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I go to my training session, and when Lawson sees that I'm without Sully, he offers to loan Havoc to me for company for the next forty-eight hours of Sully's shift. I open my mouth to decline but take him up on it instead. Havoc and I have formed a friendship, and if I'm honest, I don't want to be alone in Sully's house, even with the Saints standing guard outside.

Havoc follows me like a shadow as I work the bar that afternoon and try to keep up with Ty's never-ending paperwork. One would think a bar fairly low maintenance, but between orders and vendor problems, invoices and employees, I can see why the man spends so much time there.

My phone buzzes, and I see Sully on the ID. I shake my head but smile, answering. "Don't you have better things to do than to constantly check on me?"

"Nothing is more important than you."

He sounds tired, and my heart pinches. "Busy shift?"

"Nonstop. And I am missing my girl."

"Mmm. Well, Havoc has taken your spot in the bed, just so you know." I hear him groan, but when he speaks, there's a smile in his voice.

"He better not be trying to take my sunshine away."

I roll my eyes at the play on words and lean back in the desk chair, my thoughts turning solemn. "Sully, what are we doing?"

I ask because it's scary. What I feel for him? How it grows every single day? This thing between us is building and building like a massive wave, and I'm scared I'll be crushed when it hits.

"What do you mean?"

I hesitate. Struggling to find the words. "I appreciate everything you've done for me, but…are you sure this is about me?" This question has plagued me for a while. "I mean…" I wipe a hand over my face and wish I could be eloquent and breezy. Sound smart and casual about a topic that is everything but. "You are the guy who plays the hero every day. Of course you want to help me but…"

"But how do you know what I feel for you is more than I'd feel for any other woman in the same situation?"

My eyes heat, and I blink hard. How swiftly he zeroes in on my fear. "Yeah."

I hate that I'm so distrusting. That Thad has broken that part of me internally. Forever altered it so that I question everything to the nth degree. Especially a man's intentions. I want to take Sully's words and behavior at face value, but having lived the life I have—I'd be stupid to do so. Wouldn't I?

I hear Sully inhale and know the phone call to check up on me has taken a turn he didn't expect. Now's not the time. Not when he's at work. But it's easier to talk this way, when we're not face-to-face, and when he's off work, he's always with me because of what's happened and…

"I guess time will build trust so that you know I've never felt like this for anyone. But don't worry. I can be patient when the prize is worth the wait."

It's another sweet sentiment I can add to all the others he's given me over the time I've known him. A reassurance that he is sincere and genuine despite my fears. "I'm sorry I brought it up."

"Why?"

"You're working. I don't want to distract you."

His rough, growly, toe-curling chuckle sends my pulse soaring.

"You are a distraction no matter what, baby girl."

My body warms. And I like that. God help me, I like it too much. Like him, too. And I wonder if Thad wasn't in the picture, if I'd feel free enough—brave enough—to reveal just how much. "Get back to work, and stop flirting."

"Take that mutt home, and get some rest," he orders.

I smile and can't keep the humor out of my voice when I ask, "Excuse me. Is Hollywood jealous of a dog?"

"I'm jealous of anything that gets time with my girl, especially in bed."

The call blasting my cell drags me out of the haze of sleep. I glance blearily at the clock, and it reads 4:54 a.m. Havoc is next to me, glaring at the sound as much as I am as I roll across Sully's big bed to grab it off the charger. "Hello?"

My parents' neighbor fills me in on what's happening, and I scramble from beneath the blankets, telling them I'll be there as fast as I can. I pull on leggings and a sweatshirt over the tank and shorts I wear for pajamas, and Havoc leaps from the bed when I head for the door. I latch his collar and grab my keys, opening the front door to find two of the Saints waiting for me outside, looking surprised by my sudden appearance. "Stay, or come with me. I don't care."

"Uh, I'll ride with you," one of them says, shooting the other a worried glance.

We head to my car. Havoc jumps into the backseat while I climb behind the wheel. I'm shaking hard and grip the wheel tight enough that my hands ache, but I welcome the fact I have to concentrate on something other than the news I just received.