Chapter 16
ALEC
“What do you think about ordering pizza and watching one of your movies tonight?”
I turn away from my computer to find Hazel standing in the doorway of my office, a small smile lifting her lips.
“I saw there was a new movie on Netflix,” she adds.
“Something about aliens that take the form of ice cream. From the trailer, it looks like they spread their alien microbes through ice cream trucks. I thought it sounded like something you’d want to see. ”
It’s such a relief to see Hazel smiling, that’s all I can think about at first.
And not a tight, fake smile, like the ones I saw during the first few days after everything went down at her house. A real one. One that reaches her eyes and lights them with an enthusiasm I’ve missed seeing.
I know it hasn’t been long—yesterday marked only a week since we caught those three monsters and handed them over to the police. So I’m not expecting Hazel to feel like herself already, as much as I’d like her to be.
Of course, I wish I could snap my fingers and magically take away all her trauma. I wish I could erase the memories that haunt her dreams. I wish she’d never had to go through any of it—the nightmare in Boston and the horrors that came for her here.
That’s been the hardest part of it. Knowing that no matter what I do, I can’t take away Hazel’s pain.
I can help her. I can take her to counseling. I can stock my fridge with all her favorite foods and subscribe to the Travel Channel and spend hours shopping online to find the perfect gifts to brighten her day. But to make everything better, like I desperately wish I could?
It’s a hard pill to swallow, not being able to fix something.
“It sucks,” Knox admitted while he was visiting the other day.
We were out in the backyard, screwing around with my new leaf blower, while Lark and Hazel chatted inside.
“I knew Lark was hurting after everything that went down with that asshole at her dad’s company.
And I wanted to fix it for her. But I couldn’t. Only time could.”
He’s right. In time, the wounds will scab over. Then they’ll scar. And eventually, the scars will fade until they’re faint reminders of what happened. Until Hazel can go days, weeks, even months without thinking about them.
Does that mean I’ll stop trying to help? Of course not. Because each smile, each laugh, each sparkle in her eye is another victory. It’s another sign that those pieces of shit—Jason, Kyle, Owen, and Wyatt—didn’t win.
“No?” Hazel asks, pulling me away from my thoughts. Amusement brightens her gaze. “I was sure you’d be interested.” She walks into the room. “Aliens in ice cream? I thought that was right up your alley.”
“It is.” Pushing away from my desk, I cross the room to meet her. Then I take her into my arms, relishing the feel of her body tucked against mine. I kiss her softly before adding, “Aliens and ice cream sound perfect.”
Hazel’s smile gets bigger. “I was thinking, once you’re done with your work, we could order the pizza. And we have ice cream in the freezer if you want to really get into the theme of the movie.”
I tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, letting my fingers trail down her neck before pulling them away.
She shivers slightly and her pupils dilate so there’s just a thin ring of deep blue around them.
Her pulse flutters at the base of her jaw.
“Maybe we could do some sexy things after,” she adds, “if you’re interested. ”
“Haze.” My voice goes husky. “I’m always interested.”
When I first brought Hazel to my house to stay, I was ready to give her as much space as she needed.
If she would rather sleep in the guest bedroom than in mine, that was fine.
If she wanted to dial back the physical part of our relationship, I understood.
If she didn’t want to talk, I wouldn’t push.
I would just be there for her in any way I could.
But to my relief, she didn’t want distance. She wanted to sleep in the same bed as me. She wanted to cuddle on the couch after dinner. And while there were times she went quiet, lost in her thoughts, she shared them with me after.
Was she still sad? Upset? Caught up in her feelings of guilt? Yes. But she didn’t shut me out. And for that, I’m grateful.
Well, I’m grateful for a lot of things, really.
I’m grateful Hazel moved to Bliss. I’m grateful she let me into her life. I’m grateful I was there that night when her car went into the water. That she called me from the police station. That she trusted me even when she had no reason to.
I’m grateful she’s safe. That she’s here with me.
Unexpectedly, my throat goes thick. My heart squeezes.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” I say. “Have I mentioned that lately?”
Hazel stretches up to kiss me. Her expression softens with affection as she looks at me. “I’m glad I’m here, too.”
A wave of emotion sweeps through me. And with it, a certainty.
I love her.
Before Hazel, love was an abstract concept. I knew it existed. I saw the proof of it in the way my parents still looked at each other after forty-five years. I saw it with Enzo and Winter. Knox and Lark. Gage and Rory. But how it actually felt? I had no idea.
Now I do.
I wasn’t looking for it. Honestly, I didn’t think I wanted it. Love meant leaving myself open to betrayal. It meant trusting someone when that was the last thing I wanted to do.
But I’ve learned that when you really love someone, trust comes easy. And when you really love someone, betraying them is unthinkable.
“Alec?” Hazel nuzzles my neck. “Are you almost done with work?”
“Oh.” I give myself a quick mental shaking. “Yeah.” With a backwards glance at my desk, I add, “I was just reviewing some orders. Nothing that can’t wait until tomorrow.”
Worry flickers in her eyes. “Are you sure? If you need to get back to it, I understand. Just because I’m not working—”
“I’m sure.” Since Hazel moved in, I’ve been working from home, save for a few quick visits to the Stowe office while one of my teammates is here to keep an eye on Hazel.
Not that I think anything will happen to her exactly—not with the three pieces of shit, as I’ve taken to calling them, safely in jail.
The evidence against them is solid enough to ensure a conviction—me, Matt, Leo, and Swede made sure of that.
And we spent several days doing a deep dive into the workings of their trafficking plot to make sure there wasn’t anyone else involved.
That there wasn’t some mysterious fourth accomplice out there, waiting to go after Hazel once her defenses were down.
But everyone involved in the investigation is in agreement. Aside from the man they hired in Boston, who had no knowledge of the trafficking organization, Owen Renning, Kyle Michaels, and Wyatt Peterson weren’t working with anyone else.
So that’s some good news amid the bad.
Good for Hazel, because it means she can get back to her normal life once she’s ready.
The bad is we’re still looking for the missing women. Not just the five we knew about, but four more besides that—all sold on the dark web to anonymous bidders who could have taken them anywhere.
We’ll find them. I promised Hazel we would, and I have no intention of going back on that. But I really, really hope that when we do, the women are still alive. Especially Amy. Because even though I’m pissed beyond belief at her for putting Hazel in danger, I know Hazel is worried.
Hazel says she understands why Amy said what she did. “She had to be so scared,” Hazel told me. “She had no way of knowing the men would come after me. I can’t blame her for something she did out of desperation and fear.”
While Hazel might not blame Amy, I do. Not that I’ll tell Hazel that.
Hazel takes my hand as we leave the room, threading her slim fingers between mine. “Do you want to order the pizza now, then? Or—” Her lips quirk. “Do you want to do some sexy things first? Build up an appetite?”
As it always does whenever sex with Hazel is a possibility, my pants go uncomfortably tight.
“Actually,” I reply, “while I’d love nothing more than to do sexy things to you, there’s something else I planned for tonight.”
Her brow wrinkles in confusion. “But I thought we’re having pizza. And watching a movie.”
I lead Hazel into the living room and gently tug her down to the couch, then take a seat beside her. “We can. Just not tonight.”
A burst of nerves hits my belly. When I was planning this, it seemed like a good idea.
A great idea, really. Enzo and Winter agreed.
So did Gage, Knox, Lark, and Rory. But a good idea in theory isn’t the same as presenting it in reality.
And now that I’m looking into Hazel’s wide, trusting eyes, I’m second-guessing myself.
“What did you want to do tonight, then?” She pauses. “Did you invite the guys over?”
“No.” I take both her hands in mine. “I thought we could go out.”
“Out?” She stiffens. “You mean leave the house?”
“That’s what I was thinking. Not for long, maybe a couple of hours. You’ve been stuck here for over a week, and I thought it might be nice—”
“I like it here.” Hazel glances around the living room. “It’s comfortable. Everything I need is here. Why would I want to leave?”
Because as much as I’d like to keep Hazel tucked away where I know she’s unequivocally safe, protected by my state-of-the-art security system and with me by her side, I know that’s not realistic. Not long term. And more importantly, I don’t think it’s good for her.
I know Frank called Hazel a couple of days ago, asking when she was coming back to work. And I know Hazel hemmed and hawed before giving him the vague answer of sometime soon.
I know she still feels guilty about what happened at Blissful Brews, and that’s part of the reason she doesn’t want to go back. That she’s afraid to face Wendy and still blames herself for Wendy getting hurt.
And I know Hazel is scared to leave the house, though that’s one thing she hasn’t told me.