AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m sorry.”
“No, you’re not.”
Xenia allows a little smile. “I think you deserve to go soft.” Her expression turns sad again. “But soft can get you killed. I don’t know the answer.”
“I felt plenty soft today,” I say as my fingers trace her face. “I worried I wouldn’t see you again, and I wasn’t ready to let go of this thing we have. That made me react more slowly, but I still got job done and came back to you.”
Xenia’s gray eyes reveal all the fear and sadness bubbling up inside her. However, mostly, I see how much this woman loves me. My lifestyle doesn’t suit her. She won’t ever be casual about violence. If Velma came at her again with another broom, Xenia would likely end right back on her ass.
Even with no stomach for the rowdier elements of my life, she isn’t going anywhere. That’s what today proves to me more than anything. Not a bullet or her meddling sister can distract from what Xenia’s heart demands.
XENIA
Hobo looks exhaustedwhen I enter the hospital room. I’ve never seen him so pale and lethargic. Kourtney finds out he’s been sedated, and they’re tracking his blood pressure. I know he’s not one to visit the doctor for checkups. His blood pressure might be a long simmering issue. Whatever happens, I’m already devising low-salt meals to feed him once he goes home.
Hobo makes room for me on the bed. While I cling to him, he gives his sister a play by play of his day. He shares about Yagger. How he never saw Dice. That Eagle and him always work well together. I listen to his story told in a calm voice. Hobo might sound unbothered, yet he looks worn out in an unhealthy way.
Kourtney checks her phone and explains, “I sent my current meathead to escort La Quinta to her hotel. Once he gets back, I’ll leave you to rest. Do you want me to bring you home tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow?” I ask, ignoring how she mocks my sister’s name.
“They want to keep me for observation,” Hobo explains as his fingers play along my spine. “Apparently, getting shot as a forty-year-old man isn’t the same walk in the park as when I was in my twenties.” His relaxed gaze studies me. “Why don’t you have Kourtney take you to the Pigsty before she heads home?”
“I’m staying here with you.”
“Where will you sleep?”
“They won’t keep you in the ER overnight,” Kourtney says, texting wildly on her phone as if her rage at today’s events needs to go somewhere. “I’ll tell them to move their asses and get you in a real room. That way, Xenia can rest in one of those pull-out bed things.”
Hobo frowns at me. “You should go home and rest.”
“You know I’m not leaving. I always want to follow you everywhere.”
“Yeah,” he says, chuckling. “You’re still nursing that crush on me.”
“And I always will, so you best get used to me following you.”
