Sweet Surrender(102)

Gray didn’t hear her answer, but he saw Micah’s reaction. Worry narrowed his eyes, and he reached out to touch her face.

“You go on home and get some rest. Let Pop and Connor take care of you for a while.”

When Connor helped Faith into Pop’s SUV, Micah approached Gray, a look of sympathy on his face.

“I fucked up,” Gray said in a low voice. “I should have told her the truth. If I had, none of this would have happened. She’d be in my arms, in my bed, safe.”

Micah shook his head. “You can’t think like that, man. Give it a day or two. Let her come down from all the emotional turmoil.”

“I can’t let her go,” Gray said simply. “Not when I’ve finally found her.”





CHAPTER 41




F aith accepted Damon’s hand as he helped her out of the car. She closed her eyes and allowed the ocean breeze to wash soothingly over her face. The sun beat down on her, warming her skin, but she still felt cold on the inside.

“I don’t like leaving you here alone, Faith,” Damon said, worry evident in his voice.

She sighed. Pop and Connor hadn’t been thrilled with her wanting to leave so soon after her hospital stay either, but she desperately needed some time away from everything. She had to think. Collect her thoughts. Do something other than lie around while Pop and Connor fussed over her.

“I’ll be fine, Damon. You’re so sweet to do this for me.”

He inserted the key into the front door lock then opened the door. “You know all you have to do is ask. If it’s in my power, you can be sure I’ll do it.”

He walked in ahead of her and dropped her suitcase in the foyer. The beach house he owned was wrapped in police tape and would be cordoned off for the investigation for months to come. When Faith had called, in need of a getaway, he’d rented a similar beach house close to Galveston.

Part of her felt bad for taking advantage of his generosity, knowing full well she couldn’t return his interest. But he’d offered her his friendship, and friendship was something she was currently in bad need of.

“I’ve hired someone to come look in on you twice a day,” Damon said. He held up his hand when she would have protested. “Your meals will be delivered. I don’t want you to overexert yourself. You need to rest and recover. If there is anything you need, anything at all, pick up the phone and call me.”

“Thank you,” she said softly.

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “I just want you to smile again.”

She complied and gave him the best one she could muster. “I just need a few days to regroup. Sort some things out in my head. Pop told me everything that happened, but it’s hard to process. I just wish everyone hadn’t been so determined to keep me in the dark.”

He cupped her cheek and rubbed his thumb in a soothing motion over her skin. “You can’t blame them for wanting to protect you, Faith. I would have done the same.”

She went into his arms and hugged him tight. “I wish…”

“Yeah, I know,” he said as he pulled away. He smiled down at her and nudged her nose with his knuckle. “I’ll get on out of here and leave you alone. Call me if you need anything.”

She nodded and watched as he left through the front door.

When she was alone, she found the couch and sank gratefully down onto the cushions. What she really wanted to do was pop a painkiller and zone out for about twelve hours. But that was cowardly, and it solved nothing.

A regular nap sounded damn good though. Not bothering to move from the couch, she curled into the soft cushions and closed her eyes.

A tear slid down her cheek, and she squeezed her eyes tighter shut.

Of everything that had happened, the part she was having the most trouble reconciling was her feelings for Gray. She loved him. Or what she thought was him. But how could she be sure?

The idea that she’d fallen in love with a fantasy filled her with despair. She’d never felt so alone in her entire life. She couldn’t run from the situation forever. She knew that. But she needed time, needed to be less emotional when she eventually faced Gray and the truth of what was between them.



Gray swore as he caught yet another traffic light on Seawall Boulevard. His free hand curled tightly around the steering wheel as he waited impatiently for it to turn green again. His other hand rested on his lap. He’d torn the heavy bandages off his shoulder, freeing his arm, despite medical warnings not to. It was still tender as hell, and he kept a smaller bandage over the stitches, but enough was enough. He couldn’t go around one-armed.

After spending a frustrating couple of days trying to see Faith, he was ready to put his fist through a wall. And then, when he’d gone back to Pop’s with no intention of taking no for an answer, he’d been told that she was gone.