Page 65 of Sworn to Protect

As I drive back to her mom’s house, I can’t shake the feeling that I’m about to lose everything I just found.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

MACKENZIE

Who exactly is Nate Dixon?

I watch Liam’s chest rise and fall while he sleeps, the steady staccato of his heartbeat filling the otherwise silent room. The question has haunted me since the moment Nate crashed into our lives. He’s always there: saving, protecting, never asking for anything in return. His text confirmed he got Nick home safely, another quiet act of care.

But why the secrecy? A freelance surgeon? Do they even exist?

I exhale sharply, rubbing my temples. Nate once said he was married to the country. I wondered what he meant by that but didn’t press. I figured it was a weird twist on American pride or something similar. Like being dedicated to a job. His job . . . as a surgeon? The pieces click into place.Dedication. Country.The way he carries himself. The discipline. Of course. He’s military. Or he was.

My stomach knots.Why didn’t he tell me?

My fingers trail through Liam’s soft blond strands as my mind spins. Nate probably didn’t want to bring up the military because of Ethan.Because he knew.He wasn’t surprised when I mentioned my late husband’s service. Someone had already told him. ProbablyLoose-Lipped Linda. So he’s been keeping things from me. But why?

The door swings open, breaking my thoughts.

“Here you go.” Jill strides in and hands me a much-needed coffee. I take a sip, the warmth spreading through my frozen insides.

“Lifesaver,” I mutter.

“It’s what I do. All day, every day.”

“True that.”

“So.” She drags the word out as she holds her cup to her lips. “A surgeon, huh?”

“Yeah, who knew?”

“Well, that’s rather delicious.”

“The coffee?”

She levels me with a look. “No, the whole ‘mysterious, broody man with a hidden past’ thing. We were way off on the writer theory.”

I huff a laugh, but it lacks humor. “Definitely off. But I still don’t understand why he’s so invested in protecting me and the boys.”

“Maybe because he likes you?”

“Hmm.”

Jill gapes at me. “You seriously doubt that?”

At my half-shrug, she leans in conspiratorially. “The first day he walked into the café, I knew.”

“Knew what?”

“That the two of you were meant to be.”

I almost choke on my drink. “You’re crazy.”

“Girlfriend, please. That man looked at you like he wanted toownyou.”

I shoot her a look. “Own me? I’m property now?”

“No, I mean in the—” Her gaze shifts to Liam and then back to me. She mouths,Bedroom.

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