Page 123 of Bennett

Laurel reached out and touched his face, her fingers light along his jaw, her thumb brushing just beneath his eye. “You showed up. You came when I needed you.”

“And I always will,” he said, pulling her into his arms, where she curled against him like it was the only place she wanted to be.

He rested his chin lightly against her temple, letting the silence stretch, letting his heart settle to the beat of hers.

After a moment, she pulled back just enough to look at him. Her hand still rested against his cheek, her fingers warm and sure.

“You can kiss me now,” she whispered, lips curving into something soft and real. “That’s the kind of hovering I don’t mind.”

He didn’t smile. He just leaned in and kissed her slow and steady, because it was the only thing in the world that made sense. Her hands slid into his hair, and he deepened the kiss without hesitation, pouring everything he couldn’t say into the press of his mouth against hers.

He’d fallen for her. Hard.

But after everything she’d been through today, Bennett decided to keep that to himself for now. There’d be time to say it, to lay everything out in the open. Because, yeah, he knew he wasn’t alone in this.

Right now, he was more than content to hold her, to kiss her, to show her exactly what she meant to him.

She didn’t shy away. She met him there completely.

And just like that, the storm in his chest finally quieted.

When he broke the kiss, he let the moment hold for as long as it could, his hands still wrapped around her, his forehead resting against hers, her breath steady and warm against his skin.

A knock at the door broke the silence.

Laurel stilled, the faintest hitch in her breath betraying she’d been waiting for it. She looked at him, and before he could ask, she answered with a whisper. “Don’t hate me. I asked Rylee.”

He leaned back slightly, eyes narrowing. “Asked her for what?”

“To bring him up.” Her voice was even, but there was something raw in it.

The air instantly thickened, heavy with everything Bennett didn’t want to feel right now.

Shit.

Theo.

He knew it was his cousin without her confirmation.

Bennett flexed his jaw, tension riding up the back of his neck. The man had saved Laurel, yeah, but that didn’t undo everything.

He inhaled slowly and deliberately and nodded once. If she wanted this—if she needed it—he’d see it through. He’d do it for her.

Laurel slid off the couch and padded to the door, the blanket still wrapped loosely around her shoulders like armor. She opened it quietly.

Theo stood in the hallway. No jacket. No swagger. Just the same haunted gaze Bennett had noticed downstairs.

He looked…tired. Like whatever fight he’d been running on was running out.

“Hey,” Laurel said gently.

Theo shifted his weight, glanced between her and the room behind her. “You sure?”

She didn’t hesitate, just stepped back and opened the door wider. “Come in.”

Theo crossed the threshold with quiet steps.

Bennett didn’t rise, didn’t speak. But his gaze followed every move. Calculating. Controlled. The soldier in him wide awake.

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