As terrifying and as infuriating as finding out about Kalandre is, as realizing that she was a part of every single thing that has ever happened to them, I think it must have also been such a sigh of relief. This is a person they can pin everything on. They no longer need to blame themselves, because they can tell themselves it was all her fault, and it WAS
can we get some caleb being a protective boi over his s/o? 🥺
Thanks so much for the suggestion, I dunno if this is even remotely what you had in mind but it’s the best I could do without ending up over analyzing it for days lmao! I hope it suffices! ❤️ (Also I hope pre-Entity Caleb is okay!)
“Then come with me” - Caleb Quinn x Reader
Being together with the leader of a bounty hunter gang was dangerous business, you knew that. You knew being with Caleb put a bright red target on your back, a target that his enemies would gladly strike at any given moment. You hadn’t thought they would strike in broad daylight, however.
It had been a slow day at the saloon, like any other. Caleb’s boys had stayed at their camp outside of town for a week or so, taking a break from work before heading up North. Caleb had stayed at the saloon where you worked, much to your joy. Usually he was very careful of the two of you not being seen together, to protect you, but lately he had seemed to loosen up a bit. Maybe he had realized this old town was nothing but a sunken hole for cowards and rats to stay in, and the likelihood of him running into enemies here was small. At least, that’s what both of you had thought, but this particular day the saloon had gotten a new visitor. Caleb was out back, working on his spear gun, and you were at the bar cleaning up some old rat shit you’d found, when a man entered the saloon through the front doors. You stood up and got ready to greet him, but the instant you saw his face your tongue got stuck in your mouth and you felt your whole body go cold. The dark eyes that met yours belonged to none other than Henry Jackson, member of the infamous Grave worm gang.
“Good mornin’ there, lil’ missy”, he chuckled, and before you got time to react he’d grabbed a hold of your arm and started to pull you towards the door.
“Let go of me!” you yelled and tried to swat at him, but he swiftly pulled out a revolver from his pocket and aimed it at your cheek.
“We’re gonna go for a walk, you an’ me”, he mumbled. “An’ you’re gonna tell me where Quinn is hiding out. Understood?”
You stared down at the revolver and swallowed hard, trying to look as scared as possible while slowly starting to pull off your boot from your foot. You prayed he didn’t notice, and just as he was about to urge you on to walk outside, you bit down hard on his arm, ducked and grabbed the kitchen knife you always kept in your boot. Jackson screamed from the bite, and when you pushed the knife through his thigh he screamed even more. Suddenly, a shot rang through the empty saloon, and Jackson roared in pain and anger as he was pulled away from you. You looked behind you and saw Caleb reeling Jackson in with his speargun, and you managed to look away before the final slash was delivered, that silenced the man for good. Caleb wasted no time pulling out his spear from Jackson’s throat and running up to check on you.
“Y/N! You alright? Did he hurt you?”
You got up and wiped the blood from your knife while trying to give him a reassuring smile.
“I’m just fine, honey. I got this, didn’t need you meddlin’ in my business!” you said with a chuckle, but Caleb’s face showed none of the lightheartedness you tried to toss at him.
“Fucking hell, I was just outside, how couldn’t I have heard...” he said, then his voice cracked and he sighed in frustration, grabbing you close for a tight hug.
His embrace was tight, desperate, the embrace of a man who had been way too close to loosing his loved one.
“Really, I’m fine, I promise”, you said again, wrapping your arms around him and swaying him a bit from side to side like you did when you tried to calm him down.
You released him and met his gaze, only to see his dark eyes were wet.
“Darlin’!” you exclaimed and reached out a hand to stroke his cheek, but he pulled away and turned his back on you, angrily wiping his eyes.
“Christ, Y/N”, he said, “I can’t believe I was so close to... If anything would have happened to you I-”
His voice broke again and he took a deep breath before whispering.
“I couldn’t live with myself.”
“Darlin’, you know I can take care of myself”, you whispered, gently placing a hand on his lower back.
He turned around and met your gaze again.
“I know you can, Y/N,” he said. “But he was just one man, they’re gonna send more. I-”
He swallowed hard and ran a hand over his face.
“You’re gonna have to leave town, Y/N”, he said. “I’ll come with you, of course, I’ll see where we can hide out for the time being. I’ll tell the boys and-”
“Caleb!” you interrupted, a little smile on your lips. “You can’t just quit on the boys, y’all have work to do, I know that.”
“Then come with me”, Caleb said, grabbing your hands and squeezing them tightly.
Your heart skipped a beat at this proposal. You two had talked alot about you eventually joining the gang so that you and Caleb could be together, but Caleb had always deemed it too dangerous. Seeing the fire in his eyes as he asked you to come with him sparked a flame in your heart as well.
“So that you can protect me day and night, huh?” you teased with a sly smile, and Caleb chuckled at this and hugged you tight.
“So that I can be with you day and night! You have no idea how much I’ve missed you while being out on the road, being able to wake up with you everyday would be bliss.”
You looked him in the eyes and smiled, caressing his broken jaw.
“I’d want nothing more, Caleb”, you whispered, then you leaned in to kiss him on the lips and he eagerly responded.
He held you close again, and you breathed in the scent of his leather jacket while squeezing him tightly in your embrace.
“I’ll make sure no one ever touches you again”, you heard him whisper into your hair. “I promise.”
