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“Don’t be so stubborn, Dell. Take the meds. That’s what they’re there for. Did Rian get you something to eat?”
“I’ve been snacking all day,” she said, waving toward the basket on her bed. “Honestly, I’m just really tired now that the medicine has kicked in.”
“Yeah, that shit can knock you on your ass. He gave you some strong shit. Come on, let’s get you into bed,” he said, then did just that.
“Thanks, Cill.”
“Don’t thank me. I’m gonna tell everyone to leave you alone for a while,” he said. “Let you get some rest. But you have your new cell, right?”
“Yeah.”
“If you need something, call one of us. Or if it is later, just yell; Someone will hear you.”
“I’m sure I’ll be fine. I have everything here,” she added, waving out with her good hand, then reaching for her remote to flick on the TV.
“Okay. But don’t hesitate if you want something,” he said, pulling the blankets up over her, then leaning down to press a kiss to the top of her head. “Rest up, okay?”
“I will,” she assured him, sending him a soft smile.
“Goodnight, Dell.”
“‘Night, Cill,” she said as he flicked off the light, then disappeared into the hallway.
I went ahead and waited a good couple of minutes so I was sure he wasn’t coming back, then inched myself out of my hiding spot, finding Delaney sending me this cute as fuck guilty look.
“I should get going so you can sleep.”
“No!” she objected, voice a little desperate. “Stay,” she added, patting the space next to her on the bed.
“You need to sleep.”
“Just a couple minutes,” she asked.
And, well, when she was sounding that sweet and looking that good, was there really any denying her?
So I walked over to the bed, moving her snack basket, kicking out of my shoes, and slipping onto the bed.
“Your TV taste is as strange as your snack preferences,” I declared as she finally landed on a show.
“What? It’s a cute, mindless sitcom. The perfect background noise to fall asleep to. What do you usually fall asleep to?”
“The sounds of at least one of my brothers fucking someone,” I admitted, smiling at the way her low lip dropped open at that.
“All the more reason to have the TV on,” she insisted, shaking her head at me as she scooted lower on the bed, doing so without a wince, so those meds were really kicking in.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked, voice thick and sleepy as she moved a little closer to me. So I went ahead and put my arm over the top of her pillow and let my fingers sift through her hair.
“Sure.”
Sucking in a deep breath, then let it out on a sigh. “Why are you being so nice to me?” she asked.
She was asleep before I could answer her.
“Fuck if I know,” I admitted before leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead before I climbed out of the bed.
And got the hell out of there.
And away from whatever feelings that were spreading through my system from being close to her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Delaney
Healing was slow and quick, somehow at the same time.
I guess you had to expect that when you were riddled with several injuries with various levels of severity.
The swelling continued to disfigure my face for a solid three days before it started to go down. I was finally able to open my bad eye on the fourth day, and the egg on my head was all but flattened around the same time.
My nose settled with a very slight crookedness I actually found kind of appealing. And the only evidence of my lip being split was a light pink scar that was no thicker than a strand of hair.
The ribs and my shoulder, though, were still a constant struggle even a full week later.
“You’re fucking delightful today,” Rian said with raised brows as I, admittedly, snapped at him for the fourth time that morning. Over stuff that wasn’t even his fault.
I’d weaned down on the pain meds. Not because I didn’t need them, but because I did still have a worry about taking them.
But the pain mixed with my inability to do even the most basic of tasks without help and, okay, fine, the fact that I hadn’t seen Jass since the first night I’d come home, yeah, it was all making me bitchy.
Rian had been a real trooper about it.
Conor had avoided me for days. Even Sean and Eoin had kept their distance. Hell, even Cillian only checked in on me occasionally.
It was really only Rian who didn’t actively try to stay out of sight.
And I was pretty sure he was all but done with me too.
“Sorry,” I said, exhaling hard. “I’m being miserable.”
“Yeah, you are,” he agreed, shooting me that boyish smile that I knew and loved. “Think maybe you’ve been stuck in the house too long,” he suggested. “Maybe you need a day out. You know, now that you don’t look like complete shit anymore,” he added, making a snorting laugh escape me.
