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Declan lets out a sigh. “We’re going to go to Evan’s house, where he’s going to be staying with Teigan. Our friends and family will be there, and we can talk about what happens next then. For now, why don’t you rest? We have about a twenty minute drive.”
Esme looks like she wants to argue, but instead she shrugs her shoulders and agrees. I can tell by the fierce look in her eyes that this little girl is definitely not going to let go of Declan without a fight. He’s made an impression on her, and given all the people that have let her down in her life, I really hope he’s not going to be another one.
I try to focus on Esme as she curls up into a ball beside me, resting her head on my arm. I wrap my arm around her, as I try to stop my mind from wandering.
‘Evan’s house, where he’s going to be staying with Teigan’… Those words keep repeating in my head. I didn’t know Evan even had a house in England. I thought he lived in the Doughty estate in Ireland. Will I be staying with him? Just the two of us? And if so, how long for?
All these questions whirl around my head until I can feel the start of a headache clouding the edges of my brain. I have more questions than answers, and I fucking hate that.
I want to voice everything, to ask him the things I’m dying to get answers to, but I know now is not the time. I keep quiet—for now—biding my time. Pretty soon, Evan is going to give me the answers I seek, whether he likes it or not.
It’s not long before we arrive at Evan’s house. To say that it isn’t what I was expecting would be a massive understatement. It’s in the middle of nowhere, the only light around is coming from the house itself and the moon above.
If it weren’t the middle of the night, all you’d be able to see would be trees and green. I’m actually looking forward to seeing it under the light of the sun, as I bet it looks even more beautiful.
There’s a small gravelly track—that Declan called a road—leading through the fields that takes us all the way to a stunning cottage. It’s like something out of a children’s book about living on a farm, surrounded by nature and beauty.
The building looks old, but not at all rundown. In fact, quite the opposite. It looks perfectly maintained, like someone has put their heart and soul into making sure this building looks the way it would back when it was built.
Fresh ivy grows wildly over the front of the house, and the other flowers appear to be in various stages of blooming, making the house look so bright. It’s the authentic thatched roof that catches my attention, and I can feel my mouth dropping open.
I can’t help cast a glance over at Evan, who is looking at me, head tilted, with a strange appraising expression. I don’t know why he’s looking at me like that, but I know why I’m staring at him like he’s just grown a third leg.
I may not know this Evan, but I like to think that when I did, I knew him better than anyone. And no version of the boy I knew would have ever bought a house that looked like this.
In my mind, I was expecting this modern apartment, so clean and tidy it looks almost like a show flat. In fact, I wouldn’t have put it past Evan to actually purchase a show flat, just so he didn’t have to try and decorate it or furnish it in any way. I had him down as having a very typical bachelor pad…not this.
Then a very worrying thought hits me.What if he’s not a bachelor? What if he’s seeing someone?
I quickly look over at him, and notice his gaze is fixed ahead on the house, so as discreetly as I can, I try to catch a glimpse of his hand.
He’s not wearing a wedding ring,I shout loudly in my head, doing a very strange internal whoop as I breathe a sigh of relief.
That doesn’t mean he’s not married, stupid. He’s just not wearing a ring.
Okay, so I don’t particularly like the negative side of my brain when she chirps up, but she has a point. The thing I’m a little more concerned about is why I care about whether he’s married or not.
I’m supposed to hate him. I mean, I’m obviously grateful that he just spent an ungodly amount of money helping me get free from The Sheriff, but that still doesn’t change everything that happened between us.
Yet, I can’t deny the way my stomach flipped with relief when I thought he might not be married.
I’m way too tired to deal with this many emotions today, so I push them away as the car comes to a stop in front of the beautiful cottage. Both Evan and Declan turn to look into the backseat. Esme is curled up beside me, her head resting on my chest as I wrap my arm around her protectively. She’s snoring softly, and has been since Declan told her to rest.
“Best to try not to wake her, if we can. It’s been a long day. I will come and carry her,” Declan says, as he climbs out of the car.
He opens the passenger door and leans in to scoop Esme into his arms. Even though we know she’s eight, she looks so much smaller than that. It’s clear she’s not been cared for properly for a very long time, and she’s much thinner than a girl her age should be.
As soon as she feels Declan lift her into his arms, her eyes flutter open slightly and she looks a little panicked. “Shush. It’s only me. I’m just carrying you inside. Go back to sleep,” he says softly, reassuring her.
“Don’t leave me,” she whispers as her eyelids flutter closed again, and my heart aches for the sweet little girl.
“I think you have a fan,” I say with a smirk, as he carries Esme out of the car. I don’t bother opening my own door, I just shuffle out behind her the same way I got in.
Evan is there waiting, his hand reaching towards me to help me out of the car. I look at it, probably for a fraction of a second too long, and he starts to withdraw. Quickly, without thinking about it too much, I reach out and grab hold of him.
His hands are much larger than mine, his skin more calloused than I’d expect from someone who doesn’t do much manual labour. But then I notice the odd cuts and scars across his hands and knuckles, and my stomach twists. He may not work with his hands…but he clearly fights with them.
Those thoughts don’t last for long, as all my body and brain can focus on is the way my hand feels in his. I’m always cold, more so since I’ve been stuck in that cell at The Sheriff’s, but there’s a warmth radiating from Evan that seems to heat me up from the inside. The tingles start in my fingers and radiate through my body in a way I’ve never felt before.
