Page 69 of Vengeful Secret

“It’s not your fault,” I repeat, looking into his eyes. I know he needs to hear it, even if he doesn’t believe it.

Gray lets out a shuddering breath. “I should have killed him.”

I shake my head. “Your men picked him up. We’ll get the information we need.”

“I’m sorry.” He brushes his nose against mine again.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for.” I tilt my face to kiss him, softly, and he murmurs something against my mouth. I huff out a breath. “Seriously, Gray. I’m okay. You saved me. I should be saying thank you.”

“You never have to thank me for protecting you. I’ll always protect you and Ciara.”

“I know that.” I smile at him. “You wouldn’t let anything happen to us.”

“Never.”

He’s looking at me intently, his face earnest as if he thinks I won’t believe him, and my heart aches.

“I’m the one who’s sorry. I should have pulled away from him when he grabbed me, but he had a gun and?—”

“You don’t have to talk about it.”

I wonder if it hurts him to hear about it.

“I think I want to,” I whisper, tears springing to my eyes. “I thought he would take me away from you. Away from Ciara.”

“I’ll never let anyone take you away from me or our daughter.”

“I was just so scared I’d never see her again.”

Gray nods.

I get comfortable in the bed, and he sits on the edge of it, his shoulders stiff.

“Gray?”

“If you want to take her and go, I understand.” His voice is quiet, shaky.

I frown. “Of course not.”

“I know why you left me,” he says flatly, as if I hadn’t responded at all. “I understand it now. Now that I’ve met Ciara, I'd do anything to protect her. But I can’t protect her. I can’t protect you. I failed.”

I sit up, putting my hand on Gray’s back to get him to turn and look at me. “You didn’t fail, Gray. Youdidprotect me and Ciara. She was here, safe. You were with me so that no one could take me.”

I remember the day I gave birth to Ciara, the love and protectiveness I felt for her was so overwhelming I started to sob as soon as I held her.

Having a child is like having a piece of your heart walk around without you, and I haven’t thought about how overwhelming it might be for Gray until now.

“Everything’s fucked up.” He runs a hand through his hair, sighing out a breath. “Da’s hurt and I’m running things. I’ve been trained for this my whole life, but it's like as soon as it happened, everything went out of my head.”

I rub his back comfortingly. “But you’re doing great, Gray. Everything’s going to be all right.”

His breath hitches in his chest.

I move to sit behind him, wrapping my arms around him and resting my cheek against his back.

Gray puts his hand over mine on his stomach, leaning back against me.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” he says quietly. “But I’m also so sorry.”

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