Page 99 of Guarded from Havoc

Guilt shadows his features. “You were soscared.”

“I was. But I was more scared for you.”

“Ah, Tate. I’m sorry.”

“I had a little panic attack,” I add, forcing a tiny smile. “It’ll happen sometimes. But I knew he was no match for you. No matter who he was.”

Erik stares at me. Swallows hard. Then he hugs me again and buries his face in my hair. “I couldn’t bear it,” he whispers. “If anything happened to you. I love you too much.”

When he raises his head, his eyes are wet with unshed tears.

My heart squeezes.

“I’m okay,” I assure him. “Because of you.”

And then fiercely, “Don’t you dare let anything happen to you, either. Because I love you too much, too.”

CHAPTER 19

ERIK

It feelslike we’ve come full circle.

Nearly three months ago I met Tate for the very first time; out in the woods between our cabins. And I haven’t forgotten a moment of that first meeting.

I still remember how her hair looked as the rising sun hit it, glowing gold and platinum and amber. I still remember her smile, and how her face lit up with it. I still remember the little zing as she shook my hand.

Even then, I knew she was someone special. Someone I wanted to know better.

Would I have pursued her if everythingafternever happened?

I don’t know. I’d like to think so.

I’d like to think—in an alternate universe where those four men never broke into my cabin—that Tate and I would have shared those sandwiches together. We would have talked for hours until she reluctantly went back home, and I would have insisted on escorting her. Walking her to her door. Maybe even kissing her goodnight.

But it’s like all my friends say. Everything happens for a reason.

Do I wish I could go back and make sure Tate was never hurt? Never traumatized by her abduction? Do I wish I could take the nightmares away from her and the PTSD she’ll probably never be completely free of?

Yes. A thousand times, yes.

I’d doanythingto keep Tate from being hurt.

But she’s safe now. Healthy. Happy.

Somehow, it all worked out.

As Sarah loves to say, it’s serendipity. Something unexpectedly perfect. A treasure at the end of the storm.

That’s Tate. My treasure. My perfect gift.

And now we’re back. Not in Tupper Lake, but close to it—just fourteen miles up the road in Saranac Lake.

We’re not in a rental cabin this time, but one of the nicest resorts in the Adirondacks. Situated on Whitney Point, a peninsula extending into Saranac Lake, The Point is the perfect spot for a luxury vacation. With stunning views, gorgeous rooms, and amazing food, it’s everything I wanted for Tate.

She deserves to be treated like the princess I thought she looked like on that first day.

When we discussed taking a trip back to the Adirondacks, it was initially just to pack up her things. Just a quick in and out, taking a direct charter flight so we could be back in Texas as soon as possible. But Tatum wanted more. She wanted to stay. Make a vacation out of it.

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