“I—yeah.” I nodded too fast. “I think so.” My voice was paper-thin.
“You’re trembling.”
“Of course I’m trembling. That guy looked like he eats bricks for breakfast.”
Rafael’s mouth ticked up at the corner, just a little. “You shouldn’t have to deal with people like him alone.”
It hit me low in the gut. Not just the words. The way he said them. Like I mattered. Like I was worth protecting.
“Walk me home?” I asked.
He nodded. “Yeah.”
We walked in silence. Not awkward, but heavy. Like something unspoken stretched between us, humming louder with every step. Our shoulders brushed now and then. Each time, my body buzzed.
I stopped at my door, fumbling with the keys. “Thanks again,” I said. “I mean it.”
Rafael shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. “You shouldn’t be dealing with someone like that. What the hell’s going on, James?”
I stiffened. “It’s complicated.”
“I can handle complicated.”
“No offense, but I’ve been handling it on my own for a long time.”
He didn’t speak. Just stared at me. My pulse skittered.
“I’m tired,” I admitted, quieter now. “Tired of pretending everything’s fine.”
I hesitated. “You wanna come in?”
His jaw tightened. “James…”
I didn’t let him finish. I leaned up and kissed him. Soft, at first. Hesitant. A question. Then he kissed me back, harder and hotter, like he’d been holding himself back for weeks and finally let go.
His hand came around my waist, tugging me in like he couldn’t bear any space between us. My back hit the door with a soft thud.
I gasped into his mouth, and his tongue swept in, tasting, taking, devouring.
My fingers curled in his jacket, fisting the fabric, pulling him closer, closer still. His thigh slid between mine, and my hips rocked forward before I could stop them.
My body lit up, desperate and alive. I moaned into his mouth, breathless and aching.
I could feel his bear just under the surface. It wasn’t violent or out of control. It was hungry. Possessive in a way that felt like protection. Like safety.
I didn’t feel scared. I felt seen. I felt wanted. He kissed like he meant it. Like he needed it. I broke the kiss first, panting. My lips were swollen. My heart was a wild animal behind my ribs.
“James,” he rasped, voice low and wrecked, like I’d taken something from him and he didn’t know how to ask for it back.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I shouldn’t?—”
He didn’t let me finish either.
He pressed his forehead to mine. “I’m the one who should be sorry. For not showing up sooner.”
I swallowed hard. My pulse thundered through every part of me. “How did you even know I was in trouble?”
His hand slid up to my jaw, his thumb brushing lightly over my cheekbone like he couldn’t stop touching me.
