Page 78 of To Hold and Protect

She reached across the table with her free hand and rested it over his. “It was kismet, seeing you there. You reminded me so much of my father. He loved me, and I knew you’d love me, too.”

“I’m not your father, Crystal.”

“But you’re like him.”

“How?” Tristan mouthed.

“In what way?”

“You love fire the way he did. You see the beauty in it, its pureness, its power, and I wanted to share that with you. My fires were a gift to you.”

“You started the fires here as a gift to me?” That was what Tristan wanted, her admission. Could he go now?

“Yes.” Her eyes locked on his with an intensity and an unnaturalness that made him want to squirm. “When you watch the smoke when it’s white, doesn’t it make you think of a bride wearing her wedding gown, dancing for her lover? I’ll dance for you, Parker. I’ll be your bride, your lover.” She leaned toward him. “Like I was for my father,” she whispered.

Parker’s gaze shot to his brother, whose mouth had flattened into a thin line at hearing Crystal had been sexually abused by her father. This was some serious messed up. “You started the fires for me because—”

“So you’d see me. And you did.”

Oh, he saw her all right. He wanted out of here and silently begged his brother to end this. They now had her confession and enough evidence to convict her, if she was even found competent to stand trial. When Tristan nodded that he could leave, Parker pulled his hand away from hers and stood.

“Where are you going?” she screeched.

He paused and looked at her. “I hope you get the help you need.” That was all he had to say, and he walked out.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Willow woke up to find Parker sitting next to her hospital bed. She glanced down at his hand wrapped around hers. When she shifted her gaze back to his, he smiled. She was going to miss that smile.

“Hey,” he softly said. “How are you feeling?”

“Oh, like I got shot.” She was going for levity but wished she could take the words back when guilt flashed on his face and in his eyes.

“I’m sorry.”

“For? You didn’t shoot me.” Her voice sounded really scratchy, like she was in the middle of a bad cold, but she was lucky to be alive, so she could live with a little croakiness. That she only had minor burns that wouldn’t even leave a scar on the back of her legs was a true blessing. Her last thought had been that she was going to be burned alive.

“I didn’t pull the trigger, but you were shot because of me. Almost died because of me.”

“No, I was shot by a woman who is obviously a violent psychopath.” Skylar had filled her in on Crystal’s background, and she couldn’t help pitying the woman. Skylar thought, and Willow agreed, that Crystal had been trying to replace her father.

He squeezed her hand. “You saved my daughter’s life. I don’t know how to thank you for that.”

“You just did. Skylar said Everly’s going to be okay, and that’s what matters. Does she remember anything?”

“Only that the mean lady made her drink a glass of milk.”

“That’s good. I’m glad she slept through everything.” She lowered her gaze to their linked hands again. “They’re releasing me in two days if I don’t have a relapse, and—”

“Already?” He frowned. “Maybe I should talk to the doctor.”

“Thankfully, the bullet didn’t damage any muscles or nerves, and there’s no reason for me to stay here. There’s no permanent damage to my lungs, and I just have to keep the wound clean and follow up with my doctor. My...um, my father will be here tomorrow. I’m going home to heal, then I’ll start checking out beaches. Decide where I want to live.”

She’d jumped at her father’s offer to fly down and then drive her home to Ohio. The sooner she was gone, the sooner she could get on with the business of healing her broken heart. She hoped salt, sand, and sea would help her with that, but she wasn’t sure even her beloved ocean would be enough to get over Parker and missing Everly.

“What if I want you to stay? What if I said I love you?”

“Oh, Parker.” Were those tears in his eyes? She knew he cared for her, but how could she trust that he loved her? “You said yourself that you want to be in love, that you fall too easily, and then later realize that you weren’t really in love. I know you’re grateful that I saved Everly, but gratitude isn’t love.” And she needed true love, to know that it was real. She didn’t have that with him.

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