t. She nodded.Okay…
He blinked hard and got up. Pulled out his phone and sent off a quick text. A few rapid-fire exchanges later, he pocketed it. His voice turned soft. “Meg, the park doctor, will meet us at the clinic in twenty minutes. Before it officially opens.”
“But medical records?—”
“She said she won’t check you in, officially. I told her it was that or you’d try to superglue it yourself. C’mon. No argument.”
He reached for her hand.
And heaven help her, she took it. “Please don’t let me get you killed.”
“It’ll be okay, Nim.”
The way he said it, she just…believed him.
Or desperately wanted to.
Her gaze landed on the package. “Think she’d X-ray that package too?”
“Yep.” He wrapped the package in a blanket, then put his arm around her shoulders, steering her toward the door. “Come on. Let’s get you fixed up.” But he stopped as they stepped from the camper. “And Nim? Whatever this is, whoever’s after you—we’ll figure it out. Together.”
The wordtogetherhit her harder than any declaration of affection could have. She’d been alone so long, she’d forgotten what it felt like to have someone in her corner.
“You don’t know what you’re signing up for.” She shook her head. “If I tell you everything—and I mean everything—there’s no going back. You’ll be in this as deep as I am.”
His eyes softened. “Nimue, I’ve been in this since the moment I pulled you back from that trail edge. The only difference is now you know it too.”
She searched his face, looking for doubt, for fear, for any sign he didn’t understand what he was offering.
“Are you sure?”
His blue eyes held hers. “How about you letmedecide if I’m brave enough to stick around.”
EIGHT
Russian mob.The words hammered against Liam’s skull as he slouched in Noah’s worn leather office chair, hands gripping the armrests. The file on local teens was spread across the desk—a half-finished puzzle, but his mind wasn’t on it.
How could it be when Nimue could be in danger? What if they were there now? The knot in his chest squeezed a little tighter.
He stared at the dog-eared pages of notes he’d reviewed dozens of times, but the names and dates blurred. How had his life spiraled into this? Barely more than two weeks ago, Nimue hadn’t existed in his world. Now the thought of her vanishing put a fist into his chest, swept out his breath.
Anyone with functioning brain cells would’ve let her go when she’d mentioned moving on. What did he know about outrunning organized crime? Absolutely nothing. But the image of her packing that mint-green bus, disappearing without a trace—his stomach twisted into knots that had nothing to do with skipping breakfast.
Besides, she’d been scared. And he didn’t like anyone he cared about being scared.