Chapter 29
Sloane
Later, as we lay tangled together, sweat cooling on overheated skin, I let myself believe he wouldn’t leave me when this was over.
That he’d stay on the island, and we’d work this out, because he felt this way too.
That whatever it was between us, was the stuff of romance novels and fairytales.
A gift everyone wanted and so few ever found.
I’d nearly drifted into satisfied exhaustion when Knox’s phone buzzed on the nightstand.
He tensed, reaching for it. “Nash.”
I lifted my head, watching his expression shift from relaxed to alert in seconds.
“Yeah?” Knox sat up, running a hand through his hair. Relief flooded his voice. “Where?”
My pulse quickened. I pulled the sheet around myself and moved closer, hope surging through my chest.
“The old lighthouse on Cooper’s Point.” Knox glanced at me. “Christ, finally.”
He listened, his free hand finding mine beneath the covers. Squeezing once. Hard.
“Shit.” Knox’s jaw tightened. “When?”
The hope crashed. I pressed against his shoulder, needing the contact. Needing to understand.
“Before you arrested him?” Knox glanced at me, his expression grim. “So she could still be alive. Hold on, I’m putting you on speaker. Sloane needs to hear this.”
He tapped the screen and the sheriff’s weary voice filled the room. “Sloane, you there?”
“I’m here.” My words came out steadier than I felt. “You caught him? You caught Walter Lehman?”
“About an hour ago,” Nash confirmed. “Found him at the abandoned lighthouse out on the point. He’s in custody, being transported to the mainland for holding. FBI’s taken over the interrogation.”
Relief weakened my limbs. “So it’s over.”
“Not quite,” Nash said. “We got a missing person report right after we brought Lehman in. Young woman, staying at one of the vacation rentals near Rodanthe. Hasn’t been seen since this afternoon. Boyfriend reported her missing when she didn’t come back from a walk.”
Knox’s hand tightened on mine. “Timeline?”
“Best we can tell, she went missing several hours before we arrested Lehman. He could have taken her, stashed her somewhere before we closed in on him.”
“Is he talking?” Knox was already moving, sliding out of bed, reaching for clothes.
I tugged him back. There wasn’t anything we could do right now. Not in the pitch blackness of the night.
He met my eyes, then reluctantly returned to bed.
“Not a word,” Sheriff Sullivan answered.
“He asked for an attorney the second we cuffed him. But we’re organizing search parties at dawn—every deputy, volunteer, anyone with experience.
If she’s out there, we’ll find her. I need you and your team, Knox.
You know this island better than most of our newer deputies, and we need all the expertise we can get. ”
“We’ll be there,” Knox said without hesitation. “All four of us.”
“Not Sloane,” the sheriff said. He sighed. “Not in the morning, at least.”
I started to nod, then stopped. “What? Why? You just said I’m safe.”
“FBI requested you come in tomorrow morning,” Nash said. “With Lehman in custody, the immediate threat to you is over, but they want to talk. They didn’t tell me much more. I’m sure they’ll reach out to set that up tomorrow. I didn’t want to wait to call.”
“Appreciated,” Knox said. “We’re going to sleep a lot better now.”
“Thought so. Sam’s being presented a lineup tomorrow morning with Lehman included,” Nash continued. “The kid who was squatting,” he clarified. “He’s been incredibly helpful. Seems like a genuinely good kid who got caught in a bad situation.”
Knox nodded, though Nash couldn’t see it. “That’s good.”
“Get some rest,” Nash said. “Both of you. We’re meeting at the station at dawn to coordinate search sectors.”
The call ended, and silence filled the bedroom.
I pulled my knees to my chest. “There’s another missing woman.”
Knox sat on the edge of the bed, his back to me. Muscles tense beneath his skin. “We’ll find her.”
“What if you don’t? What if—”
“We will.” He turned, meeting my eyes. “We have to.”
I moved closer, pressing my palm against his chest.
He covered my hand with his, holding it tight. “One more mission, and we can breathe.” He brought my hand to his lips, kissing my knuckles.
I wrapped my arms around him, resting my cheek against his chest. “You’ll find her tomorrow. Bring her home safe. If you don’t, I’ll join you on the second sweep.”
His lips tipped into a small smile. “That’s a plan.”
We lay back in silence for a long moment, my head still on his chest.
“I’m going to stay,” he said. “I want to be here on the island with you. I’m going to run my mother’s business and build a life surrounded by the community and people I love.”
My breath caught at the sound of that precious l-word.
Knox turned in my arms, cradling my face. “It’s too soon to think it, way too soon to say it, but I think I’m falling in love with you, Sloane Mercer. I don’t want to be anywhere you’re not.”
A wide smile broke across my lips. “Say it again.”
He grinned. “You like that?”
I nodded. “I was halfway in love with you the night you taught me those self-defense moves. It’s been a quick downhill slide ever since.”
Knox laughed, delight dancing in his brilliant blue eyes.
Then he kissed me. Gently, then deeper, until thinking became impossible.
He rolled me beneath him, cradling me as if I was cherished, smothering me in adoration.
He kissed me slowly, until I was senseless with need.
Then, he made love to me until we were both spent of every last care.
He stroked a thumb against my stomach as we fell asleep twined together. My heart soaring into the clouds.
Somehow, someway, in the midst of lethal threats and constant terror, I’d fallen completely, irrevocably in love with Knox Hawthorne.
And against all odds, he felt that way too.
Dawn broke soft and pink over the sound. I watched from bed as Knox dressed for the search. Tactical pants. Dark shirt. Boots laced with practiced efficiency. Each movement deliberate, controlled, a warrior preparing for battle.
I pulled up the sheets to cover my bare chest, exhaustion and satisfaction tangled with lingering worry in my system.
“You’re staring,” Knox said, glancing at my reflection in the mirror as he checked his gear. He put his dog tags on for one last mission.
“Would it help if I said all my thoughts are dirty?”
A ghost of a smile crossed his face. Gone too quickly, replaced by grim determination. “A little.”
I grinned.
“Colton and Archer are meeting me at the staging area.” Knox crossed to the bed and sat on the edge.
Morning stubble shadowed his jaw, and exhaustion lined his eyes despite the few hours of sleep we’d managed.
“You’ll be okay here? I can have Colton stay with you if you’re still feeling uneasy.
That would be completely normal after all you’ve been through. ”
“I’ll be fine.” I sat up, keeping the sheet tucked around me. “Walter’s in custody. I’m safe now, and I’m looking forward to telling the FBI any tiny detail I can recall if it means saving that woman and getting justice for the others.”
He nodded. “Lock the doors anyway.”
“I will.” I reached for his hand. “Just find that woman, Knox. Bring her home.”
He cupped my face, thumbs brushing across my cheekbones. “That’s the plan. I should be back by early afternoon. I’ll come here when we break for lunch. If we go out again afterward, I’ll take you with me.”
“I’m counting on it,” I said. “But I’m praying you find her long before. Promise me you’ll be careful.”
“Always.” Knox kissed me until my toes curled.
The alarm on his phone chimed, breaking us apart.
Time to go.
Knox stood and moved toward the door. I fought the urge to pull him back to bed. If I could keep him here where it was safe, we could pretend the world outside didn’t exist.
“I love you,” I whispered.
Knox turned to face me, something raw and vulnerable crossing his expression. “Say that again.”
“I love you.”
Knox returned in one long stride, cupping my face and kissing me deeply. I fell back and he climbed over me. “I love you too,” he murmured against my mouth. “When I get back here, I’m going to show you exactly how much.”
His phone chimed again. Insistent.
Knox groaned against my neck.
I laughed, even as my throat tightened. “Go. Find her. Then come home to me.”
“Always.” Knox climbed off the bed, grabbed his gear, and headed for the door.
He paused in the doorway, looking back. “Lock the doors. All of them.”
“I will.”
“And call me if anything feels off. Anything at all.”
“Knox.” I smiled, trying to ease the tension in his shoulders. “I’m okay.”
Something flickered across his face. Doubt, maybe. Or residual fear.
But then he nodded. “You’re right. I’ll see you this afternoon.”
“Stay safe,” I called after him.
“You too.”
The front door closed. The deadbolt clicked.
And I was alone.