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“I’m Jessa Malone.” Thayer smiled at her, and Deacon turned his head, his gaze now on the window, his jaw clenched. Was he upset that she was here? It seemed contradictory given the fact he had asked how she was, but maybe he just wanted to know so she would leave?
The way he stood, stiff and brooding, led her to believe that he certainly wasn’t feeling very welcoming with her in his home.
“Are you in a lot of pain?” She turned her attention to Thayer and saw genuine concern in his expression.
“I’m sore, but fine, thanks to you … two.” She glanced between him and Deacon, still not knowing what had happened after she crashed into the tree, but knowing these two men had helped her and she owed them her life.
“I can give you something for the pain if you’re too uncomfortable.” She shook her head before he finished. No, she didn’t want anything to numb what she felt. This was the first time she had felt alive in the last five years. The pain wasn’t even the worst she had ever felt.
“No, I’m fine, really.” Her head chose that moment to throb painfully, and she gripped her forehead and gasped in pain.
A thick arm wrapped around her waist instantly and helped her over to the couch. When she lifted her head she saw it was Deacon who had helped her.
He had been so quick to come to her aid. His eyes were a startling blue, pale and so crystal clear they seemed unreal. His face was made up of hard, square planes and full lips.
The whole package was strikingly attractive, and she felt herself leaning in. He was off of the couch in a matter of seconds, mumbling something about going for a run, and then he disappeared.
For several long moments she sat there in silence, her heart pounding and her palms sweating. The couch dipped beside her, and she turned to look at a very concerned Thayer staring down at her.
He commanded the space, his shoulders so wide they blocked everything behind him. His eyes were the same blue as his brother’s, the color like liquid silver with a splash of aquamarine. The hue hypnotized her.
She saw his hand lift in her peripheral vision, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away from his. His fingers skimmed along the edge of the bandage, right at her eyebrow line.
Chills raced along her arms at the simple touch. What in the hell was wrong with her? First she checked out his brother, and now she couldn’t stop staring into Thayer’s eyes.
Maybe she’d hit her head harder than she thought? What was it with these two men, these two strangers who had her drawn to them after only being in their presence for less than ten minutes?
“Are you hungry? Thirsty?” He pulled his hand away as if she burned him, curling his fingers into his palm and glancing away.
He cleared his throat and then stood, walking away from her and into the kitchen.
“I’m surprised you’re awake. I gave you pain meds that should have had you sleeping until morning.” She turned on the couch and watched as he went about making her a sandwich from the ingredients he pulled out of the fridge. “Your discomfort probably woke you. That’s not uncommon.” He looked at her and offered her a smile. “Do you remember anything that happened?”
She shook her head even though he didn’t look at her. “All I remember is my car skidding out of control and then slamming into a tree. Then I woke up here.” He lifted his blue eyes. “Are you a doctor?”
“No, but I have training as a paramedic. Living out here makes it almost imperative that you have some sort of medical background.” He brought his thumb to his mouth, sucking off a dollop of mayo.
She wasn’t even a fan of mayo like that, but watching his lips wrap around his big thumb sent tingles throughout her whole body. Holy hell. What is happening to me? As if he sensed where her thoughts were going, the corner of his mouth quirked up.
“Yeah, you were out of it. Deacon was out … running when he found your car. You were out cold, so he brought you back here. I gave you five sutures to the laceration on your head and watched your vitals. You’re very lucky you didn’t have any other serious injuries and that Deacon found you when he did. If you had been out there much longer hypothermia would have set in, and any number of wild animals would have scented out the blood from your cut.” He brought the sandwich over to her along with a glass of milk.
“I’m lucky he found me when he did.” She wasn’t particularly hungry, but she couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten anything. Picking up the sandwich, she took a bite, acutely aware that Thayer watched her.
When she had eaten half of it and couldn’t stomach any more, she set it on the plate and sat back. Thayer handed her the milk, and she thanked him before she drank half of that as well. When she lifted her gaze to his and saw him still watching her with that knowing look, she felt the walls caving in.
“I—” Swallowing roughly, she kept his stare as she licked her lips. He focused his eyes on her mouth, and something started humming inside of her. “I think I’d like to go back to bed, if that’s okay?”
“Of course.” His voice was low. It held a sexy bedroom quality that had her thinking up all kinds of naughty things. She quickly got up and made her way back to the room.
Her body still screamed at her to take it easy, but she needed to escape from the sensations and emotions that were heavy and thick back in that living room.
When the safety of those four walls surrounded her, she leaned against the door and closed her eyes. The sight of blood, bruises, and screaming flashed behind her eyes and rang in her ears.
Paul’s face took the forefront in her mind, and she snapped her eyes open. She was free from him, free from the verbal, emotional, and physical abuse she suffered at his hands on a daily basis.
He would not continue to dictate her life, to control the very air she breathed. She would accept the generosity of these men and then leave. Was she that fucked up in the head that she sought some kind of connection between the first men she came across after leaving Paul?
She was a damaged woman who needed to disappear from the world. What she didn’t need was to be attracted to the men who were helping a ruined woman.
