“And not yourself?”
She flushed, color rising rapidly up her throat and into her cheeks. “I don’t matter. They do. They’re so young. Innocent. They have their entire lives ahead of them and Travis has already sacrificed so much of his. I want them to have normal lives. I want them to be happy and secure. I just want them to be safe.”
Her voice ached with emotion. It reflected so much need and desire that it made him ache.
There was so much wrong—and right—about her statement that he had to take a few moments to figure out which part he wanted to address first.
“You matter, Eve,” he said, taking on the most important part of her declaration. “Never think you don’t. Yes, your brother and sister should have all those things you mentioned. But so should you. You’re young. You have your entire life ahead of you. Just how old are you anyway?”
“Twenty-four,” she murmured.
Donovan sighed. Not much older than Rusty, and yet in other ways, probably a hell of a lot older. While Rusty had definitely had a not-so-great childhood, those days were behind her now. She had a life and a family. She could take on the world now, because no one around her would ever let her fall. He wanted that for Eve. The knowledge and confidence that came from knowing she was safe.
“I told you a little about me. My family. What my brothers and I do. You’ve seen where and how we live. We help people like you every single day. I could regale you with the impossible, horrible situations we’ve gotten people out of, but I don’t want you to even contemplate some of those scenarios. Because if nothing else, you’re safe now. And you’re safe here.”
Her breath caught in her throat and she went so still that he could see her pulse in her neck. She stared back at him, eyes wide and so full of the hope she’d extinguished earlier that it was like taking a fist to the gut. He could tell she was waging an inner war to end all wars. Her teeth sank into her bottom lip, and she gave him another look filled with consternation.
He should press his advantage right now and go hard at her. She was wavering and he could easily pull her in. But he didn’t want her trust that way. He wanted it because it was what she gave freely. He wasn’t sure why it mattered so much, but there it was.
“You make it sound so easy,” she murmured. “And God, I wish it were. As if telling you, as if accepting your help, would make it all be okay.”
His grip tightened around her hand, this time picking it up so he held it firmly in his grasp. A silent message to her that it would be okay. Unable to resist and praying he wasn’t making a huge mistake, he brought her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss to the softness of her palm.
Her eyes widened, the shock of the sensation registering every bit as much with her as it did with him. They both sat there, frozen in silence, staring at each other, awareness flowing like a current of electricity between them.
He’d never been seized by such a strong urge to kiss a woman before. With any other woman, if he felt this strongly, he would already have her in his arms, his mouth on hers—and every other part of her body he could get his mouth on. Restraint had never cost him as much as it was costing him right here in this moment. It was a pain he’d never experienced, and he hoped to hell he didn’t have to experience it much longer.
“It is that easy,” he said, his tone unwavering as he spoke. It was laced with conviction. The same conviction he wanted her to eat, sleep and breathe. “I know it will take time for you to trust me, Eve. All I can do is show—prove—to you that my words are not just that. Words said to make you feel better. I’m not being arrogant. I’m stating an absolute truth. My brothers and I—all of KGI—will protect you and Cammie and Travis. With or without you sharing what it is that we’re up against. Granted, it will make my job, and theirs, a hell of lot easier if you tell me what I need to know—and I need to know everything—but regardless, I’m not about to let anything happen to you or your family.”