[h3] Duke [/h3]

Esme even bringing up that he didn’t have to go made Duke’s chest hurt. She had never been around when he was ready to go. She had never had a chance to talk him out of it. And just telling him that he ‘didn’t have to’ was almost enough to make him stomp his feet and return to the living room. But as he stepped into the kitchen, he slowed his footsteps as he heard her groan in pain from standing from the couch.

The sound bothered him in a strange way, and he felt as if he was causing her pain. Her voice telling him to wait stopped his footsteps cold, his cowboy boots squeaking against the tile floor as he stopped. He slowly turned around, and knitted his eyebrows together, “Sorry? Why would you be…”, he started as his eyes widened and he quickly walked back into the living room, as she kept apologizing, and saying she was the one who should leave. What was she talking about?!

As she sat back down on the couch, Duke quickly lowered himself beside her and wrapped an arm around her back, wrapping his other hand around her upper arm to support her. He shook his head quickly as he held her, “You ain’t got nothin’ to be sorry for. The tension between me and…and him has been brewin’ since a couple years ago. I made some mistakes and he ain’t gonna forgive me for them any time soon.”

Duke reached in front of Esme, wedging his hand between her body and her legs and placed his hand on her stomach gently, trying to urge her body to straighten up, even a little. 

“But I can’t leave while you look like this, darlin’.” He murmured sweetly, suddenly realizing that Esme was going to be a problem, for him. His need to make sure she was safe was trouble. His inability to upset her was trouble. His need to touch her, as long as she would let him was trouble. 

He was in trouble.

[h3] Dean [/h3]

Dean brushed the last bit of grass off his jeans as he stomped up the steps and opened the front door. He stepped inside and instantly stopped, seeing Duke sitting on the couch next to Esme, leaning with her and speaking to her in a low voice. He was taking care of her, and Dean, being the idiot he was…had been outside throwing a fit. He frowned, slowly walking over to the couch and sitting on Esme’s other side without a word at first.

Dean reached up, brushing Esme’s braid back to her back, and leaned forward, almost double on himself to press his forehead to the side of her face, “What’s going on? You okay?”

“I’ll stay…” Duke nodded to Esme, and Dean raised his head quickly, looking over at Duke with wide eyes. Was he thinking about leaving? Had he been on his way out the door? So, Esme had talked him into staying somehow. It sat weird in Dean’s mind, and as Duke lifted his own head and met Dean’s eyes, Dean gave him a look that asked ‘what are you doing?’. Duke simply tilted his head, pressing his lips tightly together, which caused Dean to sigh and bend back to whisper in Esme’s ear.

“Everything’s okay. Just try to relax…” He whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to her ear.