Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 100680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
He slashed his gaze to her. Well, his good eye went to her. She hated how bruised he was.
“You’re injured. You should be resting, not worrying about any of this. Maybe we should all leave you alone.”
“You step one foot off this bed and I’ll have Victor tie you to it.”
She gaped at him.
Fudge, he was serious.
“What if I have to pee?” she asked.
“They make adult diapers, don’t they?”
“Maxim Malone!” She was incapable of saying anything more. She couldn’t believe he’d said that.
Nuts.
Her guy was completely nuts.
“You are going to do exactly what the doctor said and rest your feet. That means the only reason you get out of this bed is to go to the bathroom.”
“I have other things to do.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I need to get some of my things from my apartment if I’m staying here.”
“You’re definitely staying here, and Victor can get your things. He’ll take Gracen so he’s not touching your underwear.”
She groaned.
“No interest in touching her underwear,” Victor said. “No offense, Aston.”
“None taken,” she said faintly. “What if I want to eat? Or tomorrow when I need to go to work?”
“I think we already had this conversation.”
“We really didn’t. I’m going to work, Maxim.”
“You’re quitting.”
“I’m not.”
“Again . . . I’ll repeat it in case you didn’t understand me before. I will have Victor tie you to the bed.”
“Victor won’t do that.”
“He will, baby. He’s a Malone man.”
She groaned and flung herself on her back on the bed, her arm over her eyes. She was too tired for this. Her head hurt. Her feet hurt. And she couldn’t out-stubborn a goat.
It was impossible.
“Are you all right? Do you need some painkillers?” Maxim asked her, his voice gentle now. Cajoling.
She sighed. She could say no. But she wanted to say no because she was annoyed at him. And saying no would only hurt her. So she nodded.
Victor looked at his watch. “Yeah, it’s been a while since her last painkillers. I’ll get some.” He pushed away from the wall and moved into the bathroom. He returned with a bottle, shaking two pills out to give to her.
“Thanks,” she muttered.
“We’re just trying to look out for you, little sister.”
Those words felt like a punch to her stomach. She had older brothers, but they weren’t good older brothers. She’d read so many stories where the older brothers looked out for their little sisters. And she’d wanted that with a desperation that bordered on obsession. Yet she’d never had it. And her two brothers were never going to give that to her. Hell, she’d have been happy if they would have just ignored her.
Rather than torment her.
But the way Victor was looking at her. It didn’t feel like the words were something he was just saying. It felt like he meant them.
Which was ridiculous when he barely knew her.
But still . . . she could feel herself getting teary.
“This is ridiculous. I hardly ever cry.” She wiped at her eyes angrily.
“You’ve had a rough night,” Regent said. “It’s to be expected. Also, I’m guessing you’re not used to people looking out for you?”
“I’ve never had that.”
“So it’s like you’ve gone from zero to a hundred then,” Regent said. “Because we don’t do things by halves.”
“You sure don’t,” she muttered.
Maxim squeezed her thigh with his hand. “Take your painkillers, Rainbow. Then lie back and rest, okay?”
“It’s a bit hard to rest when you were beaten and stabbed. I don’t like that.”
“We don’t like it either,” Regent told her.
“I can’t believe you grabbed a knife and then ran down to help me in bare feet,” Maxim muttered.
“You’re all fixated on my bare feet for some reason.” She swallowed her painkillers.
“You’re family now. We protect our own,” Regent said. “And we owe you for saving our brother.”
“I don’t know much about being part of a family,” she told them. “My brothers and dad are complete assholes. But I’m guessing that family doesn’t ever owe family. They just have their backs. Always. Am I right?”
“Yes, sweetheart,” Regent said softly while smiling warmly at Aston. “You’re right.”
Victor nodded.
She wasn’t sure how she’d ever thought the two of them were scary. Because right now, the way they looked at her, they seemed anything but.
Or maybe it was because they were only scary if you weren’t family.
Wow. How had her life turned around so completely?
Actually, she didn’t need to know that. She had the answer.
The answer was Maxim.
She turned her face into his arm for a moment.
“Baby? You okay?”
“Just need a second,” she whispered.
“Okay, you take your second.”
God. For all that he could be a stubborn, pain-in-the-ass, bossy man. He could also be so freaking sweet.
Killing. Her.
“Can you take us through what happened last night?” Regent asked Maxim. “Maybe something will come back to you that you missed.”
“Yeah, okay.”
She didn’t like how tired Maxim sounded. She wished she could tell them to leave so he could rest. But this was important and needed to be said.