"Yeah," I say. "Do you mind if we do it in the morning? She's shaken up."
"Works for me." He gets the suspect into the back of the car, then pauses, turning toward me and lowering his voice. "You good, Dawes? You look like you want to put this guy through a wall."
I do. God, I do.
"I'm good," I lie.
Martinez doesn't look convinced, but he doesn't push. "Right. Nobody should touch a woman, but especially not yours." He nods and closes the door.
I try not to react to being told she's mine. Now's not the time for that. Instead, I watch the taillights disappear around the corner, and only then do I let myself turn back to Steph.
She's still shaking.
Troy catches my eye and gives me a small nod before stepping back, giving us space. Ace and Levi follow him inside, though I can see them hovering just inside the door.
"Steph." I cross the alley, hands visible, making sure she can see me coming. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she says again, but her voice cracks on the last word.
"You're shaking."
"I know." She lets out a shaky laugh. "I hate that I'm shaking. I hate he made me—" She cuts herself off, pressing her hands over her face. "God, I'm so stupid."
"Hey," I stop a few feet away, close enough to reach but far enough not to crowd her. "You're not stupid. You did nothing wrong."
"I froze," she says, dropping her hands. Her eyes are bright with unshed tears. "He grabbed me, and I just... froze. Just like with Carl."
"You didn't stay frozen," I counter. "You fought back. You told him to let go. That's not freezing, Steph. That's surviving."
She shakes her head. "You had to save me. Again."
"I didn't save you." I take a step closer. "I backed you up. There's a difference."
She's quiet for a long moment, just breathing.
"Thank you," she says. "For being here."
"Always." The word comes out rougher than I intended. "I meant what I said last night, Steph. You're not alone."
Something shifts in her expression. "The whole town thinks we're dating now."
"I know."
"There was a betting pool. Rachel won two hundred dollars."
Despite everything, I smile. "I heard about that."
"You heard about it?" She stares at me. "And you're not freaked out?"
"Why would I be freaked out?"
"Because everyone thinks we're together! Because I dragged you into this mess—"
"Steph." I close the distance between us. "I'm not pretending."
She freezes. "What?"
"I'm not pretending," I repeat, holding her gaze. "I haven't been pretending for a long time."
