To that, he wasn’t sure what to say right away. Her argument dissolved his initial point. Travis had never harbored any jealousy for Noah. If anything, there was mild resentment that the man hadn’t been there for Deb as much as he should’ve been. “He was still with you before I was. Wasn’t letting the comparison go that deep, but obviously that’s how you’re comparing yourself to Vi. You don’t need to compare yourself to anyone. You’re you and you have the amazing qualities that make you... you.” It was incredibly simple, but it was true.
The faint pressure against his shoulder caused that old bullet wound in his arm to awaken. None of the blows were powerful enough to bring any real pain or even be a nuisance, but he felt the ache. Beyond one quiet, involuntary grunt, Travis made no effort to stop her. This was better than having her walk away from him and disappear to fuck knows where.
His brows knit together at her question. He thought the answer was extremely transparent. “Don’t wanna run. I’m happy.” He could’ve said more, but simple was probably best.
Travis risked letting one of his hands rest on her waist. Just one. Easy for her to pull away if she wasn’t yet ready to let go of the anger she was trying to hold on to. “Got three important ladies in my life. You, Lily, and my mama. That’s all I need. But if you wanna yell and hit me some more, get it out of your system, I ain’t gonna stop you.”