Jenna didn’t run. She froze, real fear in her eyes. Fuck.
“Firefly. Look at me.”
She stared blankly at the broken picture.
I stepped in front of her, hands loose at my sides. “Look at me.”
Her eyes shifted to mine and she blinked, awareness and tears filling those beautiful blues.
“Come here?” I opened my arms, feigning calm.
She took a step and fell into my chest, her body trembling against me. I carefully wrapped my arms around her, and when she didn’t pull away, I tightened them, enfolding her in my embrace. “You’re safe. I’ve got you.”
She nodded against my chest and sniffled. “I know. I’m okay.”
That damn word again. “Better than okay. You did great.”
“Sorry I broke your picture.”
“No big deal. It’s just a frame. I’m sorry for pushing you too far. You did so well, though. That was a great move to throw the remote at me.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I’m really proud of you.”
“Thanks. You didn’t push too far. It’s just...me.”
“Want to relax on the couch for a bit?”
Jenna nodded against my chest, and I led her to the couch. I held her for just a quick moment before I hurried to clean the glass. She came to help, of course, despite my insistence that she stay safely on the couch. We let Thor in, and then I finally got to sit and hold her. Jenna curled up against me, and Thor jumped up to sit on the other side of her. He nudged my hand, and I gave him a pat.Yeah buddy, we got her. She’s safe between us.
Only a couple of minutes passed before Jenna pushed away and sat up. “Sorry for freaking out. I’m okay now.”
“You don’t need to apologize, and you don’t need to be okay.” I was the one who should apologize for doing too much too fast. What if that moment of panic set her back more than the practice helped? Should I address her freezing, or would that make it worse? I knew she didn’t want me to make a big deal about herfreaking out, as she put it, but this was different. This was for her safety.
“Crying isn’t going to change anything. What do we need to do next?”
We did have things to do, but was I really going to let her brush it off like that? I sighed. “These big shoulders should be good for something. They’re yours to lean on—or cry on—anytime.”
“Thank you.” Jenna flashed me a quick smile. “So, what’s next?”
I tried to smile back, but it fell flat. I’d let it go for now; there’d be time later to talk about it. Right now, I’d give her whatever she needed. Whatever made her feel better. Plus, we really did need to go to the police station. “Next, we talk to the cops.”
Jenna popped up, looking more like herself, and went to get ready.
A few minutes later, I heard her cry out.
“Jenna!”
“In the bathroom.” Her voice sounded distorted. Fuck.
I raced upstairs, barreled through the door, and found Jenna leaning on the counter, almost doubled over. “What’s wrong?”
She looked up, tears streaming down her face, something clutched in her hand.
“What is it, Firefly?”
“It’s…it’s…” She could barely catch her breath to speak. “It’s your deodorant.”