Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 105868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
He stepped out, rounded the truck, and opened her door.
“What are you looking for?” she asked quietly.
“Everything. Anyone who doesn’t belong.” He trusted his instincts with predators. Human or otherwise. The air felt clean. No wrongness. Still, he stayed alert as they walked to the front door and she unlocked it.
Inside, he did a quick sweep without making a show of it, and then returned to the living room where she stood in the middle of it, almost as if she wasn’t sure what to do next. “Why don’t I make you something to eat?” he asked.
She looked around, eyes too wide, face pale under the overhead light. “I’m not hungry.”
He didn’t argue. He stepped forward and pulled her into him, one arm around her shoulders, the other firm at her back. “It’s all right, May.”
“I know,” she said, muffled against his chest.
He held her tighter. He could feel the tension still locked in her muscles, the way she was holding herself together by sheer will. She’d been strong all day for everyone else. “It really is okay,” he murmured, resting his chin against the top of her head.
May Smirnov was one of the strongest people he’d ever known, but she’d been carrying too much alone. That ended tonight.
He cradled the back of her head, his hand splayed through her thick hair, and felt it before he heard it. Her body went rigid, like something bracing against impact. Then it hit. A raw sob tore out of her, small but violent.
She broke.
Ace didn’t move. He just held her, firm and unyielding, taking the weight without a word.
Chapter Thirty
May jerked awake, surrounded by warmth and solid muscle. For a split second she didn’t know where she was, only that something heavy and steady held her in place. She blinked until the room came into focus and registered the hard planes of Ace’s chest bracketing her shoulders. She’d curled almost into a ball against him during the night, and one of his arms lay heavy across her waist, palm warm against her hip.
The house was dark and quiet. She turned her head toward the blackout blinds and then the clock glowing faint green across the room. Three a.m. Wonderful.
Careful not to wake him, she lifted his arm the best she could and scooted out from under it. The sheets were still warm from his body, and the air outside felt cooler against her skin.
“Where are you going?” he asked sleepily.
She froze and glanced back at him. “I need some water, and I might finish notating a couple of patient charts. I’m not ready to go back to sleep.”
He pushed himself up on one elbow. The blanket fell to his waist, and in the faint light that filtered around the edges of the blinds, he looked strong and dangerous. Entirely male. His hair was tousled and his jaw shadowed. “Do you need my help?”
“No. Get some sleep, Ace.” She gave him a small smile. “I’ll be back in probably an hour. I like to sleep from four to six. That’s my best dream time.”
His chuckle sounded both soft and drowsy. “Wait a minute.” He reached out and caught her wrist firmly enough to hold her there. Then he went still. Completely still.
Silence ticked around them.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“Just listening,” he said.
She held her breath and did the same. At first she heard nothing but the faint hum of the refrigerator down the hall and the soft rhythm of his breathing. Then she picked up the weather. A distant rush of wind blew through the trees, and rain tapped gently against the roof in an uneven pattern. Somewhere farther out, an animal moved through brush, the sound small and natural. She hadn’t even realized the weather had turned.
“All right. You’re good.” He released her wrist.
She pushed unruly hair out of her face. “What do you mean I’m good?”
“You’d hear it if someone was in the house.” He settled back against the pillow. “The atmosphere changes when another person’s in your space. Energy shifts. You know that, Doc. It’s just fact and nothing magical.” He rolled onto his side and, apparently satisfied, fell right back to sleep.
She stared at him for another moment. He took up more than his fair share of the bed. She had no idea how he managed to fall back into sleep so quickly. Meanwhile, she’d never in her life been able to roll over and drift off again. Her mind was already racing and trying to deal with reality.
She slipped from the bedroom, stopping at her dresser to pull on a pair of thick wool socks before easing the door shut behind her. The hallway was dim, lit only by the faint glow from the stove clock. The house felt different at night. The rain had picked up now, steady against the roof, carrying the clean scent of wet pine.