Thirty-three
‘Mia?’ Cap ran after her, pushing his way through the crowds as she rushed with Willow to the car park. ‘Mia, it’s okay.’
Mia weaved through the cars, the trucks, the utes. He followed, hating that she’d run from him.
But then she turned a corner around a large truck and was gone.
‘Aw, come on, Mia. I won’t hurt you.’ He called out to the empty lot filled with assorted vehicles. His heart squeezed in his chest as if wrapped in fiery steel bands. He struggled to breathe.
‘I’d never hurt you. And I hate how that animal hurt you so much that you don’t trust me.’ He gripped his head, as the thought of losing her tore through him and his brain went into overload.
Then he spotted her reflection in one of the cars. She was at the Tojo, hiding behind the cage. He walked around to the side of Ryder’s ute, parked next to his Tojo, worried that if he got any closer, she’d run.
‘I’m so sorry that this happened to you, that you feel the need to run.’ He sighed, leaning against the side of Ryder’s large ute. ‘I’m so sorry that you gave so much of yourself to someone who truly didn’t deserve you or know how precious you are to this world. It’s so wrong that you experienced pain at the hands of someone who said they loved you. Love may be painful at times, but it should never leave bruises.’
In the reflection of Harper’s Audi, she was just around the corner at his ute, listening, with head down, while Willow lay calmly at her feet.
It gave him hope.
‘I’m not going anywhere, Mia.’ He waited, and he’d keep waiting, for as long as she needed, for he was a very patient man.
‘I’m here.’ Mia’s voice was too quiet.
He stepped around the corner then stopped short, fighting the urge to hold her. She looked so fragile and flighty as if ready to run again. ‘Don’t listen to Leo. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.’
‘But you got so angry.’
‘Because I wanted to protect you and Willow.’ He stepped in closer.
‘Why? I’m a nobody. I’m a stray, like Willow.’
‘Don’t ever say that to me. You know I never turn away a stray, not when they become a part of my family, like you are to me—we are a family. And in my family, we protect our own.’
Her face fell, as she twisted her fingers. ‘But you deserve better.’
‘No, I… For fate’s sake. ’ He ripped off his cap, raking fingers through his hair.
‘Leo said—’
‘This has nothing to do with Leo. It’s how I feel about you. This isn’t anger. This is frustration. And before you say it, it’s me who’s frustrated with myself.’
‘Why?’ This time she approached him with concern in her eyes.
‘Isn’t it obvious?’ He sighed, pressing his hat against his chest. ‘I love you, Mia Dixon.’
She gasped. ‘You can’t.’
‘I can, and I do.’ He fought himself to stop his own frown for fear of her rejection. ‘Falling in love with you was the easiest most pleasurable experience of my life, that I’ve found every moment I spend with you has been an absolute blessing to me. I truly believe fate brought us together.’ Even if it was her fear that was now threatening to tear them apart.
Yet, he refused to give up on this, on her, and on them.
‘I’m sorry that love didn’t give you that safe space you are more than worthy of receiving. But I can show you a love that can be gentle, a love that can be kind, a love that can be your safe space. It’s the right kind of love everyone deserves, especially you.’ He slowly approached, wary that if he touched her, she’d run. ‘I’d never hurt you, Mia, just like I’ve never hurt my dogs. And I am nothing like that animal who made you want to run from me.’
‘I was running to help you.’
He double blinked at her. ‘How?’
‘Because I thought if I got away from you, Leo and I can’t hurt you.’
He arched his eyebrows. ‘You were trying to protect me?’
Mia twisted her fingers as she meekly screwed up her face. ‘I panicked.’
‘Yes, you did.’ He gently gathered her fingers and gave them a tender squeeze. ‘But that’s okay. It’s our first trip to town since the incident.’
‘And I had to ruin everything.’
‘No, Mia,’ he said, lifting her chin with his fingertips. ‘You finally accepted that you and Willow are partners. And I saw how far Bree and my brother Ryder were willing to go to protect you. And for someone like Ryder, that’s a big deal.’ Considering how Ryder was quite clear about Mia’s place on the property.
He crouched down and patted the dog. ‘You’re a good girl, choosing the right family.’
Mia gave a slight gasp, only to bite on her lower lip.
‘What’s wrong?’
‘I can’t—’
‘What is it, Mia? Tell me.’