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The door slid open, and he peered in.
“Lottie?” he whispered. The bed was made. No one was sleeping in it. He glanced around but didn’t see her. Had she gone downstairs?
Obviously, his instincts were off. She didn’t need him. But then a sound from behind a door caught his attention. He turned to Liam and nodded his head to indicate that he should follow him in.
Liam silently moved in behind him, shutting the door. Nico wondered if they should lock it. Glancing down, he frowned when he saw there was no lock. The door handle was different than all the others in the house. Either someone had broken this one or taken away the lock deliberately.
Liam gave it a glance too, and Nico could see he was thinking hard. Not much got past Liam.
He heard another noise, a sob. Then the sound of rattling and something being flung. Fuck. What was going on? He moved swiftly over to the door that he assumed led to an en suite bathroom. Like all the bedrooms in this house, this one was enormous. There was a huge bed centered against the opposite wall. It had a white wrought-iron frame with a soft, lavender-colored bedspread. The curtains were cream and light. The whole room was soft and feminine, down to the vases of fresh flowers on the bedside. It suited Lottie.
He and Liam looked completely out of place. Especially Liam, who glanced around the room assessing. He motioned to the door.
Right. Fuck.
Nico had to be the one to go in. Liam took the lead in a lot of things, but he couldn’t with Lottie. Because Nico needed to forge a bridge between the two of them.
Not wanting to second guess himself, Nico walked over and knocked on the door.
There was silence in there.
“Y-yes?”
He heard some noise. Drawers shutting? What was she doing?
“Go in. Now,” Liam commanded.
She might be naked or in the shower. Not that he wouldn’t mind seeing her naked. Nope, he wouldn’t mind at all. But he didn’t want to completely terrify her. Or unravel all his progress with her.
Liam didn’t give him a chance to make up his mind, though. Instead, he opened the door and barreled in.
She wasn’t in the shower or undressed.
Damn it.
Instead, she was sitting on the floor amid a pile of stuff that she was trying to hastily pack away in the cupboard under the sink. Dressed in some sort of billowy nightgown, her hair lay down in soft, gentle waves. She looked almost ethereal.
The bathroom was all white tile except for the wall behind the bathroom counter, which had a pale lavender subway tile. Nico spotted a first aid kit next to her. Then he frowned as he glanced down at the tile. There was something red on the floor next to her. Was that . . .
“Where are you bleeding?” Liam demanded.
Trust Liam to notice first. He stepped forward, making her cower back.
Fuck, Nico hated seeing that. Hated her fear. Liam came to a stop and froze. Nico knew the other man could look terrifying with his cold eyes and huge build.
Nico came closer and crouched down, hoping to reassure her. To his surprise, Liam followed his lead and bent down as well. That wasn’t usual.
“Pretty girl,” he murmured. “What happened? Where are you hurt? What were you looking for?”
Her wide eyes moved from him to Liam, whose gaze was taking in everything before narrowing down on her hands.
Which she had hidden in the skirt of her nightgown.
Bingo.
Liam sat back on his ass. Slowly. She still watched him like a deer watching a hunter. Terrified that at any moment he might pounce. But Liam kept his hands where she could see them, his gaze steady. No quick movements.
“Lottie,” Nico pressed.
