Dulce

“Shhh, I’ve got you, Dulce.”

His words make me cry harder until I purge it all. After a few minutes, I’m feeling more like myself.

His hands slide up my arms to cup my face. He swipes the last of my tears with his thumbs before pressing a soft kiss to my lips.

“Why do I always end up crying on you?” I huff, making him grin.

He pulls back and flexes the muscles in one of his arms. “I have the perfect shoulders to cry on. I grew these babies myself, just waiting for the day a damsel in distress might need them.”

I laugh at him, his silliness the perfect antidote to what I’m leaving behind.

“Thank you.”

With an arm around my waist, he walks me to the passenger side of his car and pulls the door open.

“Never thank me for holding you. That’s my job. These arms are yours to hold you steady whenever you need them.”

“I’m not sure how to feel about being your job,” I tease as he walks around to the driver’s side.

“Well, I was going to say I love you but wasn’t sure if you were ready, so I deflected.”

He dips down and climbs into the car, his words hitting me like a fist to the face. I climb in beside him and look at him, even though he’s focusing his gaze forward.

“If it helps, when you tell me you love me, I’m going to say I love you back.”

He looks at me with a grin playing on his lips.

“Yeah, that helps a lot.”

* * *

“Did I leave my bag in here?” I look around as Griffen pulls up outside the prison and waits for the gates to open.

“On the floor behind my seat.”

I look behind him and, sure enough, there it is. I reach for it and tug it into my lap just as Griff opens his window.

“IDs, please,” the guard asks.

I rummage around in my bag for my wallet and pull out my ID for Everly and hand it over.

He scrutinizes it and me before handing it back over.

“Please follow the road around to the left and park in bay three.”

“You got it,” Griff agrees.

I wait until the car moves again before speaking.

“Seems like a cheerful guy. They all like that?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never been here before.”

That makes the reality of who we are coming to see sink in. To me, he’s just another mark, but to Griff, he’s the man who set out to destroy him.

“Fuck. I don’t want you to do this for me. That man is a monster. I don’t want him anywhere near you.”

“He can’t hurt me now, Dulce.”

“Can’t he? Are you telling me that just seeing him won’t feel like a blow to the stomach?”

“No, I don’t know how I’ll feel. But what I do know is I need—no, I deserve—some fucking closure.”

I open my mouth to call bullshit, but snap it shut again. Who the hell am I to tell him what he needs?

“Okay, if you’re sure, Griff. But just say the word and we’re out of there.”

“You trying to protect me, Dulce?” He grins, but I don’t miss the tightening of his fingers around the wheel.

“Always, Griff.”

The silence hangs between us as he parks. Turning off the ignition, he turns and faces me.

“This is going to suck, but I’m not the scared little boy he used to prey on anymore.”