Then he gave a small nod, as if physically fighting himself.
It wasn’t an overwhelming acceptance.
But for now, I’d take it.
Chapter Twenty
Henry
I stared at the inky ocean water, the moon illuminating a sliver of it. The rest of the sky was black. Devoid of any light. Even the stars seemed to disappear. Not like up in Maine or even my farm in Georgia, where there was no light pollution to dim the stars.
Here, everything was duller. Noisier.
It made me long for the peace and tranquility of the farm even more. I had a feeling I wouldn’t be getting back there anytime soon.
I sipped my scotch as I settled deeper into the wicker couch on my patio, the ocean breeze cool against my skin.
I should have had no trouble sleeping. I was exhausted, my body still sore, although I was feeling much better than I did twenty-four hours ago.
But my mind wouldn’t let me sleep.
Not after the nightmare that had plagued me tonight. About leaving Ariana in a field, bound and gagged, with no way to defend herself. Tracking her to some abandoned warehouse, only to learn we were too late.
That I’d failed yet another person in my life.
“Trouble sleeping?” A deep voice cut through, and I snapped my head up as Blake walked the path from the pool house.
“Something like that.” I ran a hand over my face. “I napped off and on most of the day. I think it fucked with my sleep schedule.”
“I hear that,” he retorted as he lowered himself into the chair opposite mine.
He looked better than he did when I first saw him in the hospital room. The cuts had healed and his bruises had faded. There were a few burn marks along his neck and arm, but he was moving around a bit more, albeit with a slight limp. He’d even ditched the sling, although his doctor would probably have something to say about that.
“My sleep’s been fucked since the hospital.”
I huffed out a laugh. “Pretty sure your sleep was fucked long before then.”
He considered my statement for a beat, then shrugged. “You’re probably right about that.” He reached for the scotch on the coffee table and took a sip straight from the bottle. “How are you feeling?”
“Sore, but alive.” I arched a brow. “You?”
“Same.” He took another long swallow of the scotch. “Sorry I told Ariana about the Bratva. It was the only way to keep her from going out and looking for you herself. She may seem sweet and innocent, but that girl has some fire to her.”
“You have no idea,” I said with a roll of my eye, but couldn’t fight the smile tugging across my lips as I thought about Ariana’s fire.
I’d noticed it from the beginning. At least once she was no longer under Victor’s thumb. How defiant she was when I found her in the woods. How fearless she was, even when confronted by me, the man she believed to have abducted her.
It was that spark that intrigued me.
That spark that ruined me.
And that spark that made me fall in love with her.
I couldn’t stomach the idea of anything happening to that spark.
“What’s going on?” Blake cut through my thoughts and I glanced his way.
“What do you mean?” I replied, bringing my rocks glass to my lips and taking a sip.