She let the tears fall for Allison and Grant, for their mistakes and their terrible loss. For her wrong turns and all she’d given up just to survive.

Through it all, Connor stood there. He took the emotional battering. Gently coaxed the truth out and stood with her, knee-deep in the aftermath.

She cried for minutes or hours, she didn’t even know. It felt like forever and nothing at the same time.

“You didn’t know, Maddie. You could never have known.”

“That doesn’t change what happened.”

“That’s how life works.” He kissed her hair. “You make choices and those choices spin into consequences and the rampage begins.”

“Two people died because of me.”

He separated their bodies and looked down at her. “Ned killed them.”

“I helped.”

“No, Maddie. You didn’t. You were a witness and a victim, not a participant.” He wiped the tears away with his thumb. “And that makes all the difference.”

She wanted to believe. She ached to believe. “Are you sure that’s not an excuse?”

“I’m sure that the woman in front of me, regardless of what name she uses or what she does for a living, would not kill anyone. You’d protect and defend. You’d never launch an offensive strike.”

Some of the heaviness around her heart eased. The pounding in her chest stopped. “You forget that I hit you with a stick.”

“Best first meeting ever.”

She felt him smile and lifted her head to see that beautiful face. “McHottiePants.”

That sexy smile widened. “Excuse me?”

“It’s a compliment.”

“Then I’ll take it.”

The coaxing of his lips against hers wiped away the last of her fears. The kiss, gentle and reassuring, packed just enough heat to steal her breath.

She said the first thing that came into her head. “You’re the only one who knows.”

He dropped a quick kiss on the tip of her nose. “Your secret is my secret.”

She believed him.

Chapter 29

The crying turned into an hour of sitting on the couch, holding her. Connor didn’t regret any part except when she had to relive all that pain.

Now she rested against him with her legs curled underneath her on the couch. She wove her fingers through his. Watched their joined hands as if mesmerized.

They should get up and find something to eat. A part of him wanted to carry her to bed. He ignored every impulse and sat there with her. Let her set the tempo and decide what happened next.

He meant what he said to her. Everything that happened, the horrible cascade of events that changed her life forever, was out of her control. She didn’t bring that gun into the room thinking the evening would end with a shooting. She held it for protection and leverage. That’s what a smart person would do and he didn’t blame her.