Four

Blake’s Pov

I didn’t move one bit, or maybe the truth was that I couldn't, but either way, I stood there, rooted to the spot. Not even when the man who attacked me hit the ground with a wet, broken sound.

Ridge turned toward me, his chest rising and falling like he had just run a marathon.

I just stood there, frozen against the brick wall, heart banging against my ribs hard enough that it hurt.

I didn’t understand what had just happened because one second I was cutting through the alley like I always did, and the next, there was a hand on my arm, a knife flashing way too close to my face and yelling at me.

And then Ridge had slammed the man into the wall like it was nothing. I didn't even know where he had came from.

“Blake.” I heard his voice pulled me back, sounding firm, and low in a way that rumbled right through me.

I blinked up at him to see that he was close now, crouching slightly so he wasn’t towering over me, his dark brows drawn tight with concern.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” he asked.

I opened my mouth to answer him, but nothing came out at first, then I managed to speak.

It was with a shaky voice. “No. I… I’m fine.” I said even though it was a lie.

I might not have been hurt physically, but inside, I was all splintered up and hollowed out.

“Come on.” His hand found my elbow, his grip was gentle as he helped me straighten up from the wall. “What were you doing back here anyway?”

I winced, brushing some dust off my jacket. “Just cutting through to the next street. I was headed to the grocery store.”

Ridge’s jaw tightened like he didn’t like that answer, or maybe he didn’t like that I had been out here alone.

Or maybe it was both, which was confusing, considering the way he had acted the first night we met.

I could still remember him growling the words. “Get her the fuck away from me, right now.”

“Do you still want to go there?” he asked and I shook my head, no.

“I just want to go home.”

“Alright,” he said after a second. “I’ll drive you.”

I shook my head immediately. “You don’t have to. Really, I’m…”

“It’s not a request, Blake.” he said, his voice sounding low, and final.

It was unyielding in a way that shouldn’t have made me feel secure but somehow did.

I blinked up at him and I could have sworn that there was something about the way he said it. It wasn’t pushy or arrogant, just absolute, like he had already decided, and arguing would be like trying to stop the rain on a stormy night from falling.

He kept his hand lightly on my elbow as he steered me out of the alley, back onto the sidewalk.

I caught a few curious glances from people passing by, but none of them gave me the dirty look they usually would. Maybe it was because I wasn't alone. Being with someone like this for a change should make me happy, that I had someone to help and be by my side, however short that would be, but somehow, that scared me and my stomach twisted.

They were probably used to seeing Ridge, but not with me. Still, he didn’t seem to care.

He kept his body angled slightly toward mine, like he was ready to step between me and the world if anything so much as breathed wrong in my direction.

It was stupid how safe that made me feel.

You know, the unsafe kind of safe, the one that felt like stepping onto a sheet of ice that you knew would crack if you stood there for too long.

When we reached his truck; a black 2023 Chevrolet Silvarado ZR2 that looked almost laughably clean considering the man who drove it, he opened the passenger door for me like it was something he just did normally for everyone.

I hesitated at the curb, hugging my arms around myself and telling myself I shouldn’t get in. I mean, I didn’t know him, not really.

Except… he had already saved me once today, so I didn't think he would do that only to harm me, would he?

Ridge looked down at me waiting, completely unbothered by the idea that I might say no, and that was when I realized something.

Even with how he had acted that night, I wasn’t afraid of Ridge Sterling.

Yeah well, that night after we got home, Kenny told me all I needed to know about the man, including his surname.

So I climbed in, and when the door shut behind me, the world outside seemed to fade away, but for how long?

Well, maybe the world wouldn’t collapse if I accepted a little help, at least for tonight, because not only was I shaken, but tired.