Page 47 of Protected Hearts

He sank to the mattress, jostling her toward him slightly. She stopped herself from falling into his arms again. She couldn’t get too reliant on Oaks. When he was no longer in her life, when this ended one way or another, she had to stand alone.

She dropped her gaze to her knees. “I can’t stop hearing it. The hum of that drone in the air. Or the shot Colt fired.”

“I know all too well how sounds can be a trigger. There are people here to talk to about it.”

“Therapists?”

He nodded.

“Maybe I will…in time. Right now, I only want to try to forget.”

His steady gaze held hers. His stare cut into her.

“What aren’t you telling me, Oaks?”

He scooted closer to her. The heat of his body urged her own to move too. She never planned to end up in his arms, but she did.

With one arm anchoring her against his chest, he lifted the other hand and directed a lock of hair behind her ear. “As soon as you’re ready, we need to talk to you.”

“We? As in you and your brothers.”

“Yes.” His warm breath fanned across the top of her head. How did one man make her feel so safe? So…alive?

I’ve been in hiding. Walking to the corner store would have made me feel alive.

But deep down, she knew that wasn’t true.

She tilted her head up.

It had everything to do with the way Oaks was looking at her right now.

“I don’t know how you’re so calm. The things that could have happened—”

“But they didn’t. You’re not alone anymore. You’ve got three of us on your six.”

The military slang sent a shiver through her. If she knew how real the danger was before, she really knew now.

When he cupped her face in his big hand, her heart gave a small wobble. He protected people for a living, but she felt as if he took her trouble personally. There was no mistaking the fury in Oaks’s eyes after he saw the drone Colt shot down.

Whether or not he wasreallyher husband didn’t matter in this minute. He was here for her…and she could lean on him.

She covered his hand with hers. Their gazes locked for a moment, his own dark with tenderness. Leaning in, he brushed a kiss between her brows. She felt them smooth out.

The blanket slipped off her shoulders, and he caught it, tucking it tighter around her. “Rest here a minute. I’ll get you some tea.”

She watched him leave the bedroom. Then listened to his footsteps on the hall floor. From some other part of the house came the low rumble of voices, but she couldn’t make out any words. It was just as well. What if the other members of Black Heart Security were talking about her? What were the chances theyweren’t?

When she heard Oaks returning, her insides warmed at more than the tea he carried. He really was a beautiful man, inside and out. Somehow, she thought voicing this would only make him deny it with one of those powerful shrugs that could knock a grown man over if he got in the way.

Silently, she took the tea and sipped. He watched her for a moment.

She lowered the cup. “Chamomile and honey.”

He nodded. “Soothes the nerves.”

“Are you always this good at taking care of your wards?”

His gray eyes sparkled. “Only the ones I’m married to.”

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