“I think he’s got the stealth snakes handled,” I joked.
She narrowed her eyes at me. “No. Help him with how scared he is. He’s freaking out.”
I looked over at Troy, who was now checking behind the curtains with exaggerated caution as Olive hopped up onto a low windowsill to peer out, and realized Aimee was right. His movements were jerky, his breathing shallow. He was really upset.
“Stay here,” I told Aimee, pressing a kiss to the top of her head before easing her off my lap. “I’ll be right back.”
I crossed to where Troy was peering into our coat closet, his shoulders rigid with tension. Without warning, I wrapped my arms around him from behind, pulling his back flush against my chest.
“You don’t have to be scared anymore, baby,” I whispered, not entirely sure where the pet name had come from.
“Scared? This is just appropriate caution!”
“We were both there when you climbed me like a tree back in Aimee’s apartment,” I murmured against his ear, feeling some of the tension leave his body as he recognized my touch.
Troy let out a surprised laugh, turning in my arms to face me. “I was seeking tactical high ground,” he shot back, but his voice was shaky. “Not my fault you lack basic survival instinct.”
I softened, cupping his face in my hands and tilting his head up to meet my eyes. “Hey. You can climb me like a tree any time you like, okay? Snakes or no snakes.”
His dark eyes searched mine, vulnerability flickering across his features. “Even when I’m being ridiculous?”
“Especially then,” I said, and kissed him.
It was different from our frantic kisses in the elevator—slower, deeper, meant to ground him. Troy melted against me, his hands gripping my shirt as he kissed me back with desperate relief. I poured everything into it, trying to tell him without words that he was safe, that I had him, that being afraid didn’t make him any less brave.
When we finally broke apart, Troy’s breathing had evened out, though his fingers were still twisted in my shirt. “Fuck,” he breathed. “How do you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Make everything feel less scary.” He leaned his forehead against mine. “I know it’s stupid. I pull people out of burning buildings, but put me in a room with a snake and I turn into a five-year-old who just saw a clown.” He frowned. “As a note, I’m also not fond of clowns.”
“It’s not stupid,” I said firmly. “Everyone’s afraid of something. You just happen to be afraid of… what did you call them? Legless reptiles.”
“Legless death noodles,” he corrected, and I grinned.
“Whatever you want to call them.” I pulled him closer, pressing another quick kiss to his lips. “But right now, we need to focus on Aimee. If she’s admitting she wants our help, she must be really fucking scared.”
Troy’s expression darkened instantly, all traces of fear replaced by protective fury as we both turned our attention back to Aimee, sitting on either side of her.
Aimee made a sound that might have been a laugh or a sob. “I’m sorry. I’m being ridiculous. You don’t have to—”
“Stop,” I said firmly, pulling back to look at her face. “You’re not being ridiculous, and you haven’t ruined anything. Someone left you a package full of snakes and a threatening note. That’s fucked up, Aimee. And terrifying. If anyone has ruined anything, it’s that asshole.”
“Didn’t help that that guy started pounding on the door right after I opened the box,” she muttered. “Do you think he brought the snakes?”
“Jordan? No. We’ve hung out with him a few times. He’s an idiot, but not that kind of idiot, I don’t think,” I said, frowning.
“Maybe we’d better have the cops follow up with him, though,” Troy added.
She shuddered, her soft body pressing close to mine. “If it’s someone in our building…”
“We’ll get the police over here and find out who did this. Make sure your apartment is secure. Do you think the snakes are from the same bully you mentioned the other day?” Troy asked.
“I don’t know. The language seemed the same, but I get those kinds of emails pretty regularly. After a while, you just learn to ignore it. There’s nothing you can really do to stop it.”
“Fuck, Aims. That sucks,” I whispered, wrapping my arms around her. There was nothing more I wanted to do right now than sit with her and hold her until she stopped looking so fragile. Aimee almost never looked unsure of herself, and it was heartbreaking to watch her fall apart.
“Clearly, I should have taken him more seriously, but I thought it was just keyboard warrior bullshit, you know? I never thought he’d actually…”
