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Her arms were crossed over her chest, and the cardigan dwarfed her, showing only her slender legs. With her hair now loose and blowing in the breeze, she looked so damn forlorn, he wanted to scoop her up and hold her against his chest and never let her go.
Nash knew he had to climb a mountain before he got there. He’d always been a straight shooter. The guy who would be brutally honest with a person when no one else would, even when it put himself in a bad light. There was no reason to change now. Honey would see past any bullshit he was dumb enough to throw her way.
“I want you to give me another chance. A chance to make things right.” He watched her closely. She didn’t move or react. She did nothing but stare at him, those arms of hers holding tight—those dark eyes cool and indifferent. He knew this right here was clutch time. It was four seconds on the clock with twenty-five yards between him and the end zone. There was no holding back. It was all in or nothing.
“I wanted you back the moment you were gone. Even if I didn’t know it at the time.” He paused. Took a moment because she needed to hear his truth. “I should have given you a chance to explain. A chance to hear your side. Instead, I read a report. I took those black words on that white piece of paper as the truth. And I should know better. I know about truths. I know they don’t run in a straight line or form a perfect square. They have edges, nooks and crannies that take away or add to that truth. I didn’t you give you the chance to fill in those spaces or soften those edges. I’m sorry, Honey.”
Still, she said nothing. She watched, those huge eyes of hers glistening in the low light. Those arms tightened even more. He was losing her. Desperate, his mind searched for a way in.
“Key West wasn’t on your map.”
She jerked her head slightly at that.
“What?”
“The map on your back. Your tattoo of places you wanted to go. I traced it so many times with my hands, with my mouth…” He exhaled. “Number one was Bora Bora. After you left, we had no idea where you were. I went there, thinking it made the most sense.”
“You went to Bora Bora to look for me?” Her whiskey-soaked voice stretched so thin, he knew she was struggling.
“I was there for close to two weeks. We looked everywhere for you.”
“We?”
“Hudson and I.”
He saw the surprise before she withdrew.
“Then I went to New Zealand.”
She looked away, but he saw her chin tremble. She wasn’t as indifferent as she wanted him to think.
“Then Barrow.”
Nothing.
“Whistler.”
Again no reaction.
“I was in Costa Rica for ten days, and then Dublin.”
Her shoulders were hunched so far forward, it looked as if she was trying to disappear in the shadows that blanketed the yard.
“I hit every bar and talked to hundreds of people. No one knew you. No one saw you.” His voice was rough. “I thought it was over. I thought I’d lost you for good, but then…”
Slowly, she turned back to him, and the look in her eyes gave him hope.
Nash took a step forward. “Then I remembered a conversation we had that first night in my hot tub. It was after my staff party and everyone had left. You mentioned your friend Simone, and something about Key West. I passed the information along to Hudson, and we started searching. He has contacts and found her within a few days. I called Simone last week. I asked about you. She hung up, and I knew you were here. She was protecting you from me.” He paused. “You don’t need protection from me, Honey. I love you. I need you in my life.” His throat was so tight, he could barely speak. “I know I fucked up. I should have given you the chance to explain. To tell me your side. Instead, I let emotion play a part. I let a bunch of things that don’t matter anymore take over. Honey, I don’t care about your past. I don’t care about the things you did to survive. None of that matters because I care about you. About who you are. I love you. Tell me I’m not too late.”
She didn’t answer him, and, desperate, he took another step forward, stopping when she shook her head violently. “Please. Don’t.”
She was killing him.
“You left me a letter. You told me you loved me. Tell me your feelings have changed, and I’ll leave now.” He was taking the biggest gamble of his life. “If they’re the same. If you still love me and can forgive me, come back to Crystal Lake with me.”
She was shivering. It was hot as hell, and she was shivering. Maybe he was reading this wrong, and panic joined the party in his gut, making him feel sick. “I’ll come here. I’ll move to Key West if that’s where you want to live. Or Bora Bora. Or Anchorage. I don’t give a rat’s ass where we land, as long as we land somewhere together. I don’t want to do this life thing alone. Not without you.”
“Nash,” she spoke haltingly. “There are things you don’t know. Things that I…”
