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Jaime pushed himself into a sitting position, scowling. “The ice wouldn’t be a problem if you were driving for the conditions, especially downtown. If you think there won’t be consequences for this, you’re a fucking idiot.” He leaned over me, his eyes searching my face. “Are you okay?”
Letting out a long breath, I quickly assessed myself for injuries before nodding. It was more startling than painful. He’d taken care to wrap himself around me and protect my head with his hands as he knocked me out of the way. I took his hand when he offered it, sitting up slowly.
“Careful. You might be in shock. Just take it slow.”
ChapterEleven
A snort rippedout of me before I could stop it. I was in shock before the thing with the car. This was just icing on the cake. I was starting to feel numb at this point but I couldn’t really tell if that was the shock or the bitter cold. The ice and snow soaked my clothes and every time the wind blew, I flinched against the cold.
“Fuck, you’re shaking.” He ripped off his suit jacket, putting it around my shoulders. “Put your arms around my neck, I’m getting you inside.”
“No!” Cold or not, I couldn’t go back to the building. Not when I knew what was waiting for me. I jerked away from him, considering taking off my shoes just so I could get to my feet by myself.
His face tightened and his eyes darted around before settling on the car that had almost hit me. It was twisted at an odd angle near the corner but undamaged. The driver had somehow managed to avoid the parked cars and me and Jaime, which had to be sheer luck because Jaime was right, he’d been going too fast for it to be safe.
Scooping me into his arms, he ignored my protests, marching over to the car and putting me in the front seat. He didn’t say anything to the driver other than give him a dirty look before he slid into the front seat and slammed the door. Pausing only long enough to buckle us in and blast the heat, he pulled out into traffic and thankfully headed away from the O’Connor building.
“Y-you just stole a car!”
I was shivering, my voice trembling as I clutched his jacket around me.
“No I didn’t. He works for us. He’ll get it back. Right after I kick his ass.”
I wanted to be afraid. He looked furious, his knuckles white on the steering wheel, his normal light and playful demeanor completely missing. But for some reason, even though I knew he had ties to the mafia, he didn’t scare me. If he wanted me dead, he wouldn’t have risked his life to knock me out of the way.
We drove in silence. No matter how high he turned up the temperature, I still couldn’t stop shaking and it seemed to agitate him. I clenched my teeth together to stop them from chattering, watching the road in front of us suspiciously. He looked like he was headed toward my condo complex but I wasn’t sure I could trust him so I stayed vigilant until he pulled up in front of my building. He was out of the car and around the front before I could blink, plucking me out of my seat and into his arms effortlessly.
“Y-you can’t park here,” I protested. He ignored me, kicking the car door shut behind him before he marched into the building. The doorman looked stunned, his mouth hanging open as Jaime looked around before striding forward. He turned right down the hallway and I almost wanted to laugh.
“My apartment is the other way,” I murmured. He did an about face, a grin pulling at his lips. I was kind of grateful that he had no idea where he was going. I didn't want to think about what kind of information the hacker could’ve pulled up and since they were in the mafia, I wouldn’t put it past them to have all my information and put bugs in my home or something.
I directed him upstairs and pointed him toward the door at the end. He stopped in front of it, frowning. “Wait, do you have your key? I can have someone bring it–”
Wiggling until he set me on my feet, I touched the door handle. A keypad lit up on the little black display and I punched in the password, pushing the door open when it flashed green and beeped. Jaime looked impressed, staring at it as he followed me inside.
“That’s a neat trick. I need one of those. I don’t know how many times I’ve ended up sleeping at Liam’s because I forgot my keys and didn’t want to drive all the way back home.”
Stumbling forward, I grabbed the throw off the couch, wrapping it around my shoulders before turning to face him. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll, um, I’ll send someone to pick up my things.”
He sighed. “Don’t say that. Let’s talk about it. Give me a chance to try and help.”
The pleading look on his face almost swayed me but I shook my head. There wasn’t anything that he could say that–
“Oh come on, don’t do that!”
His eyes went wide and he stuck his bottom lip out, pouting at me. I looked away, trying not to laugh. He’s a grown man and he’s pouting at me like a little kid and completely negating all the tension by being so ridiculous. He stepped closer, trying to stay in my eyeline with those huge puppy dog eyes. He followed me every time I tried to turn my face away until I burst out laughing.
“That’s not fair!”
A triumphant look overtook his face and he grinned at me. “I don’t know about that. I use what I’ve got.” He touched my cheek, sobering a little. “Come on. Whatever it is, I’m sure I’ve dealt with worse when it comes to Liam. Don’t throw in the towel just yet. Give me an hour. If I can’t change your mind by then, I’ll leave. I promise. Just hear me out.”
I wavered and looked away with a frown. I wanted to say no and send him away but he did save my life and he didn’t force me to go back when I was terrified even though it was a lot closer. He’s not a terrible person and I felt like maybe I should hear what he had to say. I didn’t feel like he was lying when he said he’d leave if he couldn’t convince me.
“Okay…”
He visually relaxed, those dimples popping back up as he smiled at me. “Thanks. But first, I need to warm you up. Where’s your shower?”
* * *
