Page 15 of Protecting his Heart

Evan had talked about him? That was something to think about later. He finally took in Evan’s condition, seeing the long bandage covering his entire forearm.

“Jesus, Evan! Just a scratch!?”

Evan sighed and rubbed his head. “Can we talk about this at home?”

Owen inhaled again, trying to calm down. He needed to get them home in one piece, after all. And once they were, Evan was getting a talking to.

“It was nice meeting you, Marie. Maybe we can do it again under better circumstances,” he said, smiling a little easier now than he’d seen Evan.

“I agree.”

Evan led the way from A&E and to where he’d parked his car. Owen took the keys from him and held the door, closing it when he was settled. The drive home didn’t take long, and they were silent during it, but once the front door closed behind them, Evan said, “Okay, let’s hear it.”

Owen pointed a finger at him. “Sit your ass down. I’ll get us a drink and you can tell me what happened.” His voice was way calmer than he expected, and he strode to the kitchen, setting the coffee going and giving them both time to breathe before they had the conversation. He had no idea how Evan had got the cut, but all the possibilities swirled in his head. But he was fine. He was home. Owen could take care of him now.

When the coffees were ready, he carried them back to the living room and handed one to Evan. He sat on the opposite side of the sofa and waited. After several sips of his drink, Evan explained, and Owen’s blood boiled and heated—two very similar responses to two very different stimuli. Boiled because that asshole was in big fucking trouble. Heated because Evan being a hero was fucking hot. Even if it put him in danger.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Evan said when he finished.

“How is the girl doing?”

Evan stared at him long enough for Owen to feel the need to shift, but he didn’t. “Not what I was expecting you to say. She was still in surgery when I left. I’ve asked Marie to let me know later.”

Owen nodded. “As much as I want to rail at you for being a stupid ass for risking your life, I can’t because you saved her life, and possibly your own, even as you risked it, too. I know you’re more than capable of looking after yourself, but it’s…” He shook his head. “It’s different when I’m not there as backup. At least then I know someone has your back. When you’re alone…” He didn’t finish, unable to form the words he needed to explain.

“It’s no different when you go to work, you know,” Evan said softly, staring at his coffee.

Owen frowned. “What do you mean?”

“You guard royalty. Not only that, but the heir to the British throne. You put yourself in danger every time you walk out of that door.” Evan jabbed his fingers towards the front of the house. “Yes, you have other guards with you. But not me. I couldn’t do your job because I don’t have the experience. But it’s still not me at your back, making sure you survive the day. It’s me working through the hours, hoping you will not be the one rolled through the doors of A&E, needing my expertise. And that fucking sucks.”

Owen’s heart thumped painfully, and his throat closed. He needed to talk about what happened that night, and there was no better time. “I thought we would lose everything if we stayed together,” he murmured, unable to look at him. “I thought we’d lose our friends, our family.” He swallowed. “Ourselves. I was so fucking scared of losing you I did the one thing that lost you, anyway. And I am so sorry.” He closed his eyes, trying not to let the tears escape. He had no right to them. He had caused the pain. He should carry it.

Hands cupped his jaw, startling him into opening his eyes, the tears hovering on the edges of his eyelashes. Evan’s green gaze was wet but bright.

“Do you want me? Do you want us? Ignoring everything else, do you want this?” Evan asked.

Owen licked his lips. “Yes,” he whispered.

Evan’s smile had the tears losing the battle and falling down his cheeks. “Good.”

Then Evan’s mouth met his, and he was lost. Just like that night. The moment Evan touched him, Owen bowed down to him, doing whatever he asked, whether it was words or actions,he followed where Evan led. He gave over every ounce of his control to Evan’s safe keeping.

And as Evan’s tongue swiped across his lower lip, Owen let himself fall under his spell. He had no idea if they could make this work, but he wasn’t letting go again. He couldn’t. He didn’t have the strength to cut their ties a second time.

Evan pulled back, and Owen chased him, joining their lips again. “Hold on, Owen,” Evan said, gently stopping his onslaught. “We’re taking this slowly, okay? We need to work through whatever issues you had with us being together the first time. Yes, we’ve grown older, but those fears won’t go away unless we deal with them.”

Owen nodded. “I know. I guess the first thing we should do is talk to Dominic.”

“I agree. While he doesn’t have the ability to stop us from doing this, if we still want to do it, we’d be wise to listen to what he says. Randall, too.”

Owen dropped his forehead onto Evan’s shoulder. “How is your arm?”

“Tender, but it’ll be fine in a few days.”

“It didn’t do any permanent damage?”

Evan shook his head. “A couple of places were deeper than others, but there’s no nerve damage or anything like that. I’ll be good to go once the wound itself has healed.”

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