“It wasn’t your fault.” She gestured to the sofa. “Come sit down. I want to hear everything. Then we can burn some of my namesake to clear out the lingering negative energy from the break-in.”

She knelt in front of the coffee table and lit a pair of tall candles I hadn’t previously noticed. They must have been new. She rubbed a white crystal positioned between them before sitting on the sofa.

I joined her and slipped my hand into hers.

“So, what happened?” Sage asked.

I word-vomited the whole story, ending with my conversation with Ronan this morning. “I haven’t seen him since I left his place.”

She cocked her head. “He didn’t drop by to see you at work?”

“No.” I sighed. “He’s probably giving me space.” I rested my head on her shoulder. “Do you think I’m being ridiculous? Is it crazy to ask questions when the universe has just dropped this perfect man in my lap?”

“No.” She reached for the crystal and passed it to me. “Hold this. It will help.” I took it, more to appease her than anything else. “You’ve been through a lot. It makes sense that your emotions are jumbled. His probably are, too. That doesn’t mean you’re not supposed to be together.” She grinned. “You know how I feel about you two. But you’re allowed to take as long as you need to work through your feelings and make sure that the choices you make are right for you. That’s okay. If he really loves you, he’ll be patient.”

“I hope so.”

I’d accused him of being motivated by the desire to protect me, and while I loved his protective side, I was scared that what I’d said might be the truth.

I really hoped it wasn’t. This was real for me.

Please let it be real for him too.

“Okay.” Sage nodded. “I’m here for whatever you need. Now, shall we burn the sage?”

“Let’s do it.”

Willow

The next morning, I woke alone. There was no Ronan to bring me breakfast or to snuggle in bed with. I ate by myself while Sage led a virtual yoga session in her room, and then locked the apartment when I left for work. I’d gone through the same routine hundreds of times before, but it had never felt so lonely.

I took the stairs to the ground floor and walked out into a gloomy Chicago day.

I’d barely made it twenty steps when I felt a sting in my shoulder. I glanced down and saw a dart sticking out of it.

My head spun.

Holy crap, was that a tranquilizer?

The world swam before my eyes, and the last thing I saw before I passed out was a white van.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Ronan

I checked my phone for the third time in ten minutes.

Still no reply from Willow.

I’d called her this morning, hoping we could talk, and then sent a message when she hadn’t answered. If I’d realized she was going to take this space thing so seriously, I’d have pushed harder yesterday. As it was, I’d spent an entire day barely able to accomplish anything because I was too distracted. I couldn’t afford to be unproductive. My time was too precious.