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I don’t bother hiding the grin that appears across my face. It’s refreshing to speak with someone who doesn’t tiptoe around the niceties and gets straight to the point. Following her over to the bed, I let out a sigh as I see Ethan slumped in the chair.
“How’s she doing?”
He startles as he looks over at me over his shoulder.
“She made a few noises earlier. Other than that, nothing new.”
I look at Patience. The bruises have grown darker but at least the swelling has gone down. She looks a bit better, and he lets out a hard breath.
“I told Litza we’d let her stay in a guest room. Which one would you prefer she stays in?”
He shakes his head. “Any of them really. Though make sure she’s close to Patience. So, how about she takes the one down the hall?”
“You mean the one next to my room?”
His brows furrow at the alarm in my voice.
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
Yes, for many reasons. Most importantly, she’s gorgeous and I’m already having troubling thoughts.
“I was just confirming. Be sure she’s close.”
Movement in my peripheral catches my attention. Litza looks at her sister, concerned. Her nervous fingers flick rapidly against her thigh.
“I’ll take you to your room when you’re ready.”
“I’m ready now.” She looks over at Ethan with a smile. “Looks like she’s in good hands.”
For the first time in a few hours, brightness fills his eyes.
As we walk through, I realize that her silent approach earlier wasn’t a fluke. As I lead her down the hallway, each one of her steps falls silent on the floor.
“Thank you for what you did back there.”
Her gaze darts from the wall to me. An awkward moment of silence passes until her head tilts to the side, examining me.
“Being nice to him like that.”
A smile crosses her face in understanding.
“He seems to care about her. But I didn’t do it for him. I could see that you love him just as much as I love Patience. I can appreciate that.” Her voice falls to a near whisper as she shuffles along the hallway behind me.
“I do. I’ve never seen him this upset. Not since we were kids.” My feet stop in front of the bedroom door. “Here you go.” Opening the door, I step in ahead of her, to make sure she has everything she needs. “The bathroom is over there,” I say, pointing to the doorway off the side of the room. “Do you want a shirt or something to sleep in?”
Suddenly realizing what I just said, my cheeks burn.
“I’ll be fine, thanks.” Her lips turn up in a smile.
Rubbing my neck, I turn to leave.
“Mark?”
My name falls like honey off her lips, sending my cock twitching.
“Thanks.”
“If you need me, I’ll be next door,” I say, pointing stupidly to the adjoining wall.
