Page 37 of Property of Bones

“But you brought me back,” I whisper. “You saved me.”

Riley clears her throat, pulling Spike toward the door. “We’re gonna give you two a minute. Just don’t start making out and trigger her heart monitor or anything.”

“Riley,” Spike groans.

Jack waits until the door clicks shut before leaning in, brushing his forehead against mine. “You terrified me, Sunny.I’ve seen death. Delivered it. Stared it down more times than I can count. But nothing’s ever scared me like seeing you like that. It was as if my very heart died right along with yours.”

“You’re saying awfully romantic things for a broody biker,” I say softly, trying to lighten the moment. “You sure you’re not running a fever or something?”

He gives a broken little laugh but doesn’t pull away. “Nah. Just finally realizing that if anything ever happened to you… I’d never survive it.”

“Nonsense,” I say with a soft, breathy laugh, blinking up at him. “You don’t evenknowme. Not really.”

“Maybe not,” he admits, voice all gravel and regret. “And I sure as hell don’t deserve to know you. Don’t deserve to darken your life with mine. But that doesn’t change a damn thing.”

He brushes his thumb across the back of my hand, and even though I’m sore and still kind of floaty, my heart does this little flip.

“You’re mine, Sunny. I’ve known it since the second I laid eyes on you. Had I not fought it so hard, you might not have ended up where you are.”

My mouth falls open a little, because…what?

“You mean like...yours-yours?” I ask, tilting my head, my voice light but my heart hammering. “Because I think that’s usually the kind of thing you say after at least three dates. Maybe a movie and a shared milkshake?”

That earns me a real smile. A little cracked, a lot tired, but it’s there.And it’s perfect.

“Well,” I say, trying to be casual even though I’m grinning like a total goober, “guess it’s a good thing I’m already half in love with you, huh? I mean, can you be half in love with a stranger? Mama would say yes. But she just wants me to settle down and have babies. Anyway, I’ll shut up now.”

His smile fades. Not because he’s upset, but because something serious flickers in his eyes. Something deep.

“Sunny…” he murmurs, his forehead resting against mine again. “You scare the hell outta me.”

“I scareyou?” I giggle, absolutely delighted. “You’re like six-foot-something of terrifying biker energy, andIscareyou? I don’t even scare butterflies.”

“You do,” he says, quietly. “Because you make me want things I don’t think I deserve. Things I thought were off the table for me a long time ago.”

“Like cookies?” I tease softly.

He chuckles, but his grip on my hand tightens ever so slightly. “No, baby. Like hope.”

And that’s it. I’m done for.

Melted. Puddled.

“Everyone deserves hope,” I say, my voice catching just a little. I ignore the frog in my throat, blinking fast. “Life without hope is no life at all.”

Jack pulls back and looks at me like no one else ever has.

“When I saw you on the floor…” He breaks off, jaw clenched. “My soul went dark, Sunny. Just…gone. Like someone flipped the switch. I thought I’d lost you before I even had the chance toloveyou.”

My breath catches…again.

“It woke me up,” he says, voice rough, low, full of something so big it barely fits in the room. “Made me realize how fucking stupid I’ve been in thinking I was protecting you by staying away. Thinking I didn’t deserve you. That ends now.”

He leans in, forehead touching mine again, and I swear the whole world gets quieter.

“Be mine, Sunny,” he whispers, and it’s a plea wrapped in a promise. “Be my hope. Be my future. Be the reason I fight every damn day to keep going.”

Tears spill over my lashes before I can stop them.

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