He pulled me into his body and I melted against his warm chest. “I’m not promising anything,” his deep voice rumbled.
I was afraid of that.
“If I’m genuinely feeling threatened or uncomfortable, then I promise to tell you,” I compromised.
He sighed but nodded, accepting my terms.
“Sal,” I said, propping my chin against his chest so I could look up at him. His dark eyes met mine and I felt something clench in my chest. I wanted to tell him I loved him, but I worried we’d both met our limit of emotion for the night. “Thanks,” I murmured.
I saw raw emotion flood his eyes as he put his hand on the side of my face. It was as though he knew what I really wanted to say. “Glad to be of service, babe,” he said as he grinned, lightening the mood.
I grinned back and dropped my head, ready to have sleep take me.
I woke up with a wicked headache the next day, but was otherwise unscathed by my night of drinking. Sal was already up, and I realized I must have slept late. He wasn’t much of an early riser.
“Coffee?” I mumbled, feeling grouchy when I wandered out to the kitchen. He was sitting at the bar reading and chuckled at me.
“Yeah, babe, there’s a fresh pot.”
“Thank God,” I grumbled, shuffling over to get myself a mug.
I sat next to him at the bar and sipped my coffee. He pulled my stool closer to his, put his arm around me, and pulled me in for a kiss. I loved it when he did stuff like that.
“We gotta talk about a few things.”
“Okay,” I agreed.
“Until we understand the state of play, we need to be cautious,” he explained. “With you, tactics have been the most aggressive and I don’t fuckin’ like it,” he growled. “I know you’ll say it’s too soon and give me any number of reasons why you can’t, but it would do a lot for my peace of mind if you’d agree to stay here,” he asked.
He was asking me and he was doing it nicely, Sal’s version of nice anyway. I could tell this really mattered to him and that he was worried. So, I gave in.
“Okay,” I agreed.
“I’m sorry, what?” he asked. His shock was nearly comical.
I shrugged. “I can tell this really matters to you, so okay,” I agreed once more.
His arm wrapped around me, and he pulled me into his side again, kissing the top of my head. “Thanks, baby. We’ll go to your place after you get dressed, get more of your stuff.”
“How much stuff are we talking?” I asked with a quirked brow. “How long till this blows over?”
He shook his head, “No way of knowing. I’d bring anything you might need and, I’d ask that you’re cautious with your surroundings. I’m going to take you to the bar and pick you up. But when you’re at the gym or just out in general, please be careful,” he said gruffly.
“Sal, that’s going to be a pain in the ass for you to have to drive me to work and pick me up,” I complained.
He shrugged. “Not a big deal. I’d do it if you asked me even if this wasn’t going on. You get off late; I don’t like the idea of you heading home alone regardless.”
Typical overprotective Sal, but I shrugged as though to say it was his time to waste.
“I should head over and see Scar today. She’s probably stir crazy being on house arrest,” I surmised.
“Yep,” Sal confirmed.
I sighed, feeling badly for my friend.
After I got dressed, Sal took me over to my place in the Charger to gather up more of my things.
“It looks like I’m moving in,” I said with a laugh when Sal hauled the huge suitcases into the trunk.