Chapter 21

Something intruded on her dream of soft images, warmth.

An outrageous ticking. It spilled into her dream, not offensive, but gently discordant.

She stirred, bumped into the hard, immovable presence beside her. Somewhere in the night she'd lost her makeshift pillow and gained his upper arm.

Eli.

She started but was caught suddenly by his strong grip. He pulled her back down, gaze intent on her. Spoke in his sexy, don't-waken-yet-honey whisper. "It's okay. Relax."

"Relax?" She tried to pull away, but he was strong and held her. She searched his face. Normal. A great exhalation spilled from her, taut nerves unwinding, the jumbled feelings of worry evaporating.

Eli was going to be okay. His body had ridden out the storm.

“Feels like I’ve been out for ages. I did wake up a few minutes ago, managed to crawl over to the window and checked… things outside. Status quo. Came back beside you, and you were still out.” His voice was gruff, morning-hoarse. “What the hell happened?”

She grabbed his cell, clicked the button. Held it, face first, toward him.

After long seconds punctuated only by his thumb scrolling the conversation, he looked at her. “God.”

It almost seemed wrong to talk, there was such an air of finality about that one word.

But the time for not talking seemed to be over. “I never wanted you to know any of this.”

“I know, now.”

“Did you guys talk?”

“No. Just the texting you see there.”

His mouth flattened into a grim line. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them, fastened them on her face resolutely. “I haven’t been a good boy.”

She couldn’t pull her gaze from him. She had a feeling she was watching, seeing, the real Eli. The real man. Warts and all.

“I can’t tell you what shit I’m into. Tish, I never wanted any of this.” And he seemed to make a decision. "I need to tell you why I left."

A jolt shuddered through her. This was what he was like when he was all in. When he decided something.

And in that same instant, she realized something else.

It actually didn't matter anymore. And she wanted to communicate with every fibre of her being that she trusted him. "No, Eli. You don't."

But his dark look stopped her cold.