Page 55 of The Devoted Husband

“We’re fine. My blood pressure was up, and my stomach was killing me, but we’re fine.”

A sigh of relief escaped him as he pulled her into his arms.

“What happened?”

Sniffling, Sade buried her face deeper into his chest. “I killed her.”

“Who?” Dante tilted her face with her chin.

“Trina’s sister. She came at me with a bat. I warned them if they came in that I would shoot. She didn’t believe me.”

“Mr. Williams?” Dante turned at the sound of his name being called. “I’m Detective Tate.”

With one arm still wrapped around Sade, Dante shook his hand.

“We’re advising the two of you to vacate the property. I’ll have Officer Murphy escort you wherever you want to go to ensure no one follows you. That post has gone viral, and people have been riding by nonstop since we arrived. Do you know where you can go until this dies down?”

Dante looked at Sade, and he could tell by her distant stare that she was starting to disassociate.

“Yeah, uh, I’m going to take her to our beach house in San Diego.”

“Okay, good. Just as a precaution, the bedroom is an active crime scene. I’m sure you’ll need to pack some things, but be mindful of what you’ll see. Murphy will lead you back inside when you’re ready.”

Dante nodded, cupping Sade’s cheek. His touch caused her to breathe again as she looked into his eyes.

“I’m going to pack us a couple of bags before we head to the airport.”

“I had already started,” she told him, her eyes shifting again.

“Hey,” he called softly. She blinked her eyes but remained distant. “Smiley.” Dante lowered his hand to her stomach, rubbing it until she looked at him.

“Hmm?”

“Are you okay? Seriously.”

She nodded her head as she gritted her teeth. “I’m just tired, Dante.”

As much as he wanted to hold her, Dante gave her a quick kiss and headed inside with Murphy. The sooner he got their bags packed, the sooner they could leave. And at that point, Dante was sure getting as far away from the house as possible was the only thing that would help Sade.

Two Days Later

The light had begun to return to Sade’s eyes.

Like Dante knew it would be, the beach house was her favorite of the three homes he’d purchased for them.

She sat out on the beach all yesterday—coming inside only to use the bathroom.

She ate out there, talked to herself and God, and stayed well after the sun had gone down.

The next morning, they started their day walking a couple of miles along the beach after breakfast. Now, they were at the farmers’ market, where Sade got her fill of fruit, flowers, and dainty jewelry.

Her thumb stroked his hand as she sipped her tea. “This is perfect, Tay. The beach, this market, the normality of no one knowing us here. This is exactly what I needed.”

“We can stay for as long as you want to, baby.”

“Maybe until my next appointment. That’s the only thing I care about.”

“That works. I can do a grocery order and have it delivered to make sure we’ll have everything we need.” She gave him that beautiful smile he’d fallen in love with when they were kids. “There’s that smile. I missed that.”

Sade licked her lips and laughed softly. “You know I’m always smiling and happy when I’m with you.”

“Nah, shit’s been rough, Sade. I can’t romanticize the fact that us being together has been.

..” He shook his head. “A magnet for drama. Sometimes, I wonder if Grandma Ava was right. And I know I’ve said that to you before, but I feel like I’m failing you.

I feel like I can’t protect you from this. I’m sorry, Smiley.”

Sade sucked her teeth before smiling and wrapping her arms around him.

“If anyone should apologize, it’s me. I’m the one who lied when you had amnesia.

I did what I did to them. This is the snowball effect of my actions.

So, if this is your way of preparing to say I’m better off without you, save it.

There’s no doubt your life would be a hell of a lot more peaceful if I hadn’t.

..You know. So, if you want to end things to return to a normal state, I’ll accept that, but I love you, and I don’t blame you for any of this.

If it’s up to me, you’re not getting rid of me. ”

Pulling her closer, Dante lowered his lips to hers. As long as she was willing, he’d put forth the effort. But if at any point it seemed she would be better off without being attached to him, Dante would end things...no matter how hard that would be.

A Few Days Later

“Where is my sister?” Imani asked.

Dante crossed his arms over his chest, wondering if he wanted to bring Sade the phone.

They had spent the afternoon in Balboa Park, and she was so inspired they went to CVS and grabbed several sketchbooks for her to fill.

Now, she was on the beach drawing until it was time for them to leave for the dinner cruise.

Dante looked at the phone on the table as if he could see Imani. “Why?”

Imani sucked her teeth. “I’ve been calling y’all for days since Grandma told me what happened. I want to make sure she’s okay.” Dante was so caught off guard by her statement he couldn’t respond. “Hello?”

“Y-yeah, I’m here.” Clearing his throat, he chuckled. “Since when do you care about anyone other than yourself?”

Imani huffed. “Where is my sister, Dante?”

“She’s on the beach drawing.”

“Why hasn’t she been answering my calls?”

“Our phones have been in airplane mode. I check mine once a day to make sure our families are good. Other than that, I’m keeping her as stress free as possible. Which means...no phones.”

“That’s good, I suppose. But I want to talk to her myself, so I’ll know she’s okay. It won’t take long, I promise.”

“A’ight, but . . . What’s gotten into you?”

Dante took the call off speaker and put the phone to his ear as he headed off the patio toward the beach.

“Things are changing between us. I don’t know. She’s...tolerable to me now.”

Dante chuckled. “That sounds more like you, but it also sounds like a compliment. Regardless, I’m glad y’all are getting along better.”

“Mhm. We don’t have to talk while you take her the phone. I like her better. Not you.”

Imani’s playful tone couldn’t be ignored as he released a howl of laughter. “Yes, ma’am. Trust me, I don’t like you either.”

She snickered, and it felt like they’d made good progress for some reason. Progress toward what, Dante wasn’t sure. But progress, nonetheless.

“Smiley,” Dante called as he neared her.

She looked back, and he was temporarily speechless between her glow and the sun highlighting her gorgeous smile.

“Your sister wants to talk to you. Are you up for that?”

“Ooh, gimme!” Her hand extended for the phone as she wiggled on her beach towel.

“What the holy hell is going on?” Dante said to himself, but both sisters heard and laughed.

“Hi, sissy,” Sade almost cooed into the phone. “I’m fine. I am, I promise.”

At the sound of her laughter, Dante took backward steps to return to the patio. He wasn’t sure when the shift had happened between them, but he meant it when he said he was grateful for it.