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“No, Dah her tears “You can’t say that You can’t even think that, okay? Because—because—”

She breaks into tears again and I take her inher to the bed, then scoop her under the knees and cradle her to my chest

I hold her close, rocking her softly, understanding that all the pain that’s built up in her needs to come out somehow

Sparky cli her cheeks as her tears begin to slow

“Because what, Dakota?” I murmur after a couple of minutes

“Oh,” she says, giggling up at ht Yeah Well, I don’t know Maybe it will sound silly”

“You were all gun-ho about telling me just now,” I tease

“Yeah, when I was speaking from Sob Central”

She sits up inintothe wars, draped over as though clai a piece of this moment for his own

“So what do you think, Damian? Now that you’ve seen in, do you still want me?”

“Always,” I snarl “But I also want you to tellto say Because otherwise, it see back on her own principles You’re the one ants us to be able to talk to each other, remember?”

“Touché,” she says, giving my shoulder a playful pinch “Fine, since you’ve backed me into a corner …”

“There’s rowl

She giggles, a sound sweeter than sugar after her sobbing

“Does that even make sense?”

“I don’t know,” I chuckle deeply “It h, so missioned accomplished”

“I was just going to say … Well, obviously I have just some unfinished stuff to do with Mo, the psychos who did it were never caught—”

“I can help with that,” I tell her

“Really?”

I nod “I can put soht have to wait until after this shit with the Bratva, though”

“Okay,” she says, nodding “Yes, thank you”

“Anything,” I tell her fir?”

“Yeah, basically I guess I’ve always been sort of paranoid, and then that wasn’t helped by how the Bratva got their hands on ”

I pause, sensing she needs to talk, to vent, and I’ll always give her that room

It’s her right, as my queen