Page 3 of Protecting Gina

She rolled her eyes, letting out a harsh chuckle. “Like you’d know. You have no idea what I’m like.”

“You’re tough. I know that much.”

She drew in a slow breath, then shook her head. “I’m not tough. I just want to live my life, but I don’t think—never mind.”

Wave studied her. She had long brown hair, dark eyes, thin lips, and that was really all he could determine about her features with her thick makeup. She was attractive, even with all the makeup on.

“Want to talk about those men who were after you?”

She shook her head. “I need to clean this up.” She began opening drawers and cabinets, pulling out alcohol and cotton rounds.

“If you wipe away the blood, the makeup is going to come off, and people will see those bruises.”

She gasped and spun to face him. “What bruises?”

He pointed to the spot on her neck that wasn’t covered. “That’s a thumbprint. And based on the position and color of the bruise, I’m guessing he probably wanted to kill you. Did something interrupt him?”

She stared at him for a moment, then gave her head a quick shake. “He doesn’t want me dead, just scared. If I’m dead, they can’t get it back.”

He was about to ask her what they wanted back when the door opened, and someone wearing scrubs walked in.

“Oh, Nurse Musgrave, I didn’t know you were down here.”

“Yeah, I fell, and this nice man is helping me clean up.”

The other person nodded but looked doubtful. She’d probably seen the same bruises he had and wondered what was up with Gina falling so many times.

His phone buzzed, and he pulled it out of his pocket. It was his sister. She’d finished her test and would be here in about thirty minutes.

“Everything okay?” Gina asked.

He nodded. “Cassandra is on her way over. I need to get back up there.”

“I’m fine. You can go.”

“No, let me help you get cleaned up.”

He took the alcohol from her and poured a little on the cotton round before dabbing her cheek. She winced, but he didn’t let up. The other person left, leaving them alone.

Perhaps he wasn’t being nice enough with his touch, but she had at least two people after her who weren’t going to be nice. He wanted more information, but he had to put Cassandra first. Maybe later he could find some time to check with Gina.

Wave worried about his sister. So far, she’d seemed like nothing was bothering her, but there was no way she wasn’t upset. The trauma of losing a mother would upset even the toughest person. There was no shame in being devastated. He just needed his sister to accept the pain before she could learn to live with it.

Gina winced as he cleaned her cut with more alcohol. “I think I misjudged you.”

“What do you mean?” Wave asked.

“You’re not even trying to be gentle and pretend like you’re some nice guy who wants to get into my pants.”

His lips tipped up. “Sorry. I’m off my game, but I don’t think you need another jerk chasing after you right now. You have multiple people threatening you, and you aren’t accepting help from the police.”

Laughter slipped from her lips. “The police aren’t innocent here. They know what’s going on and won’t do anything to help.”

He leaned back and met her gaze. “What do you mean?”

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Really? Do you think everyone in law enforcement is good?”

“I don’t,” he replied a little too quickly.