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I scan her striking features as her face loses all color, and all the fight seems to leave her little body.
Gone is the defiant look of before and the determined set of her tiny shoulders. She looks impossibly smaller, and I just want to hold her.
I see tears spring in her eyes, and she starts to angrily wipe them off with the back of her hand.
I feel my heart pound in my chest, and the only thing that's keeping me from punching the asshole standing between us is my focus on her. For a moment, I see it all. I see the pain behind the facade. Then the walls come back up.
I've almost forgotten that we are not alone when the scumbag opens his mouth again, his voice full of spite.
“Whatever, live alone, die alone. You’re not worth it. You little sl—”
He doesn’t finish the sentence because I grab him at his nape and squeeze hard. “Not another word, Lowson.”
I push him away and send him sprawling on the floor.
He looks up sharply, a sneer on his mouth, but his expression changes to a much more neutral one when his eyes meet mine, and he recognizes me. I'm not only richer and more powerful in this city than he could ever be, I’m also easily twice as big as him. I could crush him physically and socially without breaking a sweat, and he knows it.
I don’t need to say a word. We both know what my face is saying.Back off! She is mine.
He puts both hands up. “Sorry, man, I didn’t know…” he mutters and slowly gets up.
“Just get the fuck out of here and never ever come near her again, Lowson,” I practically growl, staring down at him until we are eye to eye.
He gives me a bleary-eyed look and scampers away, finally leaving us alone.
She takes a look at me and retreats several steps. Her breathing is rapid and erratic, and her wide green eyes are shining with trapped tears.
Before I know what I'm doing, she is in my arms, and I'm holding onto her for dear life, her small body fitting perfectly to my much bigger one, her face buried in my chest.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
I feel her wag her head against my pecs, and then she takes a long, shaky breath. "I… I will be."
Her voice is but a whisper, and when I feel her arms snake around my back, I instinctively hug her even more tightly, and my lips find their way to her head on their own.
"Of course, you will be. I've got you," I tell her, kissing her hair.
I keep on holding her, and I don’t know how long we stay like this.
I feel her shaking a little bit less with each new beat of my heart until she is standing quietly in the circle of my arms, her soft shape molding to mine.
"Tell me your name," I say in a rush of breath against the shell of her ear, and I feel her shiver slightly.
She moves away a little and looks up at me. “Carina.”
I feel a big smile tug at my lips. "You are very aptly named," I tell her seriously, and she starts to laugh.
I smile even bigger. “What?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “Well, your pick-up lines are definitely better than his were.”
I nod smugly. "Well, of course."
She smiles as big as me, but I can see she is trying to put on a brave face. She is still pretty shaken.
“Why don’t we go get a bit of fresh air?”
It's a balmy night out, and we both could use a bit of quiet away from the noise and the fake glamour of the party.
