Page 34 of Bodied

“Well, I don’t. I guess I just trusted you too much.” She blinked her tears away and clenched her fists. She deserved to get even, but now was hardly the time.

“Listen, Lauren,” Wesley said, pulling into his parking garage. “You’re right. After today, you can yell at me, blame me, distrust me all you want. But for now, I need you to believe me and trust me to protect you. I will never let anyone hurt you, whether we’re dating or not. You’re a beautiful person, and I want you to stick around on this planet for as long as possible. okay? We’re here.” He parked, and stepped out of his car before opening her door for her.

“You live in a parking garage?” She arched an eyebrow at him and gave him a quick smile.

The fact that she was smiling at all gave Wesley some hope that he hadn’t completely lost her trust. They could still be friends at least, even if it was a strained friendship. He led her to the elevator, and they rode it to his apartment. He felt awkward as hell, knowing how much nicer her place was than his. The halls were grungy by comparison, and they had a musty smell that he’d gotten used to over the years, though he was still aware it was there.

He unlocked and opened his front door for her. “Welcome to my palace,” he said, gesturing for her to go inside.

The place was tiny with a mini-kitchen, a small living area, and two bedrooms about the size of closets. As apartments in New York went, it wasn’t half bad, but compared to Lauren’s place it was a dump. His insecurities about being in a lower class than she was began to rise to the surface, but he managed to ignore them.

She sat at his kitchen table just as Jon came out of the bathroom, dressed and toweling his hair dry from a recent shower.

“Who’s this?” Jon asked.

“This,” Wesley gestured to Lauren, “is my charge. Or she was, anyway. She’s going to stay here until the danger to her blows over.”

Jon’s eyebrows shot up. “You brought her here? Should I leave? Like, did anyone follow you or anything?”

“Not that I saw.” Wesley sat on his thrifted couch, which was only feet from his tiny dining table. “It’s related to her mother, but I want her hidden in case someone tries to grab her for extra security.”

“Well,mi casa, su casa,” Jon said. “I’m heading out in a bit anyway.” He grabbed a snack from the kitchen and sat across from Lauren to eat it. “So, your mom’s a big deal, huh?”

“I guess.” Lauren let her head drop into her arms that were folded on the table. She was clearly miserable.

Wesley thought about how he could possibly ease her burden. “These things usually end up being nothing,” he said. “We always act like they’re something because we’d hate ourselves the one time itwassomething if we dismissed it. It’s just overcaution.”

“It seemed like something a little more than overcaution when you picked me up,” she mumbled from inside her arms.

Wesley clenched his jaw. “That’s just because I… I overreacted because… I mean you’re you, and I…” He always stopped short of telling her the truth, which was that she had quickly become one of the most important people in his life. If there was even a hint that she might be in danger, Wesley was going to run to her. He would run into an inferno for her at this point. But he couldn’t come right out and say it. That would be admitting to something he wasn’t ready to admit to just yet.

Lauren lifted her head, and Wesley noticed that she’d been hiding tears. “Is she going to be okay? My mom? Are they going to hurt her? I can’t…” Her voice caught and she buried her head again.

Jon glanced up at Wesley, apparently unable to deal with the mess of a woman sitting in front of him. “Well, I hope everything turns out all right,” he said, standing before he had even finished his snack. “I’m heading out.” He nodded and winked at Wesley, indicating he knew a little privacy for his roommate would go a long way. “You kids behave while I’m away.”

After he was gone, Wesley sat in his place and reached out a hand to Lauren. “You don’t have to worry,” he said. “Nothing’s happened. Everything is going to be fine.”

“You don’t know that,” Lauren said.

“I believe it, though.”

She lifted her head again. “Like that counts for anything.”

“It’s got to count for something, doesn’t it?” He paused, unsure of his own words but not wanting to give her reason to doubt. “It has to.”

After a minute of silence, Wesley started fidgeting with his tablecloth. There had to be something he could do to ease her mind while she waited out the danger.

“I know,” he said. “Let’s watch a movie. I mean, I don’t have your favorites here, but I’ve got TV. Surely there’s something available that will take your mind off things. Come on.” He stood and offered his hand. “Let’s sit together and try to relax.”

He brought her to the couch and sat beside her with a remote control in hand. He couldn’t resist putting an arm around her shoulders, and she leaned in to him. Apparently, she needed support more than she was angry at him right now. His fingers stroked the bare skin of her arm, and it felt indescribably good just to touch her again. He turned on the screen and started scrolling through options. Before either one of them settled on anything, Wesley murmured, “I’m so sorry.”

“Why?” She turned to scrutinize him. “What for?”

One long, deep breath later, and he was ready to say what had been on his mind for days. “I pretended it meant nothing — us, you know — but that was the furthest thing from the truth. I was just hurt and trying to protect myself. That’s not an excuse, just so we’re clear.” He tugged her closer, and to his delight, she rested her head on is shoulder. “It was stupid, and I regret it. I’m so sorry I hurt you.”

All the tears Lauren had been swallowing broke the surface suddenly, and she let loose. He felt terrible. He’d been trying to comfort her. When she got hold of herself again, she spoke. “I’m sorry. I’ve just been stressed. That meant a lot. It really did. I mean, thank you for saying that.”

“It’s the truth, princess.” He wanted to kiss her, but he resisted the urge. It wouldn’t be appropriate right now, when she was vulnerable. If he was going to try to win her back, he would do it when she was in a better place. He gave her a quick hug and planted a quick kiss on the top of her head. Then he turned on the TV and started looking through what was available to watch.

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