Page 25 of The Two Last Moments

She turns back.

“What if, instead of the hospital, you stay here with me and Nina? I’m no psychologist, but if you need emergency care, I’m your guy.”

Lark’s eyes are wide. Grassy green and innocent. Equal parts hope and fear.

Gah, what that look does to me.

But when she smiles, it’s all wicked humor. “You do seem pretty strong. You could handle me if I flip out again.”

“Do you think that’s likely?” I tease. “If so, maybe Iwillneed Matteo’s help. Two firefighters might be enough to handle you.”

“I’ll take it easy on you.”

“I would appreciate that. I haven’t been doing my usual weightlifting since I moved in here.”

“But youareserious?” she asks. “Really? If this is some kind of test, and I’m supposed to refuse to be a burden…”

“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t mean it. I was just talking to Nina about it. In fact, she insisted. Apparently I’ll be disowned if I don’t get you to stick around so she can make sure you’re all right.”

“What about what you want?” Lark asks softly.

“I want you here.”

Heat flares in my stomach. Maybe I should’ve chosen different wording. She glances around the foyer as a blush moves up her neck, as if she’s having the same thought.

“And I want to say yes. No, Iamsaying yes, because I don’t have many alternatives. But you would just do that for me? Some woman you don’t even know?”

I don’t want Lark to think… Fuck, that I would expect some kind of payment in exchange for helping her.

“We’re friends now, so I’m helping out a friend. It’s a big house. Plenty of space. You’d have your own room and bathroom.” Just in case she had any hesitation about sleeping arrangements. Any fleeting attraction I feel toward her is just that. Fleeting.

Some other man hurt this woman, and I’d never want to contribute to that. Even inadvertently.

She hesitates, then says, “Okay. Thank you. I want to contribute, though. I’m not sure if I can cook, but I can try. Or I could clean. Put me to work.”

“Your first priority is to heal. It’ll probably just be a day or two, anyway. We’ll find your people. I bet they’re looking for you as we speak.”

“And what about the guy in the car who ran into me?” Her eyes lift. “It happened just down the street from here. What if he comes back?”

Then I’ll fucking deal with him.

“Then it’s all the better that you’re staying here,” I say. “We have a strong security system on the house. I don’t like bullies, and Nina certainly has no patience for them. Think of me as a protective big brother. I’ll look out for you.”

Even as I say this, it strikes a wrong note within me. I don’t have brotherly feelings about her. But I should. I shouldn’t be having any other kinds of…urges. Not with an injured woman who needs a true friend more than anything else.

She’s off limits.Wayoff limits.

There’s a hint of reluctance in her face, but it’s gone in an instant. “Until I find my people,” Lark says.

“Until then.”

10

It turns out moving in with Danny and his grandmother is easier than I would’ve expected. For a day and a half straight, pretty much all I do is sleep. My sleep had been uneven at the hospital, and I must’ve been running on adrenaline and fumes.

Talking to Angela—Detective Murphy—took a lot out of me, too.

But my second morning here, I wake up feeling almost normal. Normal as far as I know, anyway. I have less than a week of memories to base that on.

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