The Matters of Her Heart

Protected but not safe

"I can't lose you or my daughter over this," he said quietly.

"Just have your dad go in then," Tanya insisted. "No!" She grabbed at his arm, pulling him back to their bed when he shook his head and turned away. "Stay here Maxwell, please."

The plea in her tone nearly broke his heart. "I have to go up to the station Tanya, willingly or not. That man and his son tried to hurt you! Both of you! You can't honestly expect me to just let it go. Especially with the possibility of the idiot pressing charges."

"I don't wanna lose you!" She yelled back. "I refuse to run the risk of losing you in any way, shape, or form. That m-man threatened to hurt you too Max! What if he has a gun? Or what if he tries to get you put in jail? I can't do this without you and you know it. I love you dammit and I refuse to lose you!"

"I'm not goin' anywhere baby girl," he whispered gruffly. He hadn't been expecting her to honestly express how she felt but was glad she did.

She nearly choked on the sob coming up out of her throat. "You don't know that! I don't know that! Just please don't go."

There was a knock on the door. Maxwell sighed as he saw his father on the other side. "Gimme a minute, I'm tryna calm 'er down a bit before we go."

"Tell him h-he doesn't h-ha-have to go papa, please!" Tanya cried out.

He looked at her appalled before turning to his son. "She does not need the stress of worrying about you right now son, stay here with her while she needs you."

He looked at the old man, sighing. "You gonna handle it all by yourself then?"

"I'm not your mother," he joked before walking away.

Maxwell closed the door and slipped his shirt and shoes off, walking over to the bed. "Get back up there, you need to go back to bed."

Pouting, Tanya hiccupped twice before sliding back against the soft surface of the bed. "Are you," hiccup, "staying here?" She hiccupped again.

"Yes woman, now get your ass up there!" He growled as he grabbed onto her face, wiping away her tears and tenderly kissing her forehead.

She complied, sliding under the blankets and rolling over to lay against him. "Are you mad at me?" She whispered into his chest a while later.

Maxwell chuckled at the resemblance she and their daughter had at that exact moment. "Nah, I'm not mad baby girl, you expressed to me how this situation and being apart from me made you feel. I'm very thankful for it, though I despise with every fiber of my being when you cry like that."

"I'm sorry," she continued in her whispered tone. "I just can't imagine my life without you in it, I've suffered enough without you. Just please, keep out of trouble with this? I know your dad will handle everything, I just know it and that means you can't let it get the best of you either."

"I will protect my wife and child at all costs," Maxwell declared. "Even at the risk of something happening to me. Now get some rest."

Tanya opened her mouth, his hand covering it before she could speak. Shaking his head, he kissed her mouth and lay back against the pillows. It was clear the conversion was over and it pissed her off. Why couldn't he just grant her that one wish and just be careful? Be safe?

When she woke up, the bed was empty. Sighing, she got up and showered, slipping on a nice cotton sundress and sandals before exiting her room.

"You're awake!" Brit said in shock as she fell in step with Tanya down the hallway.