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“Well, I think it’s great that you branched out on your own.”
“What about you, Dove? What scares you?”
I close my eyes. “I’m afraid to tell you.”
“Why? Do I scare you?”
“A bit,” I admit. “But not in a bad way.”
“Good.”
I turn so I can see him. “If I tell you who hurt me, you have to swear that you won’t do anything.”
“I’m not sure I can make that kind of promise, but I swear I’ll do my best.”
I know it’s probably not enough. I should get up and leave, but I don’t want to. He scares me, but he also makes me feel safe. It’s confusing, but I decide to trust my gut.
“My dad has always had… issues. He drinks too much and spends all of his money on his addictions.”
“He hurt you?”
I nod once.
“I know it’s not safe there, and I know that one day he’ll get angry at my little brother and maybe even my little sister.” I blink back the tears in my eyes. “That’s why I’m going to school, even though it’s going to take forever for me to get a degree. And that’s why I work three jobs. Because one of these days I’m going to have enough money to get my siblings and myself out of his house and never look back.”
He pulls me close, kissing the top of my head. “I’ll make sure of it.”
I want to ask what he means, but I don’t because I feel so freaking secure. At the moment, I don’t care about anything except that he’s still holding me close and that I feel safe. Right now, I’m not Dove, the protector of all. I’m just a woman being held by a man. A very handsome man whose arms feel like heaven.
“Do you want to watch a movie? We can order in lunch and just chill.”
I grin. “Are you asking me to Netflix and chill, Professor?”
He grins back. “Yes.”
Holy hotness.
“Yeah, let’s find something to watch.”
He leans away for a moment, grabbing the remote from the side table. I’m pleased when he puts his arm back around me. He lets me pick what we watch and laughs when I choose a murder documentary.
“Interesting pick. Should I be worried?”
“They help me unwind.”
“Is that what you’re doing?”
“Yeah.”
He gives me a lazy smile. “When I unwind, I usually take off my work clothes and put on gym shorts.”
My cheeks burn. “I don’t have any gym shorts with me.”
“You can borrow a t-shirt. It will probably fit you like a dress, but I’m sure it will be comfortable.”
My brain screams that this is dangerous territory, but I can’t stop myself from asking, “And you’ll put on your gym shorts?”
“Sure will.”
