Page 198 of Sage Haven
He was here to save her. My girl.
He nodded once, the closest thing to an embrace we’d ever shared.
I returned it. He understood. That was enough.
"Haven’t seen the old Camaro in a while," I said, forcing something like normalcy out of my throat. It tasted wrong. “She looks good.”
Nael smirked. "Thanks. Might actually be done now.”
I shook my head. “Every car guy says that.”
He huffed a quiet laugh. “And they’re all liars.”
A voice came from inside the car, “Talkin about this old car again, Nael?”
The passenger door slammed and Keenan stalked toward us, zero hesitation, fire in his eyes. He was a hurricane wearing skin and when he hit me with a crushing hug, I let it happen.
“Still breathing, Reich,” he muttered against my shoulder.
It was both a statement and a question.
I nodded, teeth grinding together, “Barely.”
Castor was already at my side, arms crossed. His eyes flicked between them. He didn’t speak. He didn’t need to.
Nael smirked. “Some people actually care about my car, Keenan.”
He grinned wide. “Bro, I care. I’m just saying… you talk about her like she’s your girlfriend.”
Nael didn’t blink. "Lyla’s never hurt me."
Something in my gut twisted.
“Lyla?” I echoed.
Keenan barked a laugh. “The car, dumbass.”
But Nael didn’t smile. Not really.
I cut through the air between us with one question, “How’s Blythe?”
Keenan stilled and his jaw ticked, as I watched the light dim in his eyes.
“We’re going to get her,” Nael said, smooth and sure.
But there was doubt in the spaces between his words. There always was when you said something enough times you stopped believing it.
Blythe had been taken because Keenan had gotten too close.
Because he’d loved her too much.
The ENA didn’t like love.
Not when it complicated the chain of command.
Not when it made you loyal to someone more than them.
They called it a breach.
