"Then what about you…? Are you going to Easthaven to join your men? I know you, Sterling Thayer, and you will be an anxious mess, not being there with them, to guide and protect them."
"I will leave tomorrow," he said, wrapping his powerful arms around Faye and kissing her cheek. "I need to be sure you are alright and have a few details here to settle, then I will be going."
"But…I want to go with you."
Sterling shook his head. "No, Faye, I couldn't live with myself if something went wrong."
"I know," she said solemnly, quickly dropping the topic.
Remembering this was difficult for him, too. And she had already caused too many problems for him this morning by not listening. But she her heart was torn, knowing it would be several weeks before she saw him again.
Faye hesitated, her tiny voice reaching his ears. "I don't want to leave your arms," a soft, broken sob passes her lips. "Please, I…I want to stay with you."
