The front door opens with a familiar creak that echoes down the hallway. I hear quick footsteps scatter into his home, and frantic voices are muffled by the walls.
“Where is she?” Catalina’s voice I recognize first, laced with panic.
Reed’s quiet response comes, steady but weary. “Bedroom. She’s resting.”
The floorboards creak closer and closer until the doorway is filled with soft light and familiar faces.
Catalina stops first, her chestnut eyes widening the moment she sees me sitting against the headboard.
She’s wrapped in Carter’s enormous hoodie, her hair’s tangled, and her eyes are swollen from crying as she gently touches her small baby bump.
Her eyes flick from the bruises starting to heal, and she lets out a sharp gasp.
“Oh, baby,” she whispers. Her voice cracks as shecrosses the room and drops onto the mattress beside me before I can even process it.
The bed dips under her weight, then she’s holding me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders.
“Cat—” I start, but my voice breaks on the first word.
“You don’t have to say anything,” she says quickly, her breath shaky against my hair. “You don’t owe us an explanation. You’re safe now, that’s all that matters.”
The scent of her lavender-and-vanilla perfume hits me, and it’s enough to finally break me open. The tears come suddenly and silently, and my body trembles as I clutch the front of her hoodie.
Amelia steps forward next, quiet as usual.
She kneels by the bed, her hand brushing my leg, then gently wrapping around my wrist. Her eyes shine, but her voice remains soft and steady. “We’re here, babe. We’re right here.”
I can’t stop trembling. “I—I didn’t know what to do,” I whisper, my words spilling out between gasps. “I thought maybe he’d change, that, ma-maybe he’d be different, but he just got worse.”
Amelia’s grip tightens on my wrist. “They always say they’re going to change,” she says softly. “They promise things will get better, but as soon as they get mad, they blame anyone but themselves. It’s not your fault, Layla. None of this is.”
Behind them, Maverick lingers in the doorway, shoulders tense, jaw clenched. He’s not his usual loud, chaotic self. His voice is calm as he asks, “You okay, sugar?”
I give him a small nod, tears forming in my eyes.
Carter steps in beside him, his expression grim yet gentle. “You’re safe here. We’ll make damn sure that fucker doesn’t get anywhere near you.”
Reed finally walks over and stands next to Carter, watching everything with red-rimmed eyes. He’s trying to stay steady, but I can see the tension in his shoulders and the way his hands keep flexing open and closed.
Catalina finally pulls back just enough to look at me, brushing the hair from my face. “You want to sit up, baby? You look pale.”
I nod feebly, and Reed steps forward quietly.
He adjusts the pillows behind me, being careful not to touch too much. The mattress dips slightly as he helps lift me upright, his arm steady at my back but never pressing.
“Easy,” he murmurs, voice barely above a whisper. “You’re okay.”
I look up at him through tears, my chest twisting. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “For bringing all this here.”
Reed shakes his head instantly. “Don’t you dare apologize, sunshine. You didn’t bring this. He did.”
Catalina wipes her eyes and looks toward the boys. “Coffee,” she says, her voice shaking but determined.
Amelia nods and stands up slowly. “And something to eat. I’ll help.”
As they leave, Reed sinks back onto the edge of the bed, his elbows resting on his knees. “You did the right thing, baby,” he says softly. “You did the right thing comin’ here.”
Catalina gives Reed a curious look after he just called me “baby,” then smirks, staying seated beside me, rubbing small circles into my back while whispering soft reassurances as the others move around the house.
