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This time, when my boyfriend struggled, Anthony actually let him go. Tanner rushed over the assholes he'd kicked the shit out of, not stopping until he was at my side. Then, he shoved an arm under my legs, the other behind my back, and lifted me to his chest like I weighed nothing.
"I got you, Cody," he promised, carrying me out of the room like I was some princess in a movie. "I got you, baby, and I won't ever let them hurt you again."
Chapter55
My hands were shaking so hardI could barely hold on to Tanner's neck. I could feel the tears streaming down my cheeks, but I didn't know how to stop them. It was over. I'd survived. I hadn't been raped, but for that split second, I'd honestly thought I was about to be, and I did not like how it felt.
I was weak. I was helpless. I was everything they'd said.
When we reached the hall, I saw my pink and black chaps sprawled from wall to wall. Over there was the dark case of my phone. My hat had been tossed further down, but everything was blurry. I tried to blink, but the tears just kept coming. My legs were shaking. My shoulders were trembling. I wasn't as tough as I thought, and I didn't want anyone to see me like this!
When we reached the far end of the hall, Tanner eased me to the ground, and kneeled beside me. "Cody?" he asked. "Is anything broken?"
A sob broke free, but I shook my head. That hurt, but not as much as the damage to my spirit. I was supposed to be strong. I was a goddamned bull rider, but I just wanted to curl up in a ball and make all this go away.
"Baby?" Tanner begged.
"I couldn't stop them," I blubbered.
"Oh, Cody," he breathed, cupping my face the way J.D. had so many times, then he used his thumbs to wipe at my cheeks. "I know. It's ok."
"No it's not!" I shot back. "It's not ok. I'm bad luck, Tanner. I've failed at everything. I screwed it all up, and I couldn't even stop them on my own. If you hadn't - "
"But I did," he said, cutting me off. "And no one can take two against one. I don't know if they blindsided you or what, but stop that!" Then he leaned in to kiss my brow. "You are not weak, ok? You got hit hard, and you got back up to help me. You fought the fuck back, and that is not the same as being weak!"
I heard him. I also saw the intensity on his face. Those hazel eyes of his had turned almost green, but I wasn't scared of the anger. Not from Tanner. This sweet, sexy man had just given me a glimpse of something I had a feeling he didn't turn loose very often, and he'd done it for me.
"Tanner?" I asked, sniffing in an attempt to stop my tears. "Are you ok?"
He just wrapped his arm around me and pulled me up against his chest. "I am now. Oh, Cody, I am so sorry I left you alone."
"I'm not a doll," I reminded him. "I don't need to be babied."
"No, you don't. You kicked a little bit of ass yourself." Then he leaned back to look at me. "But when I saw you on the ground..."
My next words came out as barely a breath. "I thought they were going to rape me."
Tanner's entire body stilled, and his gaze flicked from one of my eyes to the other. "Are you ok?"
"I don't know," I admitted, but the sound of more steps made me look back as Doc Stephens came jogging over with a medical bag.
Anthony was still in the room with the guys. I could hear more feet, which meant help had been called in, and I could only imagine who all was about to see me in this state. Desperately, I wiped at my face, trying to hide the signs of my crying.
"Who's hurt the worst?" Doc asked as he reached us.
"She is," Tanner told him.
I lifted a hand to point at the room. "Austin and Derek."
"Fuck 'em," Doc grumbled as he turned his attention on me. "Cody, can you follow my finger with your eyes?”
I got a quick checkup right there while sitting in the middle of the hallway. Doc pressed at the sore spot on my head. He turned my face from one side to the other, scanning my injuries. I had to prove to him I could move my arms and legs, but when he saw my hands trembling, he didn't call me out for it.
Tanner had moved back and now had his phone in his hands. I could hear the sounds of texts being sent, and had a feeling he was telling J.D. what had happened. I just couldn't decide if I hated that or wanted to thank him for it.
Then the slap of hard soled shoes proved yet another person was running our way. "Cody!"
Max! I recognized his voice and turned to see my rep doing the closest thing to a run he probably could. The man didn't even pause to ask the doctor if I was ok. He just dropped down beside me and grabbed both of my hands.
