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“Don’t. He’s not worth your future.” I’m done with Austin. I don’t know the logistics of how I’ll untangle my life from his, given I work for the company he fights for, but I’m determined to do it—even if it means I’ll lose everything.
“What happened?” Gabriel shakes with rage, trying to keep it in check. I nearly feel sorry for him. Nearly. I’m sure his asshole—his natural state—is gonna show up at any second to taunt me, call me a slut, stupid for putting up with Austin’s philandering.
There’s nothing he can say I’m not already saying to myself. Even his words of hate can’t hurt me today.
I roll to my side—away from him—as best I can, ignoring the pain that has my eyes watering. I’m not going to cry in front of him of all people. “Like I’d tell you.” I close my eyes, praying for sleep, for peace, a way out of this situation that doesn’t include more humiliation at the hands of Austin or Gabriel.
“Why aren’t you asleep?” The heat of Gabriel’s attention sends a chill across my skin, making me tremble, setting off a new wave of pain in my shoulder. “Why the fuck aren’t you medicated?” He presses the call button before I can stop him.
“Don’t,” I grit through the pain. “Why are you even here?” Donovan already told me Austin is gone, but finding Gabriel rushing to my side is unexpected. But surprisingly not unwelcomed. As much of an asshole as he can be, I know if Austin did show up, Gabriel wouldn’t let him touch me. I’ve seen Gabriel with his mom and sister. He doesn’t stand for men disrespecting women, unless, of course, it’s him doing it to me.
“I needed to check on you, be sure you’re okay.” He walks to the other side of the bed so I’m facing him again.
I close my eyes to avoid the concern in his.He doesn’t mean it. He doesn’t give a shit about you.
When the nurse’s voice comes over the intercom, he insists they give me meds even though I tell him I won’t take them. He growls his discontent. The patter of his lighter-than-air steps as he moves around and the scrape of a chair on the linoleum floor fill the silent room. A whoosh of air hits me a second before his large, deadly weapon of a hand encompasses mine.
I frown, determined not to look at him.It doesn’t mean anything.
“Frown at me all you want, Angel. You’re taking whatever painkiller the nurse brings.”
My eyes fly open at the sound of his gruff voice using that endearment again.Angel. WTF? Austin went rogue, and the biggest pain in my ass just went soft. It must be the apocalypse.
“I won’t watch you suffer any more than you already have.” He reconfirms his intentions with a tender gleam in his blue eyes sparkling with stardust.
Stardust?I must be delirious from the pain. “Then leave.”
He chuckles. “Feisty as ever.” He brushes his hand across my forehead and down my cheek. “That’s a good sign.”
I’ve never seen him so affectionate or tender. “What’s wrong with you?”
“That list is too fucking long to get into now.”
“I mean, why are you being nice to me?”
“I have no reason to be mean to you.”
“You had reason before?” What the hell is he talking about?
He nods.
I scrutinize him, looking for some secret I know I’ll never find the key to. “You need to leave.”
His lips touch our joined hands. “I’m not going anywhere.” He nods to the door. “Take your meds, Frankie. I’ll be here watching over you, keeping you safe.”
The tenderness in his voice and the fact he knows why I wouldn’t take any painkillers has my damn eyes leaking again. For fuck’s sake!
The nurse shoots something into my IV, telling me to rest, and I should be released in a few hours.
Gabriel touches my cheek. His thumb slowly swipes across my brow over and over again. His touch is calming. But even more surprising, his touch makes me feel cherished. “Sleep now, Angel. You’re safe.”
When her breathing evens out barely five minutes after the drugs were introduced into her IV, I take my first easy breath since getting the call from Donovan. Reluctantly, I remove my hand from hers and sit back in the hospital chair that’s made for children or lesser men than me. But I’ll sit here all goddamned day or night if it means she feels safe enough to sleep. It only took a second to see the fear in her eyes to understand why she remained in the hell of her pain instead of sleeping blissfully unaware of her surroundings.
I didn’t know what I’d do or say when I stepped into her room, but the second I saw her wrecked and so fucking vulnerable, instincts kicked in. The instinct to kill to protect what’s mine.
I will protect her. I’ll hunt down anyone who wants to cause her harm and end them before they can touch a single strand of her silky raven hair or bring another tear to her eyes. When it comes to protecting my Angel, I’ll have no mercy.
My phone is blowing up with texts from the guys. There’s no sign of Austin, which I choose to take as good news. Lyndale is not big enough to hide in. We’re too well known to go unnoticed for long, especially once word gets out about what he did. The details don’t have to be known. The fact he hurt his woman is enough to get him turned in by anyone who spots him in this wholesome community. He knows he’s in deep shit and skipped town.
