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Add in the emotional state she’s in, and I don’t think it’s a good idea.
The metal chain clinks, a definitive sound that echoes in the tense silence of the café.
I press my palm against the door, making sure the lock clicks into place.
It’s nothing but a flimsy barrier between us and the outside world, but it’s all we’ve got.
Honestly, I should talk to her about installing a new door in the front and back.
The ones she has now aren’t exactly very protective.
Anyone could bust in with minimal effort.
Astra’s voice comes out low, like she’s struggling to keep her composure. She just stopped crying a moment ago, but I think she’s on the brink of it happening again.“Python,”
I turn and see nothing but fear in her eyes.
Her tattooed arms wrap around her like a shield.
“Hey, hey,” I say, moving toward her slowly. “Talk to me, girl.”
I can tell she’s a storm that’s about to break.
Her breaths come in hard and ragged. “I thought I’d be safe here, but he found me, and he’s not going to stop until he hurts me again. The way he was t-talking to me,” she shakes her head in fear.
I take her hands into mine, “He isn’t gonna hurt you again, Astra. I promised you that, and I’m a man who means what I say.”
She shakes her head, tears sliding down her cheeks in an effortless flow. “You don’t understand. He’s bad news. I didn’t realize it in the beginning, but he’s the kind of man who will always get what he wants. Who will do anything to get it.”
I shake my head, keeping my voice firm as can be. “He can try, but he won’t succeed. I’m not allowing it.”
Astra closes her eyes and more tears come sliding down.
I wipe away her tears. “He’s nothing more than a possessive man with a power complex issue. I can straighten that out, believe me.”
I might not have known her very long, but I’m the kind of man who will do anything to keep her safe.
It doesn’t matter if I have to bury him in the desert, I don’t give a shit.
The last thing he’ll be doing is tormenting the fuck out of Astra.
She opens her eyes, glassy and filled with tears she’s trying to hold back. “I just want this to be over. I came here for a new life. I didn’t come here to be tormented and afraid. He’s a monster,”
Nodding, I run my fingertips along her scar. “He might be, but you’ve got an even bigger monster in your corner, my dear.”
“You’re anything but a monster, Manuel,” she whispers, and I swear I can hear the crack in her heart. “All I wanted was to be free of him, to start over. He just can’t accept I left, that I don’t want him in my life.”
She swallows hard, and the tattoos on her arm shift with the movement, the Kraken’s tentacles seeming to tighten around her flesh. “Mexico was supposed to be my fresh start, my chance to leave all of that behind.”
I give her hands a squeeze, “Listen to me,” I get closer to her, close enough to catch the scent of coffee beans and baked goods from earlier in the day. “Youarestarting over. Right here, right now. Hell, you’re starting something with me. He won’t get through that door, and he sure as fuck won’t get through me.”
Her eyes lock onto mine, searching for something, but I don’t know what. “I don’t know why you care so much. I’m just some woman who owns a cat café.”
I chuckle lightly, “What can I say? From the moment I laid my eyes on you, I knew I wanted you to be mine. I’m the kind of man who protects those I care about, Astra.”
She has no reason to trust me.
Sure, I’ve been kind to her since I’ve known her, but that doesn’t mean jack shit.
