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“It wasn’t . . . it wasn’t good.” Understatement of the year. “It’s part of the reason that I try to spread kindness around, you know? Like, I figure if people start to pay it forward, then maybe in some small way, the world might become a nicer place.”
“Baby.” He drew her around so he could kiss her forehead. “I fucking hate that you went through that. When you said that someone in your past called you names . . .”
“Yeah, I was talking about the bullying. It was pretty bad. Sometimes . . . sometimes it even got physical.”
“Christ.” He drew her in, hugging her and rocking her back and forth. She took all of the comfort he was offering, soaked it into her skin and just held on as hard as she could.
“Give me every name.”
“What?” she asked, not following.
He drew back, one hand cupping her chin so he could tilt her head back and stare into her face.
“I want all the names of the people who bullied you.”
She stared up at him in shock. Then it occurred to her why he was asking.
“Gray, you can’t go after them.”
“Why not?”
“Be-because . . . because that was years ago! I’ve gone through college since then. I don’t . . . I don’t need you to avenge me.”
“I want to, though. Very much so.” There was a look of deadly promise in his eyes. And she knew she was dealing with the darker side of him. He wasn’t her Daddy right in that moment or her Grumpy Bear.
Nope. Right then, he was her champion, her protector, her dark demon.
She cupped his cheek. “I love that you want to do that for me, but I promise I don’t need it. I’ve gotten over what happened.”
The look he gave her was filled with doubt.
“You’re full of shit.”
Yeah. She totally was.
“Okay, I’m still working through some of it. I have a few lingering issues. But I’m trying to turn what happened to me into something positive. If I can make a small difference in other people’s lives, then what I went through will be worth it.”
He scowled. “Still want the names.”
She shook her head. “No.”
He turned her, backing her gently up against the wall. But rather than being intimidated, she just felt turned on. Her heart raced and she licked her lips. He leaned in, his arms bent and resting on the wall above her head.
“I can make you tell me.”
“Maybe. But you won’t.”
“Yeah? How can you be so sure, little girl?”
“Because I know my Grumpy Bear.” She ran her fingers up his neck then down along the top of his chest where his tattoos peeked out above the neckline of his T-shirt. “And he won’t force me to do something I don’t want to do.”
He grunted. “I want the names.”
“No,” she whispered.
That darkness glinted in his gaze again. “You’ll need to pay for telling me no.”
She gulped, excitement making her head spin. “How will you make me pay?”
