Page 114 of Second Chance Savior

That didn’t surprise me at all. I didn’t enjoy being in the spotlight, and I hated bringing notice to my friends or Last Refuge. But maybe it was inevitable.

There was still a risk that they’d come after Charlie again. Stillwater had to be wondering if we’d gotten a copy of Jud’s list. All I knew was that the story hadn’t broken yet about their bribery of public officials.Thatwould be big news.

“Any signs of Stillwater operatives in Hartley?” I asked.

“Not as far as I can tell. Charlotte has been up at Last Refuge. Jessi and Aiden canceled all their reservations for the time being and offered refunds or set up their guests at other hotels. I’ve stepped up patrols. We’re not letting anybody near the lieutenant governor unless they’re vetted.”

“Good. But youdohave the list of Stillwater’s people in the government. Right? We know who to be watching for?”

He grimaced. “Sort of. But there’s a snag with Jud Hale’s hard drive.”

“Asnag?”

“Nothing major. A delay. I’m taking you straight to Last Refuge. The Protectors are meeting this afternoon to discuss the latest. You’ll have a couple hours to get settled before then.”

“Sounds good.” Hopefully that would include some alone time with Charlie.

“You’ve had a wild few days. But if I’d taken bets on which of us would land in federal custody, you had the best odds.”

I grinned. “You missed me, didn’t you?”

“You know, I kinda did. Without you, it’s just Aiden and Trace. And they’re all dourness and grunts. You lighten the mood.”

“Why thank you, Sheriff. I’ll be coming by your office a lot more, since you can’t get enough of me.”

“And you already have me regretting my words.”

“Two seconds flat. That could be a record.”

Owen chuckled as he steered us down the highway. “Charlotte has been spending all her time with Jessi, Scarlett, and Gen. Also my deputy Keira Marsh. They’ve been taking good care of her. Not like there was any doubt, but I’ve been checking in on her too.”

Hell. Suddenly my eyes and nose stung with tears. “Thank you,” I said sincerely.

Owen glanced at me sidelong. “Is Charlotte the one you told me about before? The woman you loved who got away?”

“Yep. Still love her. I can’t help myself.”

He nodded. “Then I see why you dropped everything to run off and save her.”

I looked down at my hands. “I’d do it all again.”

“Of course you would,” he said. “Gen was right. Youarea secret romantic.”

“For Charlie, yeah. I guess I am. We all are, for the right person.”

“This is true.”

By the time we pulled into Last Refuge, I could barely sit still. I was driving Owen nuts with all my tapping on the dashboard and bouncing of my knees.

Before the truck stopped, the door to the main building opened, and Charlie dashed out. As if she’d been waiting for us to arrive.

I yanked off my seatbelt, pushed open the door just as Owen was stopping, and met her in the middle of the parking lot.

“Hey, sweetheart.” My smile was a mile wide. “I’m home.”

Charlie jumped into my arms, clinging to my neck and kissing my face. I held onto her hips and spun her around. Nowthiswas a welcome. It was like I’d just come home after an eight-month deployment, not two days of separation. But every time we’d said goodbye in our past, it had taken years to cross paths again. So from that perspective, this was a hell of a lot of progress.

“I wanted to go with Owen to pick you up, but the jerk said no.”

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