“Then block his number,” Collin suggests.
“That won’t keep me safe,” she whispers. “I need to know if he’s looking for me.”
“What did he do, Daisy?”
She glances to me and then back to the food. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Collin lets out a frustrated sound and she flinches.
“Collin, can you get the blocks of cheddar and colby jack out of the fridge please?”
He nods and gets up to do as she asks. She has her back turned toward me, but I can see her body shaking even from here. Not being able to just do nothing, I get up and walk up behind her, cleaning my throat to let her know I’m there. She doesn’t move, just continues to stir the mixture in the pan.
“You good, Daisy?”
She nods.
“You’re still shaking.”
“It’s not very gentlemanly to point that out.”
“I don’t give two shits if it is or not. Your ex scares you. That has nothing to do with cheating. It has everything to do with threats or violence or both.”
“Hutch is right. We can’t protect you if you don’t tell us what the threat is.”
“I can protect myself.”
“We know you can,” I agree. “Doesn’t mean you can’t use some backup from time to time.”
“I…” She puts the spoon down and turns to face me. We’re maybe only an inch or two apart. Her green eyes are wide and a little desperate. “Letting people in, it only ends up hurting me. My friends, my best friends since before kindergarten, ended up hurting me. They lied to me. They cheated with my boyfriend. They took his side. I ended up with no one except Lucy and she’s not even here anymore. Can’t you understand how hard it is to let someone in after all that?”
I gently pull her into a hug and she’s stiff for the barest of seconds before she gives in and hugs me back. I can feel the heave of her chest as she tries to choke back sobs. My poor girl. What did she go through to be so standoffish and afraid to let anyone close? She comes off so cold, but it’s not because she is. It’s because she’s terrified and being closed off is how she learned to protect herself.
“I know it’s hard, but I promise you, I am always going to be here. I’m going to be on your side no matter what. Even if you choose Collin to be on your team in a zombie apocalypse, I’ll still be on your side.”
“What?” she mumbles around my shirt.
“It’s a thing,” Collin tells her. “Everyone always chooses me because I’m feral when it comes to food.”
“What’s going on here?” Jenny demands. “What did you do, Hutch?”
“He didn’t do anything. Asswipe called her.”
“Who?” Dylan comes into the kitchen, followed by a few of the other guys from the team.
“Her ex.”
“Why the fuck is he calling?” Dylan demands and Daisy goes rigid at his tone.
“Let’s give them a few minutes.” Collin motions for them all to vacate the kitchen and amid grumbles, they do. Collin stays planted where he is. Didn’t figure he’d take his own advice and leave us alone. He’s as concerned as I am.
“Everyone’s gone but me and C,” I whisper. “Tell us what he did, sweetheart. You have to eventually trust someone and we’re not bad people to trust. I swear.”
“I didn’t think he was a bad person either,” she says weakly. “Not until I broke up with him.”
Taking her hand, I cut off the stove and lead her into the living room to sit. Collin follows, his face almost stoic.
“What happened to make you break up with him?” I ask.
