Page 54 of Catching His Runaway

His lips curl into a frown as he squints at me. “I let my guard down, and you could have been killed because of it. I’m sorry.”

Like he’s speaking a different language, I try to register his apology. I don’t think he’s ever apologized to me in his life.

“I should have upped the security, but didn’t because I didn’t take the threat seriously enough. Thankfully, there was only one pest that made his way in here, but that’s one too many. I won’t let it happen again.” The words leave him, and he glares at my cheek.

What feels like seconds pass by before the tension in my chest snaps into two and I let out a much needed laugh. “You are terrible at this. I take it you don’t fuck up much, do you?”

A sigh rolls out of him. “Hardly ever.”

Despite giving his apology, he doesn’t move away to take his seat again. His brows furrow even lower.

“I’m okay,” I finally tell him. “They came before anything could happen. Just a few marks that’ll go away on their own. You might not know it, but I’m tough in my own way.”

He releases my shoulder as something foreign passes his eyes. Is that… relief?

“Good to hear it.”

Giving me a stiff nod, he finally turns and leaves me alone for all of two seconds before I feel a presence close behind me. I don’t need to look to see who it is.

“You missed Lazaro. He gives his regards,” Urzo calls to Santino as he moves to settle at the table with Eliza.

When Santino sighs and asks about our missing brother, Tommy grazes the middle of my back with his hand. The little stroking motion of his fingers makes me feel too relaxed, and I lose a little focus.

“I need to get clothes that fit,” he murmurs against my ear. “Will you be alright by yourself for a few minutes?”

In truth, I don’t want to be here at all. I’m exhausted from all the events that have taken place. I tell him that, too, closing my eyes momentarily. When I open them, he’s looking down at me with a softness behind his gaze.

“We’re going to go unwind,” Tommy calls out, his eyes never leaving mine. He doesn’t mind leaving the chat that needs to happen with the family.

Santino sighs at his dismissal. “Find me in the morning. We need to talk.”

He nods in agreement before using his hand to guide me out of the room before someone else wants to gush about my survival.

When we make it back to his room, I’m surprised to see the state it’s in. More messy than not, it’s like a tornado has made its way through his room.

“I searched thoroughly for you,” he explains behind me as I step further inside to start picking up the mess. However, once I see the spilled contents in front of the closet, I pause.

A bunch of my belongings, things I cherished when I was a teenager, sit at my feet. Kneeling, I grab a picture of my father with me on his shoulders when I was a toddler, and squint. “I thought you got rid of all my stuff?”

“At the time, I couldn’t admit that I kept some,” he explains as he undresses. “Didn’t need you knowing that I’d hoped you’d return one day.”

At the time, what seems so long ago at this point, he didn’t want me to know a piece of him still cared. Now that little piece has grown into a bigger chunk.

Unable to contain my smile, I pack everything carefully back into the box. I’ll take my time going through it all another time when sleep isn’t weighing heavily against my eyelids. Even my muscles are extra heavy from exhaustion.

Once the mess is cleaned up, I’m crawling into bed, and it’s a wonder how I don’t pass out as soon as my head hits the pillow.

When Tommy joins me, I expect him to finish what he started in the shower. Instead, the moment the light is out, he’s pulling me to his chest and breathing me in. He’s a wall of heat I can’t help but want to wiggle closer to.

Even after returning here, he’s so tense. Stroking my fingers along his spine only helps so much.

“Tomorrow will be a better day,” I promise him softly.

As he grunts, I close my eyes and hardly get the chance to count the seconds we’re together before I’m falling under.

18

Tommy

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