Page 72 of Searching for Valor

Maybe it was time to forgive Izzy.

“Please,” he whispered.

“I’ll be there in ten.”

Izzy didn’t know what she’d find when she reached Rylan’s. Was he drinking? He hadn’t sounded drunk on the phone, but she just kept picturing that moment she and Zak found him on his couch, soaked in alcohol and half alive…

Oh, God.

She pressed harder on the accelerator and made it to his place in record time, her heart as loud as a drumline in her ears as she pulled into the driveway. The house was dark, save for the porch light illuminating the front steps. And there he sat, Valor at his side, his head in his hands.

Izzy threw the car into park and jumped out, slamming the door behind her. Rylan’s head snapped up at the sound, and even from a distance, she could see the raw vulnerability etched into every line of his face. It made her steps falter. She’d never seen him like this, so utterly broken open.

Valor’s tail thumped against the wooden step as she approached, but Rylan remained still, watching her with hoodedeyes. She stopped a few feet away, suddenly unsure. Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe he didn’t really want her here. Maybe?—

He stood slowly, Valor rising with him. “You came.”

“Of course I did. You asked me to.” She took a tentative step closer, searching his face for any sign that he regretted making that request. “Unless you changed your mind...”

“No.” He closed the distance between them in two long strides and pulled her into his arms. “I’m glad you’re here.”

Izzy went willingly, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her cheek to his chest. She felt the shudder that rippled through him and tightened her hold. “I’ve got you,” she murmured. “I’m right here.”

They stood like that for a long moment, just holding each other in the dark. His heart beat a steady rhythm beneath her ear, and gradually, the rigid set of his shoulders eased.

When they finally pulled apart, Rylan cupped her face in his hand, his thumb brushing over her cheekbone. His touch was gentle, almost reverent, and Izzy’s breath caught in her throat.

“Thank you for coming,” he said softly.

She covered his hand with her own. “I’ll always come when you call. You know that, right?”

Something flickered in his eyes, there and gone too quickly for her to decipher. He let his hands fall away and took a step back, putting some distance between them. “Come inside?”

Izzy nodded and followed him into the house, Valor padding alongside them. Rylan flicked on a lamp, bathing the living room in a warm glow. It was clean now, so different from the morning she and Zak and found him. She glanced around, taking in the simple but comfortable furnishings, the framed photos of his family and friends on the mantle, the books— a mix of heavy psychology texts and adventure novels—stacked two rows deep in the bookcase. It suited him, this space, when it wasn’t reeking of alcohol with empty bottles covering every surface.

Rylan moved to the kitchen, his movements a little stiff, as if he were trying to hold himself together. “You want something to drink? Water? Coffee?”

“Water’s fine,” Izzy replied, trailing after him. She leaned against the counter, watching as he filled two glasses from the tap. His prosthetic hand gripped the faucet with practiced ease, but she noticed a slight tremor in his left hand as he passed her a glass.

Their fingers brushed, sending a jolt of electricity through her. Rylan’s eyes met hers, dark and intense, and for a moment Izzy forgot how to breathe.

“So,” she said, breaking the charged silence. “You want to talk about it?”

Rylan took a long sip of water, his throat working as he swallowed. When he set the glass down, his gaze was fixed on somewhere far away. He took a deep breath that moved his shoulders.

“Not really,” Rylan said, his voice low and rough. “But I probably should.”

He moved back to the living room, sinking onto the couch with a heavy sigh. Valor padded over and rested his head on Rylan’s knee. Izzy followed, perching on the edge of the cushion beside him.

Izzy watched as Rylan absently stroked Valor’s head, his gaze distant. The silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken words.

“Shane took me to see Jax today,” Rylan finally said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Izzy’s eyes widened. “Jax? As in... your former teammate?”

Rylan nodded, still not meeting her gaze. “The one who tried to kill Shane and Alexis. Yeah, that Jax.”

“Wow,” she breathed. “AndShanetook you there? How did that go?”

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