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“You trust him not to hurt you?”
She grasped her necklace. It was a gold locket that looked old.
When she didn’t say anything more, he decided to press a bit further.
“Liam has a bad reputation, but then so do Regent and Victor. That doesn’t mean any of them would ever hurt a woman.”
She sucked in a breath. “No, I know.”
“Then why do you look so frightened when you’re near him? Has he said something, done something to upset you? I mean, it is Liam. I love him, but the guy has some real social issues. He says what he thinks.”
“Sometimes honesty is a good thing,” she murmured.
“And sometimes it’s just rude.”
She gave him a tiny smile. Better than nothing, he supposed.
“I don’t know why I feel nervous around him.”
“What about me? Do I make you nervous?”
“A little bit,” she confessed. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. But you’re safe with me, pretty girl. With Liam and me. We’d kill anyone who tried to hurt you.”
She sucked in a breath, looking shocked.
Too far, idiot.
Before he could say anything, there was a scream from the wooded area. Fuck, he’d forgotten about the kids.
Only there was something different about this scream. It sounded like the person was in pain. Afraid. Jumping up, he moved to the door then paused, looking to Lottie.
“Stay here. Don’t move.”
Lottie stood at the doorway. She stared out at the trees. Peter, one of the guards, had rushed over there, behind Nico.
Who screamed? Ace? Keir? Had someone gotten them?
Even now, they could be hurting them. And here she was, fighting demons that didn’t exist.
Move, Lottie. Be stronger than this.
She managed one step. Then another. She felt like she was trudging through mud. But she was doing it. There was no one here. No one to hurt her. She was safe. She moved toward the trees as Nico burst out with Ace in his arms. He was crying. Keir walked beside Peter, talking animatedly.
Relief slumped through her. They were okay, but was Ace crying.
“What happened?”
Nico gave her a surprised look then his gaze narrowed as he studied her sternly. “I said to stay inside.”
She was taken aback by the scolding. Nico was always so gentle when he spoke to her. This was another side of him. One she hadn’t realized existed.
“I’ll go get the car,” Peter said.
“What’s going on?” she asked as Nico walked inside with Ace, setting him down on the sofa. The boy was sobbing, holding his arm.
“Ace fell from the high tree,” Keir said. “I told him not to climb it. But he wasn’t listening. And then he slipped and fell.”
