“You aren’t dumping anything on me, Tess,” he said, taking my hand in his. “You aren’t alone in this. Not anymore.”
Next thing I knew, I was hugging him. “Thank you,” I whispered shakily.
He was warm and strong as he wrapped his arms around me without a second thought. Solid in a way I was envious of. My eyes drifted shut as I breathed him in. He smelled good, his cologne woodsy and citrusy. I liked it.
I pulled away at the startling realization that Levi made me feel safe. Safe in a way I hadn’t felt in years with someone who wasn’t family. It wasn’t just his words or the way he listened; it was something about him that I couldn’t quite place.
“Sorry,” I murmured, tucking my hair behind my ears.
He smiled wide, showcasing a dimple on each cheek. “Don’t be. I’m a hugger.”
We stood at the same time. “I’ll get started on the paperwork for the protective order. There’s a special one for domestic violence victims,”—I winced—“and with the texts and voicemails you mentioned, that should be enough for a judge to grant it. The custody case will likely take longer, unfortunately.”
“Okay.” I fidgeted with my purse strap. “He won’t be able to find us from the paperwork, right? There won’t be a return address or anything?”
His face softened. “No, Tess. I won’t let him find you.”
Even though I knew it wasn’t a promise, I hoped he’d keep it like one.
2
Levi
I couldn’t stop thinking about Tess Hayes.
For two days, my mind has been stuck on her and the way she fell apart in my office. Her story wasn’t the worst I’d heard, not by a long shot. But for some reason, it had stuck with me.
Maybe it was the way she cried like she’d finally let herself feel something for the first time in years. Or the fact that she apologized for it afterwards, like she was a burden.
I wasn’t sure she even knew how to be a burden.
Or maybe it had stayed with me because I semi-knew her. My cousins, Beau, Anna, and Colt, grew up with the Hayes siblings in one big, chaotic tribe. And in the rare moments my mother let me spend time with her sister’s children, she was always there. Tess was the youngest of us all, always struggling to catch up, always trying to play with us, and always toting some random bug with her.
But now she was struggling to rebuild. To simply live.
And helping her felt personal. Too personal.
I couldn’t let this case become clouded with my emotions, though. Tess and Luke couldn’t afford it. Their literal safety was on the line. But I couldn’t stop thinking about how her voicecracked when she told me that her family hadn’t even known about Luke until three weeks ago. How she’d been “stuck” for eight years of her life because some lowlife controlled every inch of her existence.
Tossing the folder onto my desk, I sighed. “Get it together,” I muttered to myself, raising my glasses to pinch the corners of my eyes.
I needed to get out of the house and away from work. From this case specifically. I grabbed my running shoes, determined to run until those terrified blue eyes were out of my mind.
The late summer air was thick with humidity as I stepped outside. Suffocating, just like my thoughts of Tess. I pushed her out of my mind, thinking about the date I went on last week with Mrs. Peterson’s granddaughter. God, what was her name? I couldn’t remember, but I remembered her being nervous.
Tess was so nervous Thursday, I could’ve sworn she was shaking.
Damnit. There goes not thinking about her.
Two miles in, and the running didn’t seem to be helping. With each quick footfall, I only thought of her and her case more.
The texts and voicemails she forwarded to my email last night not only sent me into a blind rage, but were excellent proof that Jeremy was a threat to her safety. The Domestic Violence Restraining Order would be granted easily with that alone, but I was thinking ahead to Luke’s custody case. That wouldn’t be as straightforward.
I needed to be prepared for Jeremy to try and paint Tess as the villain and not the victim. The deadbeats and narcissists always did, but it wasn’t something we couldn’t overcome together. She just needed someone to fight with her.
And I was ready to go to battle for her.
My pace slowed as I turned onto Main Street, dragging my shirt up to wipe the sweat off my face.
