She’d only taken a few steps when her knees started to give. I was about to scoop her up into my arms when she held up her hand and said, “I’ve got it. I’m okay.”
Even though I didn’t like it, I let her continue with her little display of stubbornness, and after a few more stumbles, she finally made it to the bathroom. Once she’d positioned herself in front of the shower, she motioned her hand over to the door and said, “I’ve got it from here.”
I knew it was a bad idea to leave her. Hell, she’d been out for days and had just woken up, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that there would be no talking her out of it. “Suit yourself.”
With that, I walked out of the room and closed the door.
I stood there by the door, listening in case she needed me, and it wasn’t long before I heard a few knocks and bumps. She let out a stream of curses, but she never called out for help—not once.
That’s when I realized Everleigh Freeman was going to be trouble—more trouble than I could’ve ever imagined.
EVERLEIGH
The whole showerthing was a bad idea.
I honestly don’t know what the hell I was thinking. I’d barely finished washing my hair, and I was struggling to keep my footing. I was dizzy, weak, and barely able to keep myself from falling face-first onto the floor. I leaned forward, resting my cheek on the cool shower wall, and inhaled a deep breath. Unfortunately, it did little to help. I simply wasn’t ready to take a shower alone.
But no matter how badly I might need it, I wasn’t going to ask for help.
Not from him—the incredibly handsome stranger with the deep blue eyes. I was standing there completely naked with gruesome bullet wounds marking my back which made me feel broken on the inside and out.
And to think, Doc kept telling me how lucky I was.
Apparently, one bullet barely missed my heart, and another came eerily close to my liver, and he was both shocked and impressed that I’d managed to survive. Even so, the wounds were pretty grotesque, and the last thing I wanted was for him to see me in such a state—at least not while I could help it. So, I finished washing off, then turned off the water and tried not to fall as I got out of the shower.
I dried off; then I drummed up all the strength I could muster and put on the clothes Billy had left for me. I used the toothbrush he’d left me to brush my teeth, then ran my fingers through my wet hair. By the time I was done, I was exhausted and could barely open the bathroom door.
When I finally stepped back into the bedroom, I was practically panting and wanted nothing more than to fall into bed. I stood there for a moment, trying to catch my breath, and was about to continue forward when Billy stepped up next to me. Those gorgeous eyes raked over me, and my entire body tensed. I was still struggling with how incredibly handsome my captor was and could only follow along as he took hold of my arm and helped me over to the bed.
As I sat down, he grumbled, “You always been so damn stubborn?”
“I’m not stubborn,” I argued. “I’mdetermined.”
“Call it whatever you want.” There was no missing the annoyance in his voice as he snapped, “Pushing yourself like this isn’t doing you any favors.”
“It was just a shower.”
“Yeah, and it took a lot out of you.”
“And I haven’t bathed in days.”
He reached over and grabbed several new bandages from the bedside table as he said, “Well, that’s not exactly true.”
“What?” I was already embarrassed by the fact that Billy had changed my clothes, but the thought of him bathing me was mortifying. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I think you know exactly what it means.”
I could’ve pushed him for a straight answer, but I didn’t really want one. The mere thought of him giving me a sponge bath was more than I could handle at that moment, so I pretended like it never happened and leaned forward, allowing him to put fresh bandages on my back as I told him, “Regardless, I needed a shower, andDoc said it was okay for me to take one.”
“Damn, you’re even more stubborn than I thought.”
He grumbled something incoherent under his breath as he put on the last bandage, then lowered my shirt. I rolled my eyes as I leaned back against the pillows, but quickly raised up with a pained gasp when I was hit with a sharp twinge of pain. A look of concern crossed Billy’s face as he asked, “You okay?”
“No, but I will be.”
As I lay there looking up at his handsome face, I couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing with a monster like DeLuca. It was a thought that should’ve scared me, but it didn’t. I’d been around dangerous men before. They would use their money and power to intimidate those around them. He was nothing like those men.
He didn’t have a fierce Italian name or an army full of guards.