Page 113 of The Savior

Chelsea was terrified to hear more.

“My dad had fallen into a bad spot with some loan sharks.” He cleared his throat. “They shot up our house.”

Nausea hit her like a tidal wave. Little Liam… “Oh God.”

“They were sending him a message.” He toed the pine needles until a layer of dark dirt surfaced. “And he heard them, loud and clear. But my mom was collateral damage.”

Tears streamed down Chelsea’s cheeks. She wrapped her arms around him and prayed to ease his suffering. “I’m so sorry.”

He unwound himself, and his pained expression had dulled to emotionless. “Happened a long time ago.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“True enough,” he finally admitted.

His mother and Julia. No wonder he’d embraced their reality quickly. If someone meant something, Liam understood to hold on that second. No one knew how life would change.

He pulled her close and laid his lips on top of her head. It wasn’t so much a kiss as him holding her in place.

In the last few weeks, she’d learned more from him than she had anyone—even her partner, Mac—in her life. But it wasn’t until then that she realized Liam had taught her the most important of life lessons. Each person was a second away from a different life. Shying away from the seconds was the same as shooting away the future.

Chelsea pushed onto her toes and pressed her lips to his cheek. An urge to share how much he meant was nearly crushing.

His impassive walls faltered. “What was that for?”

“Because I don’t know how to pay you back for all that you give to me.”

---