"You can tell me what's bothering you," I say anyway. "I can help. I want to."
He does look at me then, his eyes dark and deep like I'm looking into a well that’s been dry for a very long time. "You want to help?"
The dark intensity behind his words makes me shiver, cold sweat erupting along my spine. I swallow against the lump in my throat and nod.
"By offering sweet words of comfort?" he asks, the edge of his lips curling up into something that resembles a snarl more than anything else.
I run my hand up his arm. "Yes, if that's what you need."
My words do wake a fire in his eyes, but it's a distant one, just a speck at the far end of a vast barren field.
He pulls me to him, presses his body against mine. "You can help. But not by talking."
He releases me just as abruptly as he gra
