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He gave a curt nod.
She placed a hand on Poke’s arm, and his eyebrows rose. “Thank you for letting Dog know Nate was here. Thank you so much.”
He flashed a quick smile. “You’re welcome. Glad everything worked out.”
He got out of the vehicle, and Cutter climbed in. “Mission, here we come.”
The drive into Asheville was uneventful, and Cutter was quiet, giving Charley time to think about all Dog had said. How he’d known Nate was coming and had wanted her out of town. How he’d had issues to work out himself.
What kind of issues would make him break it off in such a hurtful way? And was he really over them?
He’d left the fight, which had meant so much to him and Luke, to save her. He’d come as soon as he’d known she was in danger. Thathad to mean something.
The look in his eyes when he’d told her not to give up on them … she’d say there was love in them. She wasn’t sure what to make of any of it.
All too soon, they reached Asheville, and the hospital came into view. Cutter parked in the now too-familiar ER parking lot.
He rounded the SUV and helped her out of the vehicle. “He’s crazy about you, you know.”
Her heart stuttered, wanting to believe him, but the pain from Dog’s words was still fresh. “He hurt me. Deeply. I’m not sure I can forget that.”
Cutter shrugged. “Wrong thing for the right reason. If it helps at all, it was my shitty advice he was following.”
“You told him to break up with me? Why? Why not tell me what was going on?”
“Whole thing’s complicated. I’m going to let Dog explain most of it. Just know this. Nate doesn’t let up. If he wants to get to you, he’ll try again. I wanted you far away from him. For good.”
A chill shuddered up Charley’s spine. “So, what now?”
“We get you checked out and back to Dog. You’re under club protection. When you’re in town, we’ll have somebody on you.” He grinned. “I’m sure most of the time, Dog will want that spot.”
Her nether regions tingled at the memory of the night they had been together. “I think I might like that,” she said, surprised at the husky sound of her voice.
Cutter’s laugh rang loud in the parking lot.
***
Charley was finally released after a miserable night in the ER. The neurologist on call did a thorough physical, a cognitive exam, and forced her to endure another MRI because of her previous TIA. Diagnosis—a mild concussion but no other abnormalities. Normally, a patient would be released with orders to rest, but not her. Her previous neurologist at Mission, Dr. Niles, had said she didn’t know the meaning of rest and had insisted she enjoy yet another night in the hospital.
The whole thing seemed like a waste of time to Charley. She hadn’t rested at all. All she could think about was Dog.
Once she had release papers in hand, Cutter steered her wheelchair through the ER toward the parking lot. She craned her neck to look at him. “Can we go see Dog now?”
Cutter frowned. “He’s still at the police station. They kept him overnight.”
Charley’s throat tightened. Nate should be the one behind bars, not Dog. And where was this pit bull attorney?
“You both said he’d be out in no time,” Charley said, her voice tinged with anger. “Whathappened?”
Once out the hospital door, Cutter stopped the chair. He helped her up, and they walked toward the SUV. “DA’s being a hard ass. Even though she’s got your preliminary statement from Stanley, she wants the formal one. She’s also going to talk to Nate this morning to see if he wants to press charges. Our lawyer’s all over her, but she’s standin’ firm.”
If anyone should be pressing charges, it was Charley against Nate and his goon. She’d give the DA a piece of her mind.
Cutter opened the passenger side door, and Charley climbed in. “Nate should be the one under arrest. Dog saved me.”
“Yep. That’s the truth. We just have to get the DA to believe it.”
***
