Page 79 of Her Tempting Protector

“That little baby boy went through so much. Why did this happen?” she begged him and the universe for an answer.

“Tell me!” she screamed.

Cullen didn’t flinch. He pulled her in even closer.

“Raviq!”

* * *

Cullen wasn’t surprised when David and Sarah came into the kitchen. They took in the scene and Sarah rushed over and crouched in front of Carys.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

“Raviq is dead.”

“The little boy from the refugee camp?” her friend asked.

Carys nodded, not lifting her head from Cullen’s neck.

“Oh, Carys, I’m so sorry. Can I get you something? Some tea?”

He felt Carys flinch and snuggle even closer to him.

“Sarah, I think Cullen’s got this, let’s go to bed,” David said.

Sarah reached out and touched Carys’ shoulder. “Do you need me to do anything? Anything at all?”

“No,” Carys whimpered.

“Come on, Babe,” David said again. “Let’s go check on Tonya.”

He watched over Carys’ head as David gave him a chin tilt, then guided his wife out of the kitchen. He turned off the overhead light, leaving the room lit just by the stove light. Carys continued to shudder in his arms. He understood now—it was the boy she’d cared about in Greece, the one who had tried to kill himself. Cullen’s heart hurt for the boy, but it was breaking for Carys. She tried so hard and kept so much inside herself.

She shifted. It was time to get somewhere comfortable.

Cullen swooped her up into his arms and strode into the living room and settled her onto his lap. He brushed the hair away from her wet face. Tears started to form again, and his heart clenched.

Carys’ arms twined around his neck and held on for dear life.

When he heard hiccoughs, he asked, “do you want to talk about him?”

She nodded.

“I need—”

He reached across her body and snagged some napkins off the coffee table from their brownie feast. She clutched one in her hand, then she blew her nose.

“He was a beautiful boy, so angry, but you understood why. He was infinitely loveable.”

Cullen nodded and continued to roam her back with long strokes, encouraging her to tell him more.

“Marie-Clare had told me how they’d gotten visas to go to Canada. I was so happy for them. Nobody deserved it more.”

Again, Cullen didn’t say anything, just gave her a nod and a half-smile to continue. “Tonight, she didn’t tell me what went wrong, just that they ended up in a refugee camp in Lebanon. That would have been his worst nightmare. They found him dead,” she said the last words with chattering teeth. “She didn’t know the cause of death.” The last she said on a low wail.

“Ah, Baby.”

“I’m so sick of not making a difference. The needless devastation and pain. It’s not fair.” She hit his chest. “It’s just not fair.”

“No, Carys, it isn’t.”

No sobs this time, just a trickle of tears.

Cullen gathered her close and started to rock her. He didn’t know how long they did this, but eventually she slept.