What she needed, they couldn’t give her. What she needed…walked through her front door. The rest of his buddies followed and started talking to the deputies that were checking for evidence inside her home.
Holden made a beeline straight for her. Emily’s pulse leapt and chest squeezed at the haunted look in his eyes.
“Hey, Emily, can I talk to you?” he asked.
“Sure,” Lyndsey replied for her, but didn’t move to make room.
Isla stayed by her other side, still holding the icepack.
That didn’t stop him. He sat down by her dogs at her feet.
“I’m so sorry, Emily,” he said, petting Queenie and Princeton, who both got up and shifted to him. “This was all my fault. Your car. You and your dog in danger. I’m so sorry.”
She drew her head back slightly. “This wasn’t your fault, it was Colby’s. Medication or not, she did this, not you. God,Holden, she shot you.” The horrible moment washed over her again, and she shuddered. “I thought I’d lost you without telling you I was sorry. I don’t agree with going behind my back to put in the extra security, but I understand your fear now.”
“I’m just so sorry. When I found your abandoned car…” He closed his eyes a moment and when they reopened, they were full of emotions that darkened his gaze. “And I realized you’d been abducted…I lost my mind. I care about you, Emily. So damn much.” He inhaled then blew out the breath. “I didn’t agree to put the extra security behind your back on your property to control you. I hope you know that. It was for selfish reasons, though. I needed to know you were safe 24/7. It wasn’t to spy on you. It was to be alerted to threats. That’s it, I swear.”
She held his gaze a moment then nodded, slowly this time so the movement wouldn’t hurt her head. “I have a few things I’d like to say to you, too. But I need to stand. My head is too cold here.”
A smile twitched his lips. He held out his hand and he brought them both to their feet. “That better?”
“Some,” she replied. “My last boyfriend was very controlling, Holden, so when I saw the app on your phone, it brought it all back.”
He squeezed her hand that he still held, and the sincerity in his gaze warmed her chest. “I’m sorry. I’m not like that. I’m not him.”
“I know.” She set her free hand on his arm, careful not to brush the bandage on his wound, aware that they were now the center of attention in the room. “That was so abundantly clear tonight.”
“It was?” He cocked his head and raised a brow.
She patted his arm and squeezed the hand she still held. “When you took a bullet for my dog.”
He blinked then glanced down at Princeton, who currently sat at their feet. The Chihuahua looked up at them and yawned.
“I’d never let anything happen to him.” Holden’s gaze returned to hers, and the remorse in his hazel depths gripped her tightly. “It was karma for Braddock, the dog that saved my life during an op in Syria this past January. He took a bullet for me and then I left active duty and him behind.
It was on the tip of Emily’s tongue to point out that the dog was a soldier doing what he was trained to do. And that it was no different than him taking a bullet for Mac or Dex or the others, but she got the impression it would fall on deaf ears. So, she brought their joined hands to her lips and lightly brushed her lips across the back of his hand, remaining quiet, sensing he wasn’t done.
“But if he makes it through to retirement, I’m going to get him back.” Apprehension and hope filled his gaze and her chest tightened again.
“I can’t wait to meet him,” she choked out.
He inhaled and warmth took over his expression. “I can’t wait for you to meet him, too.”
He dipped down to brush his lips to hers in a soft, sweet, featherlight kiss that stole her strength and what was left of her heart.
When he drew back, he set his forehead to hers. “Thank you for wanting to keep me in your life. I don’t deserve you, Emily.” Then he released her hand to cup her face, and the adoration, devotion, and love blazing in his eyes made her shudder. “You rescued my heart and showed me everyone deserves a second chance. You ground me, Emily. Bring balance to my life. You are my life.”
She blinked back a sudden wave of tears. “Thank you for respecting me, for seeing the real me and wanting me anyway. When I watched you get shot tonight, I pretty much died, so…”She paused to blink the tears back again but failed as one slid down her face. “You are my heart, Holden. My calm. My confidence. My reason. You are my reason to breathe.”
Epilogue
Two months had passed, and Holden couldn’t remember a time in his life when he was happier. He’d told Emily that she grounded him, and he meant it. They were in sync, lived, loved, and played on the same page. And soon, they would work that way too. Sort of.
Today had been his last day at ESI. He was leaving to manage the new Braddock Sanctuary that would officially open in a week.
Not long after the night he’d gotten shot in the kennels, Emily had asked him to move in with her, and he’d literally discovered paradise. She’d started taking in fosters, and he’d found a purpose again, one he thought he’d lost overseas.
“Speech!” Carter said to a bay full of friends and co-workers in the ESI garage.
