Chapter 72
SEVENTY-TWO
HARLEY
The lights of the cottage are off when Sav and I climb out from the back of Logan’s car. The flight went a lot faster this time, and we made it home in record time. She’s barely on her feet for a second before I’m swinging her back up into my arms, and she huffs a laugh as I do.
God, I really fucking love that sound.
To think, I very nearly never heard it again…
No. Don’t go there, Harley.
Logan unlocks the door, and I carry Savannah through to my room, itching to get her somewhere alone so we can just be without the prying eyes of my best friend, but a door opening has me halting my steps.
Noah steps out of his room, closing the door softly behind him before turning his attention to the three of us, a glare on his face.
“Where the fuck has everyone been?” he whisper-yells, and I’m just glad that Gracie is sleeping, so we don’t have to hear him actually shout.
It’s rare that Noah loses his shit, and by the look on his face, I’d say he’s close to it.
He’s probably been calling us all day, trying to figure out what’s going on, but I turned my phone off, and Logan’s no doubt been ignoring his calls.
As for Lana and Cole, I have no idea, but they’re probably too busy catching up with Cole’s family to answer.
His Mafia family.
Christ, all this new information is gonna take some getting used to.
“We’ll explain everything tomorrow, okay? Cole and Lana won’t be back for a few days, but we’ll fill you in in the morning,” I say just to get him off my back.
Savannah’s been saying she’s fine and not hurt, but until I see her in her entirety with my own eyes, I won’t be able to settle.
He sends us one last glare before heading back into his room, and I breathe a sigh of relief, heading straight to mine.
I take a seat on the end of my bed, Savannah still bundled in my arms, and breathe her in.
We sit in silence, and the longer we stay here, the more I think about what could have happened today. What would have happened if Logan wasn’t weird as fuck and put a tracker in her. What would have happened if we didn’t get there in time.
My body begins to tremble. I try to force them back, not wanting to disturb Savannah, but she must feel them because she presses a kiss to the side of my head and pulls back to look at me.
“Harley…” she whispers, brows pulled together.
I lean my forehead against hers, trying to blink back the tears that are threatening to fall.
“Are you okay?” I ask eventually, trying to focus on her rather than whatever the fuck I’m feeling in the hopes it’ll help me pull myself together.
“I think I am,” she says softly, her fingers coming up to play with the strings of my hoodie, and I let out a shaky exhale.
“You don’t have to be, you know? You just went through something traumatic. Did things you should never have had to do. You were faced with your worst nightmare, so it’s okay if you’re not okay. Even if you’re fine physically, it’s okay if your head is a mess.”
A tear trails down her cheek, and I catch it with my thumb. “You wanna know what the scariest part of the whole thing was?” she asks quietly, and I have to swallow the lump in my throat.
Do I want to know?
Yeah, I do. Because whatever she went through today must have been horrifying, and if her talking about it makes her feel even the slightest bit better, then that’s what we’re gonna do.
“What was it, baby?”
“The thought of never seeing you again, mixed with the idea of you being able to find me, but getting hurt in the process. That’s what terrified me the most, Harley.”
My breath gets caught in my throat as my heart almost beats out of my chest.
Fuck, this girl.
This girl.
All day, she was subjected to shit no one should ever have to face, and instead of worrying about herself, she was thinking about me.
Me.
“You’re something else, you know that, right?
” I ask and she snorts. “I mean it, Sav. I’ve never met anyone like you.
No one else would focus on anyone other than themselves in that situation, yet you did.
You worry about everyone around you, but you never put yourself first. You’re smart, beautiful, and the bravest fucking person I’ve ever met. ”
“I don’t know how to put myself first,” she whispers, like it’s a dirty secret, and I can’t help but smile.
“You don’t need to, baby, because from now on, you’ll have me putting you first.”
“You?”
“Mm hmm,” I murmur and wipe her eyes, pulling back to look her dead in the eyes. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past, Sav. But from now on, I’ll always put you first. Your needs, wants, whatever it is, it’ll always be you before anyone else.”
“Why would you do that for me?”
Oh, baby…
“Because I love you, little devil,” I say simply. “Because I fell in love with you four years ago, and even though I’ve tried to tell myself I’ve hated you since then, those feelings never went away. It’s always been you, Sav. And it always will be.”
She looks up at me, her eyes bright and wide.
And then she bursts into tears.
Ah, fuck.
“Shit, Sav. I didn’t mean to make you cry. Please don’t cry, whatever it is, I’ll fix it,” I say, panic creeping into my voice. Fuck, I really hate it when she cries, and it’s so much worse right now.
Her hands meet my chest, and she pulls back to look at me before wiping her face with her sleeve. Once she’s gotten herself together, she takes a deep breath and whispers, “I love you too.”
“You do?”
She laughs breathlessly. “Yeah, I do. How could I not?”
I feel my own eyes sting with tears, and this time, I don’t try to hide them. She turns serious, biting down on her bottom lip, and I pull it free with my thumb before pressing a soft kiss to her lips.
“You really love me?”
“Yeah, Sav. I really do.”
A fire burns in her eyes, and her lips tip up into a smirk. “Then why don’t you show me how much?”