Delicate Escape (Sparrow Falls, #2)

by Catherine Cowles

God, she was beautiful. Standing there in the middle of the kitchen, singing the kind of off-key that made your ears bleed. But she was so free while doing it. I should’ve stayed in the doorway longer, really taken in all that was her.

Someone had hurt Thea. There was no question in my mind about that. They’d hurt her so badly that she wouldn’t even risk me coming into her home to help her.

Yet I knew the walls I’d built to keep everyone out, the ones that kept me safe, would have to be reinforced three times over with him. Not because Shep would set out to do me harm but because I sensed he had the power to slip right through my barriers.

“But we can’t let one bad experience sour the rest of our lives. We can’t let the bad win. Make us stop living. If we lock ourselves down, we don’t just keep out the bad. We keep out the good, too.”

“Why are you putting up with me?” I asked, my voice little more than a hoarse whisper. Shep’s eyes locked with mine. “Because everything about you screams that you’ve been fighting alone for too damn long, Thorn. You need someone to help carry the weight for a little while. I might not be able to fix everything, but I can help carry the load.”

Shep grinned down at me. “I’m not gonna lie and say I wouldn’t love my hands on your body, but I’m helping you because I can, and you need it. Makes me feel…worthwhile. And I need that.”

“You’re worthy, Shepard Colson. You don’t have to fix anything to be that. You don’t have to dig a million trenches or replace feet of corroded piping. You’re worthy just for who you are.”

I was sure there was someone better for Thea. Someone who deserved her more. But I was too damn selfish to step aside and let her find him. And I’d do everything I could to be the man she needed.

It was the worst twist of fate to hear people celebrating the person who’d been your tormentor.

My hand slid along her jaw to cup her face. “There isn’t a thing you could tell me that would change the way I see you. The only thing it’ll change is knowing just how strong you are to have made it through it all.”

Shep’s eyes shot back to me, cutting off my words. “If you think there’s anywhere I’d rather be than here, you’re dead wrong.”

“Don’t think I don’t want you there, Thorn. I want you wherever I can get you. Why do you think I’ve been coming to the bakery every day for months? I don’t even like sweets.”

“It’s okay,” she whispered. “I get it if you need to walk away.” I moved then, unable to hold myself back. I closed the distance between us in two long strides and pulled her into my arms. I could feel the wetness on her cheeks sink into my tee. Felt how her body trembled. “The last thing in the world I want to do is walk away.”

“You wanna try this with me?” Thea’s breath hitched, but she nodded. Relief swept through me. “Good. Because I want that. I want you. But I also think it’s probably best if we take things slow.” I didn’t miss the disappointment on her face, and I liked that, too. “You’ve been through a lot. It’s going to take time to erase the lies in your head, but we’ll tackle them one by one.”

“Get. Your. Hands. Off. Her,” Shep snarled.

“Don’t ever speak to her again. You even think of looking in her direction, and I’ll do a hell of a lot worse than break your nose.”

Shep stared back at me, his eyes blazing. “If you think for one second I don’t want every part of you, you’re wrong. You think I don’t want to know what it feels like to sink inside you, to bury myself so deep I forget my own name? You’re wrong.”

“I don’t trust myself right now.” It killed to say that out loud. But my mood was dark. Her expression softened. “But I trust you. And more than that, I want all of you.” Thea’s fingers ghosted over my face, tracing my features in the moonlight. “You don’t have to be perfect for me, Shepard. You don’t have to have everything together. I want you just as you are, even when you want to burn down the world.” My chest rose and fell in jagged pants. A scorching fire lit in my throat. “Thea.” “Trust me to handle it. All of you. I can. Because it’s you. And there’s no one I’ve ever trusted more.” She had no idea. Everything she’d just given me…those three words played on my tongue, but I swallowed them down. I would just have to show her instead.

just because you don’t share blood with someone doesn’t mean your tie is any less strong. Sometimes, it’s stronger. Because that tether is a choice.”

“You can’t,” she whispered. “This is your home.” “You’re my home.” It was the simple truth. Thea had become the place I felt most myself, the place I felt seen and understood, where I could simply be without needing to prove myself.

“You saw parts of me I didn’t think I’d ever let anyone into. You saw all of me. Healed things I didn’t even know were still broken. And there’s only one woman I’ve ever loved. You.”

My eyes locked with Thea’s. “On the count of three, I want you to let go of the rock and grab my arms.” “I-I can’t. I’ll fall. I’ll take you with me.” “Thea.” I let everything I felt for her bleed into my voice and gaze. “I need you. I need our more. Please, trust me.” Those were the magic words, because she nodded.