Page 86 of Lonely Heart

“You did a hell of a job, son,” my dad said, stepping forward and clapping a hand on Marco’s shoulder. “I saw that asshole in the back of the police cruiser. You did a number on him.”

“If I hadn’t been so concerned about her, I’m not sure I would have stopped when I did. But Ivy needed me, and helping her was more important.”

My dad gave Marco a nod of approval before allowing his eyes to dart between the two of us. “For what it’s worth, you both have my blessing.”

“Thanks, Dad,” I said, stepping forward and wrapping my arms around him.

Over the next few minutes, Marco and I received words of encouragement about our relationship and relief about what happened tonight from the rest of my family.

In the midst of it all, Cooper and Liam managed to get my window all boarded up as a temporary fix.

And finally, I took a moment to talk directly to Marco. “I don’t want to stay here.”

“We’ll leave as soon as you’re ready.”

Shaking my head, I clarified, “I know that. But I mean, I don’t want to stay here ever again. I can’t. I want to leave here and never come back.”

Marco shot me a look of concern, holding my gaze for several beats. Then he dipped his chin, pressed a kiss to my forehead, and promised, “We’ll figure it out. Whatever you need, I’ll make it happen for you.”

I leaned my weight into him, and Marco happily took it. A few minutes later, we gathered up the things I’d need for the next couple of nights, said goodbye to my family, and took off toward Marco’s place.

He held my hand the entire way there.

23

MARCO

“I’msorry I wasn’t there.”

Nothing about this day had gone anything like I’d planned. I’d anticipated leaving work, picking Ivy up, and coming back to my place, so we could discuss our plans to reveal the news of our relationship to her family, and ultimately, mine.

But that never happened. We didn’t need to have that discussion.

And while there was a part of me that was relieved to know it was out in the open now, there was the other part of me that wished things had gone according to our original plan.

The amount of guilt I felt was nearly unbearable.

Ivy and I were back at my place now, and we were sitting here on the couch, after having some dinner, the television on for some background noise. No sooner had we finished eating and set our plates aside, Ivy repositioned her body and rested her head in my lap.

For the first few minutes, I merely stroked my fingers through her hair and allowed a bit of gratitude to seep in. Thankfully, she was here with me. Thankfully, she hadn’t been hurt worse.

But once the appreciation I felt had enough time to settle, and I continued to take in all the marks on her face and the exhaustion in her body, regret creeped in and consumed me. There was so much I wished I’d done differently. I wished I would have told Liam I couldn’t stop and talk with him. I wished Ivy and I would have found a way to tell everyone the truth sooner. I wished I would have been able to get to her faster than I had.

With my apology lingering in the air, Ivy pulled her attention away from the television, shifted her head in my lap, and looked up at me. That angry purple bruise on her cheek, which had endured two rounds of icing so far, was a reminder of how horribly I’d failed to protect her.

Ivy, to her credit, had been taking it all in stride after we left her place. She hadn’t exactly been as talkative as usual, but she wasn’t spending her time wallowing in self-pity, either. Despite how horrifying the entire ordeal had been, she was still the toughest woman I’d ever known, still putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward.

Her concerned stare was fixed on mine. “What did you say?”

“I apologized for not being there. I’m sorry I didn’t get there sooner tonight.”

Ivy’s head might have been pointed in my direction, but her body had been facing the opposite way. Recognizing the seriousness of the conversation, she shifted her body. And I watched as she winced with her movements.

“What happened tonight is not your fault,” she said, her voice troubled.

“I realize I didn’t exactly drop that guy off at your place and let him in, but I should have been there for you.”

Even through the devastating events that occurred tonight, Ivy insisted on using logic. “You couldn’t. You were already on your way before he got there. You couldn’t have done anythingmore than you did tonight. And let me just say, what you did tonight means the world to me, Marco.”