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She threatened to knee me in the nut sack if I did anything to hurt you. That kind of loyalty goes a long way in my books." He placed the coffee in front of me as he waited for my reply. “Yeah it's a long story but let's just say I won't be winning any awards for friend of the year. Or three. I was pretty shitty to her."
"Well she seems to have forgiven you now. I wouldn't dwell on it. Life's too short. You don’t want to miss out on being happy because the past is still playing on your mind." For all his cockiness and bravado Blake was definitely someone who gave good advice and I'm sure there was more there. I could see it in his face, his jaw was steeled, and his eyes were lost in a past moment. But it was too early in this friendship to go spilling painful memories. That was something I knew too well.

I took a sip of the hot coffee and worked up the courage to talk about what happened last night.
    "I'm so grateful to you for looking after me. I dread to think what might have happened if you hadn't turned up. I was so scared.” My voice was quiet with the last sentence, I wasn’t used to talking about my feelings but Blake wouldn’t judge me. I believed that. He paused, both hands leaning against the kitchen worktop, fisted. Under his tight t-shirt his muscles were tense. He turned around slowly and I noticed the pain etched in his face. "I don't think you realise how much I wanted to hurt him for what he did to you, when I came outside and saw him on top of you I just saw red. I could have killed him. Two bouncers followed me out when they heard him shouting and pulled me off him. Then they held him down. It was you that stopped me from going any further, I just had to make sure you were safe."
I nodded and contemplated asking him how he knew I was out there. I wanted to know whether it was just luck, or if he had followed me. My heart and body were having trouble believing my brain when it told them he was a heartbreaker and nothing good could come of getting involved, but in the end brain won and I just sat silently. He walked round the kitchen island to stand beside me and leaned back against the counter with his hands crossed over his chest, “I know a guy at the station and persuaded him to let you give a statement this morning. I thought you might want some time to process it all, and after you fainted he didn't have much choice anyway."

"Thanks. I appreciate that. I'm feeling a lot stronger now. Like I could face anything. What have you put in this coffee? It's working wonders," I joked, trying to steer us away from a heavy conversation.
He looked at me with a serious expression, narrowing his eyes, a tight frown under his forehead. Lifting my chin with a finger and thumb he searched my face."I'm going to ask you this once more, then I'll leave it at that and get on with breakfast. Are you sure you are okay? Because it's understandable if you aren't you know?"
Touched by his concern I flung my arms around his neck and squeezed as hard as I could. He stumbled slightly, and then wrapped his arms tightly around my back. I hardly knew him, yet I felt a connection that I had never experienced before. I pulled away and looked deep into his eyes. "Honestly I am a lot stronger than I look and if I fall apart, he wins. So I won't be doing that anytime soon. I am absolutely fine." Heat was flushing my cheeks, and my heart was racing as I pulled away and thought about that little lie I just told him. I was far from fine, but it wasn't because of last night. It was him.
     

Chapter 6
     
     
    Blake drove me to the police station after breakfast and sat with me patiently whilst I recounted my version of events from last night. As I talked over some graphic moments, he grabbed my hand underneath the table and gripped it, resting both of them on my thigh. I squeezed it back to show him I appreciated the gesture. After an hour we walked out into the sunshine and I felt like a weight had been lifted from my