“I can feel you thinking,” Quinn says. Her hand rubs along the small of my back.
“Yeah, about how lucky I am.”
“And?”
“And how I’d kill to keep you safe.” It’s a dark admission but those are my honest thoughts.
“I know.”
I pull up short. Her frank acceptance surprises me. “You know?”
“Of course. It’s why I feel safe. It’s why I love traveling. There’s no place I can’t go without you by my side. I sleep well at night. I don’t worry about anything during the day. I used to feel bad about putting that burden on you, but then I realized that’s how you love me and if you didn’t get to protect me, it would get you down.”
Her assessment is so on point that I’m shocked speechless. She grins and winks at me. “You’re the sweetest, Daman.”
“I’ve killed people and maybe not all of them deserved it.”
“You did what you had to do to survive and quit before it took your soul. You’re a good man, my love. I’m proud to be your wife.”
A thick lump grows in my throat. I start walking—fast. Beside me, my wife giggles into a fist. I don’t need to ask what she finds funny. I know her like she knows me. She always thinks it’s hilarious whenever I get slightly uncomfortable by her praise. It’s something that I never really experienced before I met her. I never understood what love or happiness were until I first had Quinn and then our beautiful daughter. What started out as a killer crush with Quinn has turned into a life worth living.
* * *