I couldn’t think about that.
My God.
I opened my eyes and stared right into his. “If anything had happened to you, you know how devastated I would be. You were protecting me, too.”
“I could’ve killed someone.”
He might have.
I shook my head. “You didn’t, and you won’t. Those guys will wake up. You were only protecting us. That’s it.”
“Sam.” His chest rose as he drew in a ragged breath. His forehead rested a little bit heavier on me. “If you’d been there…”
A lump formed in the back of my throat.
I swallowed it. He couldn’t think like that, and neither could I.
My hand trailed down his arm until it found his fingers, and I laced our hands together. “Everything will be fine. Everything will be fine.”
I was lying to him. Everything might not be fine, but I had to believe it, and I had to make him believe it. There would be other enemies. There would be other times when Mason might have to fight, but he’d risen above the odds. There were so many against him and Nate, and Logan. Too many.
I moved closer, folding my body gently to his. As his arms wrapped around me, I found myself saying, “They might’ve killed you.” My lips touched his chest. The water came down over both of us, and some of it hit my lips. I barely noticed. “The cop said sixteen guys came to attack you three. Sixteen to three. You defended yourself. That’s all you did.” I pulled back to hold his gaze again. I felt him searching. He needed to believe what I was saying. “Sixteen to three, Mason. No judge will convict you on those odds.”
He nodded, closing his eyes.
“Everything will be fine.”
Maybe I was lying to myself now.
Six days later
“I didn’t expect to see you here, Sam.”
I looked over at Nate. I knew what he meant. Here I was in the one place I’d been hoping to avoid all summer: Analise and James’ wedding. More specifically, I was waiting in the back of the church for their rehearsal and dinner.
I snorted, moving down the pew so he could sit next to me. “Trust me. I came under protest.”
He just grinned and patted my leg. The truth was, he probably understood why I was here. It wasn’t about Analise or James, or even their sure to be wedded non-bliss, but about Mason. Since the last attack and his arrest, I hadn’t left his side. I’d even quit the carnival. He never pushed to know why; maybe because he knew I wouldn’t give him the real answer. But it was because I had to be at his side.
If anything happened, I would be there.
If one of those guys died.
If one of them slipped into a coma.
If one of them brought a lawsuit.
I was going to be at his side. I wouldn’t be able to do much, I knew that, but I’d be there. I liked to think that would mean something.
So far, the guys had been recovering. They’d all woken, and most had been released from the hospital. The district attorney said they’d have a hard case since all those guys had gone to that parking lot with the purpose of assault. Mason, Logan, and Nate had been defending themselves.
I was also waiting for the day the incident was picked up and reported by media. Mason’s name was big. That fact that it hadn’t surfaced yet was miraculous. But when that day did come, I’d be there for that, too.
So even though I cringed every two seconds, I was here in the church, and I was watching as the woman who gave birth to me rehearsed how to marry the father who’d helped bring my soulmate to life. It was a whole clusterfuck, but I was here regardless.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Nate. He wasn’t a groomsman.
He pointed at Logan, who was making a crude gesture at us with his hands and tongue. “Our favorite douchebag told me to come. Said there’d be good food and free booze at the dinner.”
I paled. “We have to stay for the dinner?”
Nate grinned. “Logan said we did, but maybe you and Mason can slip out early.” He looked around. “Is Taylor coming?”
“She’ll be here tomorrow for the wedding.”
She’d better be.
“Matteo took off, right?”
I nodded. “He starts training next week. Everything’s going to be okay, so he headed home to see his family for a few days.”
“He’s a good friend to Mason.”
“To you, too.”
Nate smiled. “Same for you.” He nodded toward the front of the church. “And Logan. I know Mason wants to protect him, but Matteo was there for us. He’s kind of become family in a way.”
He gave me a meaningful look, and I knew what he meant. Matteo had made it known that he wanted to be brought into the fold, but he wasn’t out of the fold, even if he felt that way. I placed my hands together on my lap, looking up at Mason’s back as he and Logan joked, standing to their father’s right.