Page 69 of Sweet Heart for the Bear

Not ever.

And is that crazy?

Have I completely lost my damn mind?

Because logically, I should be freaking out.

I should be running for the nearest exit, screaming at the absurdity of all of this.

Instead?

Instead, I feel safe.

Like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.

And that thought terrifies me more than anything else.

“Carina?” Uzzi’s gaze is unwavering.

“Thank you for everything, Uncle Uzzi,” I begin, and I can almost feel Horace’s despair and it hurts.

A lot.

I move closer to him, and as I place my hand on his shoulder, I continue speaking to the older man, “but I am right where I want to be.”

Horace’s exhale is audible.

Kind of like a gasp.

His brown-black gaze is on me, and I swear, he is trembling with emotion.

And so am I.

“Very well. Until we met again.” Uzzi offers a slight bow in my direction before pinning Horace with his sapphire stare. “Talk to her this time, dear boy. Talk first.”

“Yes, Uncle Uzzi,” Horace replies, but his gaze never leaves my face.

I hear the door close with an audible click.

Chapter22

Carina

Then Horace stands, and I instinctively take a step back, my body reacting before my brain can catch up.

Only, I should have known better than that.

He is right there.

His big, warm hands find my waist in an instant, steadying me before I can so much as sway.

A shiver runs down my spine, not from fear, but from the sheer electricity that ignites under my skin whenever he touches me.

“Did you mean that, Carina?”

His voice is low, almost reverent, like he’s afraid of the answer.

I nod, no hesitation. “Yes.”

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