Page 24 of Guarded from Treachery

In the moments it takes for Hawk to open the door, I stop breathing.

And then.

Matt steps inside.

Rumpled. His hair in disarray. Jaw tight. Worry lines etched across his face.

His dark eyes seek out mine, and as soon as our gazes meet, his shoulders sag with relief. “Isla. You’re okay.”

Emotion clogs my throat and all I can do is nod.

Matt turns to Hawk and gives him this hug slash shoulder clap as he says, “Thanks for coming, man. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”

Hawk lifts his chin. “Of course. Any time.” He flashes a quick smile in my direction. “I’m glad to help.”

“I know it’s late,” Matt says, “but would you mind staying until I can get some extra security installed? I want to put some exterior cameras up and I’d rather not leave Isla alone in the apartment to do it.”

“No problem,” Hawk replies. “I’ll stay as long as you need me.”

Matt gives Hawk a quick chin lift. “Thanks.”

As he heads across the living room towards me, I’m struck with the most irrational desire to leap up from the couch and fling myself into his arms. Which would be wildly inappropriate given that he’s only here to protect me. So I force myself to stay seated, even though my body is aching to be close to him.

“Isla.” Matt lowers himself down beside me, close enough that I catch a whiff of the citrusy shampoo I noticed earlier tonight and a hint of sweet mint on his breath. Faint bluish smudges shadow his eyes, the sight sending guilt spearing through my chest.

“I’m sorry,” I blurt. “It’s so late. You shouldn’t have… I mean, I’m glad you did. But it’s such a long drive. And you don’t even know if your company is taking my case…”

“Hey.” His expression softens. His voice gentles. “Donotapologize. I offered to come. You didn’t ask. And I want to be here. Okay?”

“Okay,” I whisper. The tears I’ve been trying to hold back well up in my eyes. I hate feeling weak like this, swallowing back tears, but I’ve just about hit my limit.

Matt stares at me for a second, indecision warring in his gaze. Then he says, “I don’t want to make this weird. But you look like you could use a hug. Am I wrong?”

Oh. Those stupid tears.

Without thinking, I nod at him, too overwhelmed to reply.

He frowns. “Shit. I’m sorry. Forget I asked. I don’t know what?—”

Crap.

“I mean,” I manage through a thickening throat, “Yes, I could. Not that you’re wrong.”

His gaze sweeps across my face, carefully assessing. Then he very gently gathers me into his arms, hugging me to his chest. His breath feathers across my hair as he replies quietly, “Good. Because I’ll be honest, I could use one, too.”

My arms snake around his waist, his warmth seeping into my chilled body. I let my eyes close as I rest my cheek on his shoulder. “Thank you,” I murmur. “I keep saying that.”

One hand rubs a slow circle on my back. “You don’t have to thank me. I told you, I want to be here.” He pauses. “And the other part. About taking your case. I talked to Dante and Erik about it as soon as they got back. And on the way here, we had a quick conference call with the rest of the team. Everyone’s in agreement.”

A breathless hope blossoms inside me. “And?”

Matt releases me, leaning back so he can look at me as he says, “We’re going to help you, Isla. We’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you’re safe. And we won’t stop until we figure this out. Alright?”

Oh.

Thank God.

“Yes.” And the tears finally burst free.

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