Leanne had been relaxing in bed with a book and a cup of tea when her evening was interrupted by someone banging on her front door. Sighing, she set her book and her tea on the bedside table, then went to see who was trying to break down her door. As soon as she opened the door, Ethan burst into the house. "Please, come in," Leanne greeted him, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Ethan waited impatiently while Leanne closed the door. When she turned to face him, he reached out and pushed her hair behind her shoulders. Running his fingers along the edge of the gauze taped to the left side of her neck, he gasped, "My God, that creep really did try to kill you."

"It's nothing," Leanne protested, self-consciously covering the bandage with her hand. "Just another scar for my collection."

"I already know you're a badass. You don't need to prove it," Ethan said as he pushed her hand away from her throat and slid his fingers into her hair. He gently kissed her, then rested his forehead against hers. "I'm glad you're okay."

Rolling her eyes, Leanne scoffed, "I was never in any real danger."

"That's not what I heard."

"He had severe internal bleeding and could barely stand."

"Really?" implored Ethan, cocking one eyebrow. "Jesse said he killed a prison guard."

"He did," Leanne admitted reluctantly.

Ethan disentangled his fingers from Leanne's hair and let his hands glide down her back. When he reached her waist, he applied gentle pressure to the small of her back until she took a step forward and hugged him. He held her for a moment before saying, "That could have been you."

"But it wasn't."

"I should have been there."

"It's not your fault," Leanne reassured him.

"I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

Leanne laughed. "That would be impractical and smothering. Would you settle for tonight?"

Surprised, Ethan pulled back to look into her eyes as he asked, "Really? I can stay?"

"Really. I think it will make both of us feel better."

"Do you want to watch one of your movies? I swear I'll stay awake this time."

"Ha! You never stay awake for a whole movie."

"I will this time," Ethan promised. "How else can I keep an eye on you?"

"Lucky for you, I don't want to watch a movie. I was actually already in bed reading a book."

"Oh."

"You could join me, if you want to."

"I definitely want to."

"Just to sleep," clarified Leanne.

"I'm too tired for anything else. I just want to be with you."