“I’m here to see my wife.”
His glare intensified. Six weeks ago it would have been enough to make me back down, but that was before. Right now I had nothing to lose. If he wanted to kill me, fine. It was either that or he let me in, because I wasn’t leaving.
“Look, I know I screwed up, and I’ll take whatever punishment you come up with, but I’m not leaving until I see her and apologize.”
“And if I say no?”
“Then I guess I’ll stay here until you change your mind or she comes out.”
“I should kill you for hurting her.”
“Go ahead. I’m pretty sure I gave you my permission last time I was here. But let me apologize to Danielle first. She deserves that.”
For at least a minute he just stared at me, his expressionunchanging. I wasn’t sure if he was waiting for my resolve to crack or if he was thinking about my offer. Either way, I wasn’t going anywhere.
We might have stayed like that all afternoon if Nova hadn’t come to the doorway, wrapping her arm around one of Nathaniel’s legs.
“Hi, Uncle Hayden,” she said with a shy smile.
Something in my chest cracked at the title. It was amazing the havoc the easy acceptance of a three-year-old could do to my heart.
“Hi.” I returned her smile.
“Nova, go back inside,” Nate said, not taking his eyes off me.
She pushed out her lower lip in a pout. “But I don’t want to.”
“We’ll be in in a moment, sweetheart. I just need to talk to Uncle Hayden alone for another minute.” He made a face when he saiduncle, like the word tasted bad, but he hadn’t tried to argue that I wasn’t her uncle. I was choosing to see that as a good sign. Along with that fact that he’d saidwewould be inside soon.
Once Nova disappeared back into the house, Nathaniel stepped fully outside, shutting the front door behind him. He moved so fast I didn’t have time to brace myself before his fist drove into my gut.
I doubled over, my breath coming out in a painful wheeze. God, that hurt like a bitch.
I lifted my head to look up at him, but I couldn’t stand up straight. “I deserved that.”
“You deserve more.”
“Fair enough.” I closed my eyes and waited for the next hit.
It didn’t come.
“Come on,” Nathaniel said, grabbing my shoulder and pulling me upright. “She’s waited far too long already for you to get your sorry ass here. If she doesn’t like what you have to say, I’ll finish this.”
Nerves suddenly took up residence in my stomach, making it feel like there were a hundred butterflies—or more like bees—flying around in there. A part of me couldn’t wait to see her, and the other part was terrified of what I would find.
But there was no way I was turning back now. I wasn’t leaving this house without my wife.
Nathaniel waved me inside, where I once again greeted Nova and then Sierra, who gave me a glare that was possibly more terrifying than her husband’s.
“I know,” I said. “I screwed up. I’m here to try to fix it.”
“You better.”
“If Danielle doesn’t forgive me, you can get in the very long line of people who want to torture me.”
She shook her head with a slight smile. “She has a lot of friends and family who would do anything for her. Remember that, Hayden. She doesn’t need you. She wants you.”
I swallowed around the lump that appeared in the back of my throat. It was exactly what I needed to hear, and I was finally ready to listen. I’d been so focused on not being enough for Danielle. I couldn’t protect her against demons or other supernatural threats. But shedidn’t need me to. My job as her husband wasn’t to fight her enemies—it was to love her.
