done the one thing that mattered most to him in the world—He’d protected Victoria.
Her sobs began to lessen but her body continued to tremble.
He enveloped her more fully. “You’re safe now,” he whispered. “I’m here.”
Her fists closed around the lapels of his suit coat, and she clung to him. “I thought you were the coachman, that he’d finally figured out where I was hiding.”
“He’s not here,” Tom murmured, pressing a kiss against her forehead. “Don’t worry anymore.” He wanted to tell her that he’d never let anything bad happen to her ever again, but he couldn’t. No one had the power to control everything, except God.
She finally pulled away far enough so that he could see her face. Tears still trailed down her cheeks. “Were you hurt? I realized they must have done something terrible to you for you to leave me all alone.”
“I’m fine.” He didn’t want her to worry about him. Now that he had her in his arms, his pain had dimmed to a distant ache. She lifted her hand to his cheek and traced a streak of dried blood.
He drew her hand away from his cheek to his lips. He laid a tender kiss against her knuckles. “All that matters is that I found you.”
Her eyes turned glassy. “I’m so sorry, Tom,” she whispered. “I’m sorry for not believing you about the danger. I’m sorry for not staying at Race Point like you asked. I’m sorry for making light of your concerns—”
He cut off her rambling with a touch of his fingers against her lips. “It’s not your fault.”
“Yes, it is. I’m so spoiled and thoughtless and stupid.”
“I pushed you away.” The words were hard to say. But he couldn’t hold back from her any longer. He had to tell her the truth about how he felt, even if it frightened him, even if she didn’t want him anymore.
Her eyes widened, and her lips formed around a response, but he spoke again before she could. “If I hadn’t pushed you away, you wouldn’t have made plans to leave the lighthouse.”
“You were just trying to do your job and protect me—”
“No. I’ve been a coward. Afraid to face the truth.”
Her brow wrinkled. “Truth?”
“The truth is”—he swallowed hard—“I love you.”
The lines in her forehead disappeared, and her honey-brown eyes rounded with wonder.
“When I thought I’d lost you…” His voice cracked. He cleared it and forced himself to go on. “When I thought you’d drowned, I wanted to drown too.”
She lifted a hand to his cheek, her fingers cool and soothing against his skin.
“I don’t want to live without you.” There he’d said it. And now that the words were out, they felt right.
She smiled, and her smile was filled with all of the sweetness and forgiveness that she offered so freely—and that he didn’t deserve. But maybe, as with God, it was time to finally stop condemning himself and accept the gift.
“Please don’t leave me,” he whispered, his voice turning thick, his need to wrap his arms back around her growing strong again.
“Okay,” she replied, tilting her smiling face up. Her easy acceptance shook him down to his soul. She offered no protests, no conditions. She never had. She’d never seemed concerned about all she might be giving up or the censure she would get from her parents or the outcast she’d become among New York society if she claimed a common man like him.
Tom knew she was naive and that they’d need to have a thorough conversation about their future together at some point. But for now, he was content to know she still wanted him.
He started to pull her back into his embrace when the distant echo of hoofs made his muscles tense.
“What?” she whispered.
The horse was traveling north. When it slowed its pace, Tom guessed Butch was returning after failing to find Victoria in North Truro.
“Wait here.” He slid her to the floor and stood. When she began to rise, he motioned her back. “Please, Victoria. Stay here and let me handle this.”
She sat back down, and fear flitted through her pretty eyes. “Is he coming back for me?”
Tom nodded. “He’ll look in here first.” With the door torn away from the hinges, Butch would suspect that someone had come to help Victoria, especially if he saw the horse by the warehouse. If Tom could catch him by surprise and disarm him first…
He unsheathed his knife and made his way to the back door. He flattened himself against the moldy wall and tried to hide