So instead, I stayed exactly where I was and watched her cry.
She did it silently, and that hurt my heart even more.
Was she silent when she cried because that one time she was forced to be, and it became such an ingrained habit that she couldn’t cry any other way?
I’d looked up the robber that had gone to her house when she was fourteen and stolen all kinds of stuff.
They’d found him at a house a couple of blocks over after he’d left, and Bindi had been brave enough to crawl out and call the police.
The guy was currently serving a life sentence for robbery because he was a many times over repeat offender.
The judge had finally thrown the book at him at his last trial and he would be there for the rest of his life.
“Bindi,” I tried again when I just couldn’t take it anymore. “Could you please let me in?”
She sniffled, then shook her head. “No, Garrett. I’m sorry I even came to your place today, to be honest. I shouldn’t have involved you since you said it was dangerous to be seen with you right now, anyway. Had you found whomever it was that was following me, you would’ve been obligated to do something about it, and that would’ve drawn attention to you and me.”
She was right.
I hated that she was right.
But I didn’t feel right about tonight.
I saw how scared she was, and that wasn’t something that she would’ve overreacted about.
Even worse, the night shift attendant had said he’d seen someone out in the dog park with her, as well as leaving with her.
I’d asked him to pull those tapes, and I’d be looking at them tomorrow before I left.
She stood up after a long time and wiped her eyes.
I studied her face in the soft glow of the porch light, amazed that she could have cried that hard and not look the least bit splotchy.
Fuck, she was beautiful.
She smoothed down a lock of her curly hair, then said, “Night, Garrett.”
I winced.
I hated that she wasn’t calling me “Gee.”
She went inside, and I was left outside with Boss, wondering what the hell I was supposed to do from here.
There was no way in hell I was going to be able to stay away from her.
None.
Except when I got the message from the night attendant, paired with the video of Bindi in the dog park, I realized that I could stay away from her.
Easily.
Especially since the man that was at the dog park was because of me.
The leader of the Breakers gang, and the man that had put a price on my head.
The only question was, did he know how I felt about this woman? Or was he there just scoping me out, and saw her there and took the opportunity to terrify her?
To say that I woke in a bad mood after last night would be an understatement.