Page 32 of Stolen Salvation

Charlie shook her head. “No.”

“You’d had a lot of drugs, so that’s probably why. You held him for hours and when your body couldn’t hold you up any longer, I held you both.” Tears formed in Noah’s eyes. “We held onto each other when he took his last breath, and I’ll never forget the beauty you gave me for those twelve hours or regret him in any way. They were the most precious of my life and if that’s all I got to have then he was a blessing. That’s the only way I can get up in the morning, by seeing him for the blessing he was, instead of mourning what we lost.”

Charlie sniffed and tried to brush her tears away, but instead her fingers landed on Noah’s wet cheeks. “I’m so sorry.”

“No, you have nothing to be sorry for. It was a tragic accident. There’s no saying it wouldn’t have happened even if we’d done everything right. I torture myself daily that I let him down, that I let you down, but as I stand here and explain it to you, I can see for the first time it was just how it was meant to be.”

“You thought I blamed you.”

“Because I blamed myself.”

“I’m sorry I pushed you away.”

“It’s in the past, Charlie. How about we make a pact to move on and see what happens? No promises or expectations.”

The hope that spun dizzying circles in her head almost made her trip on an outcropping of stones. Noah caught her with a laugh and held her in his arms and she remembered for the first time since their son died what home felt like. It was a scary thought because losing Noah once had broken her. She didn’t know if she’d survive if he decided they couldn’t get over the past and have the future she desperately needed.

“How about friends?”

She saw the way he swallowed what he wanted to say before he gave her the sexy smile she loved so much. “With benefits?”

“Ha, cool your jets, buster. Let’s see if this outpouring of honesty and self-reflection lasts before we get our kit off again.”

“So that’s not a no?”

Charlie shook her head and laughed as the sun hit the sky behind her. “You’re a menace, Noah Bishop.”

“And you love it.”

As he turned to walk them back the way they had come he didn’t see the hitch in her breathing or the truth in his words, because he was right. She did love him, every single part of him and always would.

Chapter 13

“Briefing room, now!” Bás barked as Bishop walked in with Charlie beside him. Her gaze locked on his with questions, but she didn’t voice them, her persona changing into operator mode with the flip of a switch. The open honesty they’d shared on the mountain had cleansed a part of his soul he hadn’t known needed it, but he felt hope for the first time in a very long time.

Looking around he saw that the entire team was there, Bein and Lotus were back from the Birmingham Clinic where they’d taken a little more time because they had a waitlist to be seen. After a few clicks of the keyboard, Watchdog had fixed that issue and they’d been seen.

“Okay, everyone, listen up. We have an update and I want to hear what everyone found at their relevant clinics.”

“Have you found my sister?”

Bishop fought the urge to reach for Charlie as she sat forward, urgency and hope in her voice. He glanced from her to Bás, already knowing that answer.

“No, we haven’t had any sightings of Andrea since the CCTV saw her going into the clinic, but we do think we’ve found the father of her baby. Or at least a possible contender.”

Charlie grinned as she looked at him and then back to Bás. “That’s great.”

“Not exactly. We believe she’s been spending time with a man called Carter Cavendish.”

The room erupted in chaos as everyone spoke at once, but he was watching Charlie to see if she knew the consequences of Bás’ statement. From the way she paled, she clearly did.

Bás held up a hand. “Shut the fuck up a second.”

Everyone went silent in an instant as his boss pinched the bridge of his nose. Looking up he pinned Charlie with a look. “Did you know she was dating him?”

“Of course not. We all know the kind of man Carter Cavendish is. I wouldn’t have let Andrea within ten miles of him out of choice.”

“Well, it seems she ended up on his radar from the club. These images show her leaving with him on multiple different occasions.”