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As I exited, I accidentally made eye contact with Joseph who was still slumped over on the couch toward the middle of the plane. He lifted his arm, waving me over. Taking a deep breath, I nodded as I tiptoed toward him, trying not to wake Tanya and Aston who were sleeping. It was also unclear how Joseph would react to me since him getting hurt had been my fault. I squatted down next to him.
“Hi.” He spoke barely above a whisper with a warm smile, remanences of dried blood cracked in the corner of his lip near two small strips of butterfly bandages.
Saddened at his appearance and embarrassed I had caused it, I averted my gaze, wordlessly staring at the floor. Joseph never judged anyone in his life. I knew him well enough to know he would never have told me if he was mad at me for what happened either. Even though it came with the territory of being our head of security, I was still upset.
He extended his arm toward me. I examined it with raised eyebrows. My breath hitched as I placed my hand carefully in his scraped palm. Gazing into his eyes, I tried to mask my emotions as I observed his injuries.
His shoulder and wrist were bandaged, his was right eye red and swollen, and the left side of his forehead displayed a substantial road rash. A blanket covered the rest of him, so I could not see the if he had more damage. I was hoping his face was not just the tip of theinjured icebergand wondering how his girlfriend would feel if she knew this happened because of me. I opened my mouth to speak.
He squeezed my hand, delicately shaking his head. “I know what you’re going to say and please don’t.”
“But Joseph, Iamsorry.”
He nodded. “I know but I assure you, this wasn’t your fault.”
“How can you even say that?” I let go of his hand, hissing. “Look at you!”
He chuckled then winced, holding his side. “Listen to me. This might be my job and it’s what I am paid and trained to do.” He pointed at me. “However, you guys mean so much to me that I would die for you even if I wasn’t getting paid. Don’t ever feel responsible for me doing what I’m supposed to do. Got it?”
I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. “But…Iamso sorry, and I swear I will wait on you hand and foot until you’re better.”
He snorted. “You’ll do no such thing. I’m fine.”
“It’s okay to not always be tough, you know.” Rolling my eyes, I rested my palm on his bulky bicep.
Waving off my comment, he looked up behind me. I twisted around and my eyes trailed up the tall figure of Valentino who was standing over me, his hands tucked into his pockets. He gazed down at me smirking then turned his attention to Joseph.
“Do you need some more pain medicine?”
Joseph laid his hand on top of mine. “Would you please give us a moment, Miss Ayala?”
I nodded with a sincere smile. “Sure.”
Valentino reached his hand down and took mine. He pulled me to my feet then rested a tender kiss on my forehead. Gripping my hips, he pulled me into his body. “I’ll be back there in a moment.”
“Okay.” I spun to Joseph. “Please let me take care of you once we land.”
A smirk painted his face as he rolled his eyes. I was not sure if that was his way of agreeing to my request or if he was trying to decline my offer. I sighed then returned to my seat.
Moments after I settled, Noah appeared and threw himself back in the seat that was facing me. A brown wooden table separated us. He propped his elbow on the arm of the chair and leaned to the side, running his fingertip back and forth across his bottom lip. Flickering his gaze, he huffed and got his phone out of his pocket. He began to thumb through whatever he was looking at on the screen. “You okay?” He briefly glanced up.
I brought my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around my legs. “I just feel so bad for Joseph.”
“Why?” He slid his phone back into his pocket then entwined his fingers together across his stomach, studying me.
“Because,” I rested my chin on my kneecaps, “he almost died because of me…twice now.”
“Can I be blunt with you?”
I lifted my eyebrows, nodding.
He leaned forward, crossing his arms on the table. “Did you think he believed working as a bodyguard for a billionaire in the mob would be a piece of cake?”
I shrugged.
“He signed up for this, knowing he might die one day.”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t want that.”
