While he had no idea what to say, he’d happily bleed for her if it helped.
After a moment, her breathing slowed enough that he didn’t think she’d pass out. She whispered out a soft, “sorry,” as she stared at the floor instead of at him.
“What happened?” He paused, not wanting to ask the next part but unable to stop himself. “Was it me?”
She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at him. “What?”
“I walked out, and maybe I wasn’t in the best of moods, and I thought maybe…” He let the words trail off.
She let out a sigh, then shook her head. “No—nothing like that. You’re a lot of things, Dean, but scary isn’t one of them.”
He released a long breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. Damn, he really had been worried about that, hadn’t he? The thought of her seeing that other part of him, the one who was capable of some terrible things, it made his chest tighten.
Dean offered her his normal, practiced smile. “Good. So what was it?”
“Nothing.” Boy, that was a lie, wasn’t it? Still, she went on. “I was just…having a moment. I should get home.” She stood, but the moment she did, she wavered and another quick move from Dean led her back down to the couch again.
“You aren’t driving anywhere, Kat.”
“I’m not staying here.”
“Well, the answer is obvious, right? I drive you home or we call someone else to do it.” As soon as he said it, he knew he’d won.
She pressed her lips together, and it screamed that she didn’t want to bother her friends, that she didn’t watch to reach out. He’d already figured that, because she’d all but disappeared from her friend’s lives. There was no chance she wanted to let anyone else get this glimpse of her.
“All right then, Kat, let’s go. I’ll get you home.”
She let out a shaky breath, and Dean tried to ignore just how right it felt when he lifted her—it was easy to say it was because of the way she still wavered but knew damned well it was more because he just wanted to. Still, he ignored the way it warmed him, the way she fit against his chest, the way she all but melted against him.
He knew this was a bad fucking idea, but it didn’t stop him from clutching her to him just a little tighter.