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After Hudson made sure it was okay for me to get out of bed, he helped me to the bathroom, pushing the IV stand for me and holding most of my weight with the other arm. My vision blurred, and I swayed as I walked, and Hudson had to steady me. I glimpsed my image in a mirror. I had a bruised nose and a black eye. By the time I finished up in the bathroom, I felt physically drained. When Hudson helped me on the bed, I scooted over and patted the spot.
“I don’t want to accidentally hurt you,” he murmured.
“My IV’s on the other side. It’s fine. I’d rather us sleep on this twin bed together than you sleep on that chair.” When he stood there staring at the little bed, I added, “Please. I’ll heal and sleep better beside you.”
He took off his shoes, then crawled in beside me, careful not to touch my face.
FORTY-SIX
HUDSON
Eugene had been home from the hospital for two days and kept asking if the police had called. She constantly told me how bad she felt that I ended up in jail for a few hours. No matter how often I tried to assure her there was nothing to worry about, she still fidgeted with her hands and peeked out the window, as if the police would show up to arrest me.
My heart ached seeing her so anxious all the time.
The fucker named Jerry was awake and wouldn’t dare press charges. Since I wasn’t allowed anywhere near him, a family friend who worked at the hospital snuck me into his room. I made sure Jerry knew about Eugene’s innocence in her old boss’s case. Finnick roughed Phillip, Jerry’s accomplice, up. Phillip claimed he hadn’t touched Eugene, but he was there to threaten her all the same.
I didn’t get it. How could they look at Eugene and think she could steal from anyone? Even after the man nearly killed her, she still looked at me and said it wasn’t fair for them either. “A lot of people were depending on that money Danny stole.” As if that fucking mattered. That didn’t give anyone the right to attack someone, especially Eugene. She was innocent.
I could feel the anger boiling to the surface thinking about it, so I stood and walked to the kitchen while Eugene napped on the couch. She slept a lot because of the head trauma. The doctor said she would make a full recovery, but it terrified me. The thought of something happening to her had me staying home with her. I wouldn’t dare go back to work until she was healed.
The fact that someone attacked her still enraged me. When I walked in that bathroom and saw the man pummeling Eugene into that wall, I never knew such fury. I lost it. I would have killed him if they didn’t tear me off him. I still wanted to kill him. The bruises on her beautiful face were turning blue and yellow in some spots, but it would be another week or more before the bruises would fade completely. Closing my open hand over my trembling fist, I shut my eyes and took a deep breath.
She was attacked because she lived in my fucking cabin. For whatever reason, Jerry and Phillip thought that because she lived at my place, she must have taken off with some of their money.
I was livid justthinkingabout what the police told me.
And what Eugene confessed about her past at the hospital replayed in my head constantly. To think that she assumed she was bothering me hurt me. I should have been nicer to her in the beginning instead of trying to deny my instant attraction to her. Maybe then, she would have told me about Jerry and the note sooner.
“Just an ex who liked being mean if the house wasn’t clean enough for him.”
My chest tightened as my pulse throbbed at my temples. Yes, I should have been kinder. My girl had been through enough.
All I wanted to do was wrap Eugene up in my arms and hold her. It would be the only thing to soothe my agitation, but I couldn’t. I might hurt her head if I dozed off and hit it with my arm.
I ran my fingers through my hair and took a deep fucking breath.
“Blondie?” Eugene stepped into the kitchen. My heart cracked in two when I spotted the swollen eye and nose, and the bruises. She had a blanket wrapped around her. Max had stayed at her side since we returned, like he could tell she was injured.
“Do you need me to turn off the light?” I hurried over to the switch.
“No, the headache’s actually starting to ease today,” she said.
“Really? That’s good, baby.”
I walked over and lightly kissed her forehead. The contact wasn’t enough. I was beginning to ache from the loss of touching her the way I wanted. My heart and mind would be at ease once she was better.
“I’m fine. You can go back to work.”
“Absolutely not. When you return to work, I’ll go back. They’re managing fine without me.” Since Eugene entered my life, I realized how little I was needed at my restaurant. Of course, I still dealt with all the paperwork and things at the cabin, but I left Randall and Daisy in charge of the truck orders. So far, they hadn’t disappointed me.
The doorbell rang. Eugene’s eyes widened as she stepped closer, and she asked, “Is it the police?”
I hated that she was seriously scared for my sake. No matter how much I told her everything was fine, she was worried. She walked to the door with me. I opened it, then smiled as Edwin and Francis stepped in.
“Your eye is looking better,” Francis said as she leaned into Eugene for a hug.
“Be fucking careful.” I pulled Francis away from her.
