I take a step closer so I can hear her better.
“He’s never going back to that man, Gavin. I swear to God. I don’t care what I have to do.”
“Hey,” I say softly, reaching out to take her in my arms and pulling her to my chest when she doesn’t resist. “Okay, baby. He’s never going back to that man. Breathe.”
She stiffens against my chest and then turns those wide blue eyes up to meet mine. “If I’d just—”
“Nope. Nothing you could’ve said, done, not said, not done, would’ve changed anything. You are not to blame. You are not someone who would assume any of those things and I would never want you to become that jaded a person, one who thought everyone in the world was out to do you or anyone else harm. You are full of light and you see the light in everyone else. It’s one of the many things I love about you.”
“Gav . . .”
It hits me hard, that she still trusts me after everything I’ve done, her vulnerability, the way I’ve taken her for granted, how majorly fucked my priorities have been for so long. Too long.
This is my whole world in my arms right now. All I want is to make her pain go away, the way she’s always done for me.
“Shh,” I say. “Look, I texted Sheila and she texted back. She’s coming to talk with Liam in the morning. She’s good at her job. She’ll ask the right questions without upsetting him. She’ll get Mrs. Lawson approved as his temporary guardian and she’ll get an order of protection against his dad. It’s all going to be okay. I promise.”
Her body relaxes against mine and I notice our reflection in the mirror.
“We look good together,” I whisper to the top of her head.
Desire blooms in her gaze at the memory and I smile.
“Behave yourself, drummer boy,” she mutters as I kiss her forehead and squeeze her tight.
“Working on it.”
“Speaking of that,” she begins, pulling back a bit to look me in the face. “What’s the word on the assault charges? Will Liam’s statement to the social worker help any?”
I sigh because as usual, there’s still always something to deal with, something I royally screwed up that needs to be handled before we can move forward.
“It’s compli—”
“Gavin, so help me—”
“Okay, yeah. Sorry. It’s just kind of up in the air because Carl is still in the hospital and technically they don’t know the extent of his injuries. Ashley said I can plead no contest to the assault and agree to community service, anger management, and extended probation and agree to have no contact with him as long as Carl’s injuries don’t have lasting effects.”
Dixie stiffens at the mention of Ashley, then slumps against me. “Jesus.”
I stroke her hair, enjoying the feel of it against my fingers. Soft and rough. “I know. It doesn’t help that I have prior convictions for the drugs and the accident. Or that my mom has been shacked up with Carl and I might’ve roughed him up at the bar one night not too long ago. Plus, Carl is milking this for all it’s worth in an attempt to remain on a morphine drip.”
“He’s a child abuser,” Dixie argues. “We saw him hitting Liam and you reacted after years of similar abuse. Can’t she do something about that? Make them see why you did what you did?”
I hold her by the shoulders. “What I did isn’t okay, babe. Besides, Ashley has no idea about my childhood. I know you understand because you care about me and you care about Liam, but that’s not how the justice system works. Bottom line is I took matters into my own hands using excessive force. I committed a crime and there will be a punishment. I knew that. I deserve it.” And I don’t actually regret it, even though I know I should.
I don’t discuss my childhood with anyone, so Ashley wouldn’t know to even attempt to use that defense.
“This sucks, Gav. Seriously. Every mark I see on Liam makes me want to murder Carl myself with my bare hands.”