Page 8 of Intimately Faithful

What on earth was going on?

She wore clothes that were ripped, shoes too big for her dainty feet and she was shaking, possibly from the cold, but the way her eyes continually went to the back of his church to check the door, alerted him to the fact Aoife was scared.

Nothing made sense and it wasn’t a feeling he welcomed.

Making sure her ankle was properly protected; he had the urge to put her foot in his lap. Instead he replaced the shoe and got back to his own feet, putting several inches between them until he was able to fill his lungs with air again. “That should help for now.”

“Thank you, Danny.”

A beat of silence drifted between them once again and Danny lost some of that fortitude patience he was known for.

Aoife had always been his hair-trigger.

She’d been a lot of things to him a long time ago, in another life which had her coloring every inch of it.

“Can I assume what has brought you to my door with trouble in your eyes has nothing to do with the dead husband?”

For a man of faith and forgiveness he should feel something other than relief hearing her husband was dead. It was downright wicked to be …pleasedto hear the news. For the life of him, he swore he’d say a prayer for his wickedness later, but for right then, he was simply the man who’d lost the girl to another man with the bigger pot of cash. The kind of man who could have given Aoife a life of wealth and privilege.

And yet she sat here in ratty clothes, bleeding from her foot.

Danny felt a stirring in his chest because while he loved God, he was still just a human being andfuck that guy. He’d hated him for years.

He couldn’t quite unpack what he felt for Aoife. Not yet.

“I just. I can’t. I don’t—” she tried three conversations starts and stalled. “It’s a long story and I’m so tired, and this little one needs a bed. I know it’s asking too much of you and I swear I’m sorry about it, Danny, but could we trouble you for somewhere to stay? I can be gone in the morning.”

His brow fell over his eyes and he felt his composure crumble like wet sand.

She wanted to leave without saying a word? Hell no.

When he looked at her, she was chewing on her lower lip. If she wasn’t careful she’d have no skin left. His thumb tingled to free her lip before any more damage was done to the delicate skin.

If not for witnessing how she was trying desperately to keep her head from falling on her neck, the tiredness dragging at her eyelids, Danny would have pushed her to say more than that. How did she expect him to not push when she was here after all this time and with a baby in tow and a dead husband and looking as she did?

He grabbed a much-needed settling breath into his lungs and stepped toward her.

Aware he was in her orbit and just how rapidly his heart was beating out of control at the nearness.

His best friend and onceeverything.

His brain couldn’t function on a normal frequency.

“Come on, let’s get you somewhere warm so you and the little one can sleep.”

She stood wearily, as if all her bravado had seeped out of her filthy tennis shoes and Danny had to rush forward to help her stay upright with a firm clasp to her elbow. “Careful now, can’t have you messing my floor.”

She laughed softly and for the life of him he wanted to smile back but it became stuck somewhere between his brain and his mouth.

“Thank you, Danny.”

“No need. Come on, it’s not far. I take it you don’t have bags?”

She shook her head, embarrassed.

Danny frowned.

“What have you gotten yourself into this time, Aoife?”

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