Page 94 of When Morning Comes Around

Taryn pushed at his arm. “Go! Go see your girl. She looks nervous as hell. Go reassure her – whatever it’s about. And take your time. I can handle the bar.”

“Hey, ladies,” Taryn greeted them when they reached the bar. “What are you having, Nina?” She smiled at Sadie. “I’m not asking you what you want to drink because you can have some Dom instead.”

He shook his head at Taryn before hurrying to the end of the bar. When he let himself out, Sadie was staring at him. He held his hand out to her. “Do you want to come on my break with me?”

She glanced back at Taryn and Nina. They both grinned and nodded.

When she reached him, he took her hand and led her down the hallway at the side of the kitchen.

“I hope this is okay…”

When they reached the back door, he leaned against the wall and wrapped his arms around her waist, drawing her to him.

“This is fantastic. It’s a surprise, a great one.”

He could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

“Is everything okay?”

She nodded and relaxed against him. “It is. Thanks, Dom.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “For what?”

She gave him a sheepish smile. “You know I had an early dinner with Nina and Terry? They wanted to know why I wasn’t coming in to see you while I was over here.”

He gave her a puzzled smile. “I wondered the same thing, but I figured it was because you wanted to get back to your dad.”

She shrugged. “I do need to get home to him, I’m not staying. It’s just… I’ll probably sound stupid, but here goes… They suggested that I should pop in and see you, and it made me nervous.”

“Nervous about seeing me?”

She sighed. “No. Not really. I…”

His heart sank when he guessed what she meant. “You were worried? About what I might be up to?”

She buried her face in his chest. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t… I didn’t think that you’d…”

He tightened his arms around her. “You have nothing to be sorry for, Sadie. I get it. After Dale…”

She nodded but didn’t lift her head.

He stroked her hair. “It’s okay. I can see how what happened to you would do a number on you. You can trust me. I think you know that – I hope you know that. But words aren’t always enough. You need to feel it, you need to live the proof a couple of times before it’ll sink in.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you.”

He kissed the top of her head. “It’s okay, I know.”

He smiled when she finally looked up into his eyes. “I promise you, it’s okay. After what you’ve been through, you need some reassurance. I’m happy to give you that.”

“Thank you.”

“Thank you for being honest about it. If we talk about things, we’ll be able to work our way through them.”

“I know, it might take me a little time to get used to it, but I know.”

“Did you enjoy yourself with your friends?”

She smiled. “Is that it? You forgive me, and we can move on?”

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