Page 59 of Forged

“How do you know that will happen?”

She grins. “Experience.”

We walk together toward the front door, and inside, the noisefades. The air smells like coffee and disinfectant with something metallic underneath. Shelby leads me down a short hallway and into a quiet room tucked away from the main space.

The room has soft lighting and almost looks like a comfortable living room, with a couch and a couple of low tables. I stand there stupidly for a second, unsure what I’m supposed to do next.

Shelby leans against the doorframe, arms crossing loosely. “So,” she says. “First time in a car chase?”

“Yeah.”

I hesitate, the question slipping out before I can stop it. “Is this…normal?”

Shelby shrugs. “Normal foreveryone? No. Normal for women who fall in love with men like ours? Yeah. Unfortunately.”

“Oh, we’re not in…” I pause because I’m really not sure how I feel when it comes to that word yet. “You just…accept living this way?”

She studies me for a moment, then softens. “We don’t accept the danger. We accept reality. And we make damn sure the men we pick know how to protect us. I think you have a capable man in that department.”

I don’t have a response for that. My body finally seems to realize it’s allowed to stop running, and when it does, the floor drops out from under me, and my hands start to tremble.

Shelby notices instantly. “There it is,” she says gently. “Sit.”

I sink onto the couch, my breath going uneven now that there’s nothing left to focus on. The images of the past thirty minutes replay in my mind. Shelby crouches briefly in front of me, presses a cold bottle of water into my hands.

“He’s on his way,” she says. “He’s already inside the gates.”

I nod, swallowing hard. “I was fine,” I say, not even sure who I’m convincing. “I wasn’t scared until now.”

“That’s usually how it goes,” she replies. “You want me to stay?”

I shake my head. “No. I think…I think I just need him.”

Her expression warms. “Yeah. You do.”

She stands, squeezes my shoulder once. “I’ll give you privacy. Welcome to the world of organized crime, sweetheart. Sorry this was your introduction.”

She starts for the door just as Lars enters the room.

He rushes into the room and drops to his knees in front of me without a word, hands coming to rest on my thighs, forehead pressing to my chest like he needs the contact as much as I do. The sight of him like this—controlled, dangerous Lars reduced to relief—undoes whatever composure I had left.

“I’m here,” he says, voice low. “You’re safe.”

That’s when my body gives up.

The adrenaline drains out of me so fast it makes my vision blur. My fingers tangle in his hair, holding on as my chest tightens and my breath breaks apart.

“I didn’t feel fear until now. I just kept driving,” I whisper.

“I know,” he murmurs, arms wrapping around me, pulling me into his chest. He rocks us gently, grounding me. “You did exactly what you were supposed to do.”

My face presses into his shoulder, the smell of him anchoring me. “I don’t like that this is part of your world.”

His hand moves slowly up and down my back. “I don’t like that you were pulled into it.”

We stay like that for a long moment, my shaking easing as his presence does what it always does—making me feel safe and seen.

When I finally pull back, his eyes are on my face, hands in my hair. “You don’t have to be strong right now,” he says quietly. “I’ve got you.”