Page 17

GIDEON

F uck me. My hand rubs at the ache in my sternum as I force myself to shut the bathroom door. I normally consider myself immune to the plight of others, but seeing that woman’s eyes swell with tears made me feel a particular sense of desperation I’m not sure I’ve ever known.

A desperation to pull her against my chest and soothe her, to fix all her problems and tell her everything’s gonna be ok.

Logic and self-preservation, however, won the battle against my hero-complex, thank the lord.

I had to force my mind to dredge up every reason not to comfort her. As soon as memories of Seraphine rushed in, I couldn’t close that bathroom door fast enough.

It took a long time for me to heal and become self-aware enough to recognize that my worth didn’t hinge solely upon what I could do or give someone to the point of detrimental self-sacrifice.

While the violent chaos that was my childhood, adolescence, and most of my adulthood until I retired from the military forced me to mature beyond my years, I was naive when it came to women.

So in spite of Seraphine’s numerous red flags, I’d welcomed her into my life with open arms. Made her problems, my problems. I’ve always had a protective nature, especially when it comes to women, after witnessing how my stepdad treated my mother—until I was old enough and big enough to do something about it.

The remains of my step-father, Ret’s, body weren’t discovered until weeks after I’d killed him.

Harlan had been the one to question me. He’d also been the one to clear my name of any suspicion regardless of the fact that I had all the probable cause.

It didn’t hurt that Ret already had a criminal record as long as I am tall.

Shoving the past back into the shallow grave I’d long ago buried it in, I pull out a t-shirt, boxer briefs, and sweatpants for Winnow to change into after her shower. My dick completely ignores the voice of logic and hardens at the idea of Winnow’s bare skin touching my clothes.