AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He opened his stupid mouth to answer, so I shook him, ramming the back of his head against the car to shut him up. He winced, and I leaned in, speaking the next part close to his ear. “You even think about comin’ near Kennedy again, you’re fuckin’ done.”
Then I aimed a jab to his stomach, and when he bent in pain, I hit him with an uppercut to his jaw to finish him off. His head snapped back as he grunted, falling to the macadam of my driveway.“Only cowards lay their hands on a woman. Next time you wanna fight, pick on someone your own size.”
I shook my hands out, backing away but keeping my gaze on him. “You got one minute to get in your car. Or I’m calling the police. You attacked someone on my property, and I was well within my rights to defend her.”
By the time he scrambled up from the ground, I was at my door, though I waited and watched until he sat his ass back in his car and drove away.
Only then did I finally walk into my house. With a deep breath, I turned around and was immediately knocked against the door by Kennedy wrapping her arms around me.
“I’m sorry,” she cried against my chest. “I didn’t mean to drag—” her breath hiccupped “—you into my mess.”
“Look at me.” I carefully cupped her face between my hands and urged her to tilt her head up. She did, her eyes red, her cheeks stained with mascara and tears. I brushed wetness from the corner of her mouth. “None of that was your fault.”
She sniffed. “But I?—”
“No, Kennedy. Nothing you ever do or say is an excuse for a man to put his hands on you.” I swept my palm over her forehead, pushing her hair away from her face then wiped her cheeks, though with how much she was crying, it wasn’t helpful. “Come here.”
I tugged her against me, holding her tight, smoothing one hand up and down her back, whispering soothing words about how she was okay, that he would never hurt her again, that I would protect her, no matter what.
Once her crying subsided to sniffles, I curled my fingers around her shoulders and bent my knees to meet her gaze. “Let’s go sit in the kitchen. I could use a drink, yeah?”
She nodded and let me keep her against my side as we ambled upstairs. I sat her down at the table then poured us each a bit of the Jameson I kept in a top cabinet.
I slid a glass in front of Kennedy and slumped down next to her with my own. I swallowed almost all of my whiskey in one go, working on calming my nerves and relaxing my muscles. Although, it would be a long damn time before I could forget the sound of Kennedy’s cries, shouting for him to stop touching her.
We sat in silence for a few minutes. Until she finally looked at me. Her face was clear of tears, but the pain in her eyes broke my heart.
“Are you okay?” she asked, and I hated that after everything that had happened to her tonight, she was worried aboutme.
I gestured to her drink. “If anything, at least it’ll help you sleep.”
She raised her glass, swallowing a sip, then winced with a cough. “Burns.”
“Let me put some ice in it,” I said, reaching for her glass, but she stopped me.
“Oh my god! Your hand!”
I yanked it out of her grasp, but she bent, taking both of my hands in hers to examine them. “Your knuckles.”
“Are fine.”
“No. You need ice.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not.” She stood, busying herself with wrapping up ice cubes in a dish towel. When I attempted to tell her to sit down, she shook her head, her lips puckering like she might cry again. “Please. Let me take care of you.”
I gave in with a sigh and let her fuss over me. But, really, I barely felt my split knuckles.
“I’m so sorry,” she said again. “I?—”
“Stop apologizing.”
“You got hurt.”
“Kennedy.” I waited until she raised her eyes to mine, paused in her ministrations of rubbing Neosporin on my knuckles. “I know you think you’re a burden, that you don’t want anyone to go out of their way for you, but I will. What happened out there? I would do it again—and worse. I don’t care about a few stupid cuts, not when your well-being is threatened.”
She sniffed and swiped the back of her hand across her nose. “I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me.”
