Page 7 of Healing Conviction
He’d become addicted to her lingering, wistful gaze, but that made whatever the hell she was doing with Matt all the more confusing. Something was holding Nora back, and he needed to figure out what that was before he went in. He didn’t want to ruin what he and Nora had—or what theycouldhave—by pursuing her before she was ready.
What if she’s never ready? What if failing that night was unforgivable?
An ache developed in the back of his throat at the whispered doubt in his mind. He wouldn’t blame her if that was the case. Nora always brushed off his questions whenever he asked her the details of what happened the night he’d been shot. His teammates had filled him in partly, and the facts they’d shared brought a pain in his chest that was much worse than his gunshot wound.
They’d told him that after he’d been shot, Nora was kidnapped by the same human traffickers who’d taken Jaybird’s sister. Thankfully, the BlackStone crew was able to rescue them both, along with other kidnapped women, but if they hadn’t gotten there in time, she could’ve been sold.
Or worse.
He didn’t want to think about the ‘or worse.’
“What if…” Melly’s voice was small, and out of his periphery, he could tell she was staring at the doorway again, too. “What if we don’t do anything, and they fall in love? What’ll we do if it’s too late?”
“Trust me. I won’t let that happen.”
The lilting hope in her question made him want to smile. “What’re you gonna do?”
What am I gonna do with you, Pix? How do I play this?
Peeling his eyes away from the door, he turned to his trainer, his lips finally lifting at the corner again. “I’m gonna give her the chance to figure it out for herself. Once she does that, I’ll do you and me a favor.”
“How’s that?” She leaned forward like he was about to tell her a secret, but once he had Nora, he’d shout it to the fucking rooftops.
“I’m making her mine.”
CHAPTERTHREE
“… babe, you listenin’?”
Shidoobie on a stick, I definitely was not.
The label on her water bottle was partially peeled off in her hands. For the life of her, Nora couldn’t remember what Matt had been saying.
“Um… yes. You were talking about your patient? And his”—at Matt’s slight frown, she switched—“herbreakthrough?”
The beginnings of concern transformed into a stunning wide grin, and her shoulders relaxed. She’d had to watch for subtleties in his expression when she’d chosen the wrong pronoun, but as always, his body language came through. She could read people like a book.
The guy didn’t have a flaw as far as she could figure. He never asked too many questions, as if he realized that as soon as he started pushing her, she’d flee. She even liked the surface level ‘situationship’ they had. It was easy because they avoided every challenge rather than tackled them. And the best part about Matt? There was absolutely zero possibility of catching feelings. Her heart was safe from harm.
Except with Drake.
The stupid, annoying little voice in her head, somehow full of both logic and dreams, was always rooting for that handsome stud. But it was never going to happen. Drake almostdiedbecause of her. There was no way he’d ever be able to forgive her for that. And two, the guy deserved a normal chick who could adore him. Not one who was dead inside.
“Babe, can I say something?”
“Uh, sure, go for it.”
Matt looked down, seemingly searching for the words in the remnants of his salad. “I feel like you’ve been distant since we left the PT room. Aren’t you happy Mr. Heklason gets to go home?”
She felt her cheeks warm at his observation. “Of course, I’m happy. It’s an effing miracle. I was surprised to hear it, that’s all.”
Matt’s warm-brown eyes watched her carefully. “You’ve never told me, but what is your relationship with him? I know you said you were friends and that you owe him your life. I’m grateful for that, don’t get me wrong. But I don’t know much more about y’all.”
Well, that was a doozy of a question. What could she say? That the first few minutes after meeting him over a video conference had captured her attention more than anything—oranyone—else ever had? That the only time they met in person had been at a strip club on a reconnaissance mission for Blackstone Securities? Where she’d wound up kidnapped? Or thatshe’sthe reason he’d almost died?
There was a lot to unpack, and unfortunately, most of it was confidential information, since it involved BlackStone’s mission to bring human traffickers to justice. But the sad fact was, she’d dreamed up more about Drake over the past year than she’d ever known about him for real. It was one of the reasons why she questioned her sanity every time her heart stalled to the point of near cardiac arrest whenever she saw him.
Probably should get that checked out now that I think about it.