He frowned when he realized it wasn’t his sweet Nell coming up to the door. It was Stef Talbot.
The door was open, and he could see the big artist plainly through the screen. Stef Talbot was also known as the King of Bliss. This was his town, and he ruled over it more than any mayor ever would, though Henry thought Stef might find Rafe harder to deal with than Hiram had been.
He should have known this meeting was coming. He’d sat across from Stef a few days before when he’d debriefed Rafe after he’d officially taken the mayor’s job. He’d made the decision to bring in Stef and inform him of the situation. Stef hadn’t said much at the time, merely asked to be kept up to date.
He should have known Stef would want this conversation to be private. “Come on in, Stef. Nell isn’t here, but then I think you probably know that.”
“She’s at Laura’s.” Stef stepped inside. “At least that’s what I’ve heard. I also heard about the scene at the clinic earlier today. I thought it might be a good time for us to talk.”
“All right.” His every nerve was on edge, and he needed to chill because showing Stef Talbot how dangerous he could be wouldn’t help his case. “I thought I explained everything during the briefing, but I can certainly answer any question you have.”
Stef was a tall man. He had a couple of inches on Henry, and his body was corded with lean muscle. Unlike most men, he didn’t find the artist physically intimidating. It was the influence Stef had over the town Henry loved that made him truly dangerous. “I’m afraid I spent most of that meeting in shock. I needed some time to think. You threw me for a loop, Henry.”
“You know who I am. You just didn’t know who I used to be.”
Stef stared at him for a moment. “Did you come to my town to hide?”
There was the arrogant king. He didn’t blame Stef. He knew pretty much everything there was to know about his neighbors, and Stef’s need to protect the town, to claim it as his, came from his childhood. Stef had been given all the comforts of wealth, but his mother had been completely out of his life and his father had been distant as well. This town had raised Stef, had given him a harbor in the storm.
The way it had for Henry.
“I originally came because Bill was the only person I thought I could talk to.” His first instinct had been to tell Stef it wasn’t his business and to get out. But that was the Bishop in him. Henry talked his problems through with friends. God, he hoped Stef was still his friend. “I was at a crossroads. I hated what I’d become, but I didn’t know what I wanted. The Agency was all I’d known at that point. I went from foster care to the Army to the Agency. When I left, I was responsible for many operatives, many missions. I had power at the Agency, but I met Nell and I realized it was hollow. My power was nothing in the face of her belief. I didn’t come here to hide. I came here to find myself.”
Stef seemed to take that in. “You love Nell.”
It wasn’t a question, but Henry found he had a need to answer. “I love her more than I’ve loved anything or anyone in my life. She’s the best part of me, the only part of me I’m proud of.”
“All right. I’m sorry to question you. My wife laughed when I asked her what she thought.”
“What did Jen say?”
“She said you ate too much tofu to not be in love,” Stef said, a smile finally creasing his face. He sobered quickly. “How much danger are we in?”
“If they come, they’ll come looking for me. If I can’t handle them, then I’ll let them take me.” He’d gone over and over it in his head. “If I thought they would leave my wife alone, I would go. I can’t know what intel they’ve gathered. If they know about Nell, they’ll use her against me.”
It was what kept him up at night. The idea of his wife and their unborn child in the hands of the cartel wrecked him.
“Are you working with Nate on a plan to keep her safe?” Stef asked. “Should you two be out here on your own?”
“To be honest, I’m afraid to tell my wife she’s going to need security. She’s already upset with me.” He nodded toward the sofa where his blankets and pillows were sitting neatly folded. “As everyone in town could tell when she screamed about her cervix in the parking lot of the clinic.”
That got Stef’s brows to rise. “Yeah, that doesn’t sound like Nell. I mean, who hasn’t heard her yell about female parts, but she’s typically upset the patriarchy is trying to control her uterus.”
“She didn’t want me at her appointment.” He couldn’t stand the fact that she hadn’t taken comfort in him. It had become a point of pride that he was the one she turned to. He hoped Laura had held her hand during the exam. He’d wanted so badly to be in there with her, to ask questions and listen for the heartbeat. He hoped Caleb had been able to find it quickly because she would be worried if he had to search for it for long.
Had he had any right to get her pregnant? To put her through all of this for the simple fact that he longed for a child with the woman he loved.
“I need to know what your plans are,” Stef said quietly. “Are you going to take care of this?”
“I’m not sure how. If I turn myself in
