She offered me a faint smile that made my chest squeeze and then stepped out of the bathroom. I fought the urge to wrap my arm around her. I wanted to comfort her, but I wasn’t sure what she’d want or need right now.
We walked in silence out of the library that felt suddenly oppressive with the weight of everything that had happened in the last ten minutes paired with the combined stress of all the students cramming before exams.
Once we were outside, the cool, early spring air felt rejuvenating. It had stopped raining, but there still weren’tmany people walking around. We headed toward her dorm, taking our time, even with the threat of more rain hanging in the air.
“Thanks, Li,” she whispered as we got closer to her dorm.
“For what?”
“For being here.”
I grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I’ve always got your back; you know that. Drew would kill me if I didn’t protect you.”
For a second it almost looked like she was disappointed before her expression shifted and a soft smile lifted her lush, pink lips. She didn’t say thank you again, but her gratitude was written all over her face.
We kept walking, occasionally passing other students, guys giving me up nods and girls giving me flirty smiles. Usually, I’d give them a quick nod or a casual smirk back. I was a hockey player, and frankly, I enjoyed the attention, especially from women. It was easy, low-stakes fun.
But tonight, the attention was nothing but an irritant. I ignored them completely, not breaking my stride or turning my head. My only focus was the small, fragile figure walking beside me. The girls’ heads turned, confused by the abrupt dismissal, but I didn’t care. They didn’t matter. None of them mattered.
They never had.
“Are you cold?” I asked, noticing she was rubbing her arms through her hoodie. I hadn’t noticed earlier that she didn’t have a jacket. Montana was in that weird spring season where it could still be frigidly cold or it could be a relatively warm forty to fifty degrees, which was sweater weather after the well-below-freezing winter.
“A little,” she admitted. “I knew I should’ve brought my jacket just in case.”
Without thinking, I shrugged off mine—a thick, black Carhartt my mom got me for Christmas—and draped it gently over her shoulders. The thing was massive on her, the sleeves covering her hands completely, making her look even smaller. She was five seven, but compared to my six three, she was petite. She smiled up at me, and warmth filled my chest seeing her smile almost back to normal.
The simple intimacy of her wearing my clothes, breathing me in, sent a low, unexpected jolt through me that wasn’t protective—it was purely male, purelymine. I squashed it down instantly. This was not the time for my brain to go there.
Ava was off-limits.
Always had been.
Always would be.
“We’re almost there,” I said, focusing on our destination.
“Thank God. I just want to be in bed, under the covers, and pretend this day never happened.”
We reached her dorm building a few minutes later. She paused by the front door, but I stopped her before she could even say anything.
“Don’t even think about it, Aves. I’m walking you all the way to your door.”
She shook her head and mumbled, “Overprotective ogre.”
I bit back a smile. She had no idea. When it came to her safety, I’d always be overprotective. When we got up to her room, she spun around to face me, looking drawn and tired. The day had taken a toll on her that I wished I could erase.
“Seriously, Liam. Thank you. That was humiliating, but I think it would’ve been worse if you hadn’t been there.”
“Hey,” I said, reaching up to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. My thumb grazed her cheek, and I felt the lingering moisture from her tears. I didn’t pull away immediately, even though I knew I should. Instead, I let my hand rest there for a second, silently conveying everything I couldn’t say out loud.I will always protect you. I will always be here. You are everything good in the world and he was an idiot.
Since I couldn’t say that, I said, “You’re Drew’s twin, which makes you family. That means you’re protected, no matter what. And besides,” I added, forcing a lighter tone and finally dropping my hand, “I have to look out for you. Drew’s too busy changing diapers now to beat up random guys in the library. That job falls to me.”
She smiled again, but her gaze dropped down to the floor, and I felt cold without her hazel eyes looking at me.
“Do me a favor and don’t mention this to Drew. I know that probably goes against bro code, but he’s got enough on his plate. He doesn’t need to worry about this.”
I didn’t like the idea of keeping it from him, but I figured he’d find out eventually when Ava never mentioned Chris again. “I guess I can agree to that.”
