Page 149 of Nanny and the Beast

“I have access to your safety deposit box?” he asks.

“Yeah, you’re in the rental agreement.”

“See, I knew you loved me,” he says. “And consider it done.”

We’re both quiet for a moment. I honestly never thought that this day would come. I never thought that I would love someone like this.

“I can’t believe you’re going to propose,” Alaric says. “That’s huge.”

“I know,” I say.

It feels so right, but it’s also more than a little terrifying.

There are so many things going on right now. There are too many loose ends, and it only feels like my list of problems is getting longer by the second.

“Do you think I should wait?” I ask him. “There’s a lot going on right now.”

“When it comes to big life changes, it never feels like the right time,” he says. “As long as you know she’s the right person, you’re good.”

“She’s theonlyone,” I say.

I can’t even put into words the way she makes me feel. I tried to resist it for so long, but now that I’m letting myself feel it, it’s my only truth.

“There you go then,” Alaric says. “That’s your answer. When you know…you know.”

“I’m doing this.” A laugh escapes me. “I’m going to marry that girl. I’m going to make her my wife.”

“It’s a long time coming, man,” Alaric says. “It’s about time you had something in your life that made you truly happy.”

Happy.

It’s such a foreign emotion.

As I look at Emma and the kids playing on the ice rink, I see a saturated sunset even though it’s a cloudy day. I see brilliant colors even though the world is in shades of white and gray.

Something dark appears in my peripheral vision.

I don’t want to take my eyes off them, but my intuition tells me that there’s danger lurking in the background.

I glance at the opposite end of the ice rink.

There’s a man in a black overcoat and a red scarf. He’s staring at them, too.

A sharp knife. Malicious eyes. Broken glass.

I know that man.

“Alaric, I have to go.”

33

EMMA

The temperature in the car drops a few degrees as we make our way to Vera's residence.

Klaus hasn't said a word for the entire duration of the drive. I wouldn't think anything of it usually. He's a naturally broody, quiet man. But there's been a shift in his energy. His body language gives him away—the tense muscles, the hard jaw, his lost eyes.

He's anywhere but here.

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