Chapter Seventy-One

**

“You gonna stick by me?”

“Maybe….”

**

Letty was leaning against the railing of the pier, staring out into the ocean, when I finally got back to her.

“Hey, baby,” I said as I walked up and wrapped my arms around her.

“Hey,” she replied, sinking back against me.

We stood there for a while, not saying anything, just looking out at the water and the darkness.

“You want to go down to the beach?” I asked, finally breaking the silence.

Letty didn’t say anything, just took my hand and started walking towards the stairs leading down to the beach. She was quiet even as we settled ourselves onto the sand, her sitting between my legs, laying back against my chest. The wind had picked up a little, and it kept whipping her hair against my face, until I managed to twist it into a strange sort of braid.

“Is it always going to be like this?” Letty finally asked, her voice so low I had to strain to hear it over the wind and the water.

“Like what?” I asked, turning her towards me.

“Is it always going to be the two of us, no matter what?” she repeated, looking down at the sand. “Are you always going to want me?”

“Yes,” I answered, reaching down to stroke her face, brushing my fingers over her lips. “I meant what I said back there, Let. I couldn’t even imagine a life without you next to me. You know that…right?”

“Yeah…” she said slowly, “I do. It’s just…sometimes, it’s like it’s all too good to be true, you know?”

I nodded, didn’t say anything.

“Like, when I was little…” she went on, “I always used to dream about being with you. I remember, whenever my mom was high, or in a bad mood, and I couldn’t get away, I’d just go to my room and pretend. You were always some prince, coming to rescue me…”

I laughed a little, thinking of myself dressed up in tights and a crown, climbing up the side of some tower to get to the princess inside. “Must’ve made quite a sight…”

“Well, it wasn’t that much of a stretch,” Letty said, sounding a little indignant. “You were like the king of the neighborhood… Everyone wanted to be around you, remember? Still do…”

“Yeah, I remember,” I said, running my fingers through her hair.

“I don’t want to be ‘that girl,’ Dom…” Letty sighed. “You know, the one who’s always waiting for some guy to come rescue her. But…on some level, I am that girl. I’ve been dreaming of it practically my whole life, and now here you are, rescuing me…”

“No, baby,” I said softly, “the truth is…you’re the one who rescued me.”