“Jane, please.” I don’t know why, but a rush of emotion made my voice gruff. “I’m sorry.” Her body was flushed with mine. “I’m afraid that if I give Lucio the money that he will know it was from you and he might do something stupid to get more from me or, well, you.” I realized my fear of losing her or causing her hurt was stifling.

She gave no sign she had listened to anything I said. I knew she wasn’t going to make this easy, but as time went by, she relaxed into my embrace.

“That makes sense.” Her own voice was raspy.

“Lucio is crazy and if he found out it was you who gave me the money, I don’t know what he would do to get more. He’s putting his hands into many pockets, trying to build whatever little empire he thinks he can build. I don’t want to see how far he would go to get that money.”

I felt her nod her head. “That’s all you had to say.” She turned around to face me, making me flinch in pain. I noticed her eyes were a little red and swollen from crying.

“I’m so fucking sorry, Jane,” I cringed, as I pushed the hair out of her face. “I got defensive, and I’m so used to just taking care of shit and not having to consult with anyone.”

“I’m not some helpless woman, Callum.” Some of that anger flared in her eyes. “All you have to do is talk to me and we can work through so much together.”

“I know. My first instinct is to protect you, no matter what,” I said, kissing her forehead.

“Callum...”

“Wait.” I interrupted her. “Let me explain. Kelsey and I grew up in the foster care system. Since no one took care of us, I made it my mission to make sure Kelsey lived a normal life, as normal as possible. So, I took charge of a lot of stuff. Who we hung out with, what route we took to school, who we should trust, and an entire load of other stuff.”

She wrapped her arm gently around me.

“I have always been the person who kept us safe, and Kelsey never questioned it. Even when I was in the military, I had a hard time working as part of a team. I always reacted first, and I never followed orders very well. Working with Aiden helped. Nathan came into our group and we kind of operated the same. We also trusted each other to make the best decisions for the group. I’m just used to protecting people I care about.”

“I’m so happy that Kelsey had you when you guys were growing up, but Callum, I’m not a little girl. I can make my own decisions, and I’m usually pretty rational.” She kissed my jaw softly.