Curtis changed his shoes and walked over to her, his gaze softening as he tilted his head to examine her expression. "Have you been crying?" Leanne wanted to deny it. She thought that the emotional surge from her nightmare earlier didn't count as crying.

Before she could respond, Curtis continued, "You were crying when you called me, weren't you?"

Despite her efforts to appear nonchalant, he had detected the subtle quiver in her voice.

People can deal with hardships; it's the comfort that really touches their heart. The unease Leanne had managed to quell found its way to the surface again.

Uncharacteristically, she clung to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and nestling into his embrace.

Curtis was surprised. "Miss me that much?"

He often joked about his charm, and Leanne pinched him on the waist in response.

"I dreamed about my parents," she said, revealing her deep-seated trauma. The untimely death of her parents was a wound unlikely to ever fully heal "I'll stay with you tonight."

Curtis carried her back to bed. The cat, sprawled belly-up on the bed, lazily flicked its tail in greeting.

"Another little lazybones," Curtis chuckled as he scooped up the cat and placed it in its plush, seldom-used cat bed, saying to the puzzled feline, "You're a big kid now. Sleep on your own."

The bedroom was dimly lit. He shut the door, slipped under the covers, and Leanne curled into his arms.

cologne mixed with a hint of

she was trying to say was that maybe tonight could be an exception, allowing him to taint her

a playful lift of his

preemptively inching away from

her defensive move, playfully accusing, "Let's just sleep tonight,

Leanne was speechless.

at her expression. "Of course, if you can't resist me and decide to make a move, I might just surrender. After all, I'm not that chaste." Leanne turned away, "I

"Alright, I'll stop teasing."

back into his arms and held her tightly, his

ulterior

closed her eyes, the suffocating darkness seemed to

into Curtis' deep-set eyes, his

blinked and whispered, "Don't be afraid. I'm here to protect

her fears were kept at bay in his embrace. Leanne calmed down, her breathing slowly evening out as she fell asleep, fully trusting

arms.

slept peacefully until

she got out of bed to refill the cat's food and

clothes, and Leanne brought them in just as

tapering down into the towel caught her eye for a few seconds, reminding her o

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