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"Come on, honey," Enzo said, holding one of the car doors open. If I wasn't mistaken, I would put money on it being Shooter's car.
"No. I'm waiting for Paine,"I objected, moving out of Tig's hold and wobbling over to lean against Paine's Challenger.
"The sooner we get you..." Sawyer started, but I cut him off.
"No. I can wait five more minutes."
"Babe..."
"Alright darlin'," Shoot said, moving to lean on the car beside me, looking off in the direction of the warehouse. "If there's anything I know about women, and I know a lot," he said with a devilish little smirk followed by what would normally be an absurd wink, but on Shoot it was charming and sexy. Oh, yeah, I bet he was quite the dog before Amelia leashed him in. "It's that there's no use arguing with you."
"Just 'yes' us to death and then do whatever the hell you wanted in the first place?" I mused.
"Eh, I think you've had enough kidnapping for the night. Though my trunk is rather spacious, you know."
I smiled, shaking my head, and turning back toward the warehouse. Out of a street on the side, I could see the outline of two giant men coming out of the shadows.
"Did he change?" I mused, meaning to only think it, but I had said it out loud.
Paine's eyes were on mine as they crossed the street, his white shirt replaced with a black one, his hands, arms, and face wiped clean of blood.
"Babygirl," he said as he got up close to me.
And, well, that was all it took.
I leaned forward, face-planting into his chest and letting out a really ugly, really pathetic-sounding sob. His arms closed around me slowly, gently, like I might break or crumble beneath his strength.
"Shh, baby," he murmured into the hair at the side of my head. "It's alright. I got you."
And, well, him being all sweet just made me cry harder.
After what was what I could only imagine an embarrassing amount of time later, I finally pulled it together, sniffling hard. I pulled back and Paine wiped my cheeks for me. "Got that out for now so we can go get you looked at?" he asked, the words at once sweet and a tiny bit teasing. Which I needed to stop the seemingly endless pool of tears inside me.
I nodded, pulling back. "Yeah."
I turned self-consciously back toward the group, giving them a small smile. "Thanks guys for ah... getting me out of there. You especially," I said, turning to Enzo who was looking the slightest bit uncomfortable.
"Darlin' anytime you need a knight in..." Shoot started, but was stopped when Breaker slapped him hard on the back of the neck with an eye roll.
"Go get all stitched up, doll. We'll all see you on Sunday," Breaker said, slapping Paine on the shoulder as he and Shoot moved to take off in their respective cars.
"Smart move with the pin, babe," Sawyer said as his men moved to their cars as well.
"I knew he was still looking into me."
"Good thing too," Sawyer agreed. "I'll check in with you after you're all pretty again," he said with a teasing smirk before swinging into his SUV and taking off.
"Enz," Paine said, his focus still on me, like he was afraid to look away. "You and me, we're having a talk. Soon."
"Yeah, man. I'm around."
"Come on, babygirl, get in the car," Paine urged, leading me to the passenger and helping me inside.
We drove to the hospital in absolute, ear-splitting silence.
And, of course, that gave my mind plenty of time to race and wonder and worry.
Why wasn't he talking to me?
Why wasn't he even looking at me when we stopped at the red lights?
Was this too much too soon for us?
Was it over?
Yeah, the little voice who narrated my worst fears, she was a pessimist by nature.
So by the time we parked outside the emergency room and Paine got out of the car, walking around the hood to open the door for me, yeah, that voice had pretty much convinced me that he was going to drop me, say he was going for coffee or something like that, and never come back.
"Elsie, come on."
I sighed hard, steeling myself for what I thought was the inevitable outcome, and got out of the car.EighteenPaine"You need to fuckin' pull it together," Breaker demanded as we watched the rest of the group move out, Tig's giant tree-limb of an arm around Elsie as she hobbled out. She was hurting. She was hurting and that fact made me want to turn back around and rip mother fucking D's head clear off his shoulders.
"Did you see her?" I demanded, fists clenching down at my sides.
"Saw her. Saw my own woman with her face busted too so I know how you're feeling. But she doesn't need you raging out. She needs you to get your shit together, clean up, and take care of her. She ain't from this life. She's gonna be a mess when the adrenaline wears off and everything settles in, becomes real."
