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I throw some money on the table, grab my son and take off after her. She’ll be on foot, so I know she won’t get far, but she’s got a head start on me.
As I get outside the ice cream parlor, I see her rushing up the sidewalk.
“Hang on, buddy,” I tell Coop and take after her at a run, my kid pressed against my chest.
I catch up with her quickly. I have the height advantage, which gives me a longer stride.
“Nia, wait.” I grab her arm, pulling her up short and I turn her to me. There are tears staining her cheeks and I hate that they’re there.
“Please don’t walk away. Not like this.”
She peers at me through tear-stained lashes. “I can’t put you at risk. I can’t. This has to end until this passes over.”
“No,” I tell her. “We’re in this together. Whatever danger is coming your way, we’ll fight it together. Please don’t say this is over.”
For a moment, I think she’s going to argue with me further, but then her shoulders slump.
“If anything happens to you, to Cooper…”
I pull her against me, one armed, my other holding my son against me and I bury my head in her hair. “Nothing is going to happen, sweetheart. I promise. Let me take care of this, of you.”
“Jared… whoever did both break-ins means business and I don’t think they’re going to stop harassing me until they get whatever it is they want from me. I refuse to put you in the middle of my problems.”
While I agree with her assessment, I disagree with her words.
“No, I need you in my life. Things finally are starting to make sense and that’s because of you. Please don’t walk away from this, from something that has the potential to heal us both.”
I hold my breath while I wait for her answer, holding her tightly to me, scared to let go in case she doesn’t come back.
I feel her nod her head beneath my chin and relief fills me.
Thank God.
“I’ll take care of you, Nia. I will, I promise. Nothing is going to happen to any of us.”
“Okay,” she whispers against me, her hand sifting through Coop’s hair, the other clinging tightly to me.
I never expected to find peace after Robyn’s death, but taking care of Nia fills that empty space I have. I need her like I need my next breath. In a short time she’s become part of my life, part of my existence and I can’t let her go. I refuse to. She’s mine as much as I’m hers, and nothing—not even whoever has it out for her—will change that.
