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“I woke up a bit ago. I was out on the balcony, and I heard you. You’d left your door unlocked, so I thought I ought to wake you up.”
“Thank you.” Remembering that she’d said she wanted to be alone, I reluctantly let her go. “I promised I’d give you space.”
She pulled back far enough to look at me. “Do you want space?”
“Hell no. I want you right here.” Where I could feel her, safe and whole.
“Okay, then.” She gently pushed me back into the pillows and stretched out beside me, snuggling close.
The knots in my chest loosened. I wasn’t sure if this meant she was done taking her distance, or if she was staying for my sake until I settled. Grateful for her presence either way, I brushed a kiss to her temple. “Were you able to sleep?”
“Some. You’re not the only one who’s having nightmares. I expect that’ll last for a while.”
“Probably. But we’re gonna be okay. We’re going to get to the bottom of all this.” I tightened my hold on her. “None of this was your fault.”
Her sigh tickled the side of my throat. “It feels like my fault.”
“The only person at fault for any of these fires is whoever struck the match. You’re not responsible for any of their behavior or motivations. That’s akin to victim blaming.”
“Fair point.” She lapsed into a weighty silence, and I wondered if I needed to press any harder.
When she spoke again, her voice was barely above a whisper. “I was all set to leave the island.”
Every muscle in my body tensed. “What?”
“That’s what I was lying in bed thinking about. How if I left, maybe all of this would stop, and innocent people would stop getting hurt.”
It took me a few moments to recognize that the frantic gallop of my heart was panic. “You don’t know that.”
“No, I don’t. And it occurred to me that if that happened, if it were true, that I’d be giving whoever this is exactly what they want. I’m not in the habit of giving in to bullies. But that wasn’t what changed my mind.”
She’d changed her mind. Did that mean she was staying? “What did?”
She propped herself up so she could look down into my face. Her fingers stroked feather soft along my cheek, the pads of her fingers catching against my stubble. “I’m selfish.”
“You’re one of the least selfish people I’ve ever met.”
Caroline huffed a humorless laugh and shook her head. “It turns out I can’t walk away from you.”
For a few moments, all I could feel was the tangle of relief and nerves and hope in my gut. “Why?”
Those big dark eyes stayed steady on mine. “Because I’m in love with you.”
I didn’t move, lest I find out I was dreaming again.
Her smile was rueful. “I think I was always a little bit in love with you. Or at least the idea of you.” That pointer finger traced my jaw. “The reality is so much more than I imagined. So much more than I ever thought that I could have. And I don’t want to give that up. If that makes me selfish, so be it.”
Her mouth came to mine, soft, soothing, and I threaded my fingers into her hair, hanging on. “If you’d left, I would’ve followed.”
She pulled back again, far enough to look down at me. “Why?”
“The same reason I violated every bit of my training and ran into a burning building with no gear to save you. Because I love you.”
I watched the wonder break in her face like the dawn, and I wanted to see that look every day for the rest of my life.
“Hoyt.” Her eyes were wet with unshed tears, but this time I knew they were happy ones. She deserved so many good things in her life, and I wanted to be the one to give them to her.
I drew her down again, taking her mouth in a long, drugging kiss that inevitably sparked into more. Her hands skimmed down my bare chest and lower, hesitating at the waistband of my sweatpants.
