Then he froze. And not due to the sight of her small but plump breasts topped with cherry-colored nipples. Not at the sight of her small waist that nipped in then flared out into surprisingly generous hips given her size. Not even because of that shaved pussy.
Nope he froze when he saw the fucking bruises. Bruises, plural on her right thigh. He crouched down to get a better look. There were small, some had faded to a yellow-brown, others were pu
rple-pink and tinged with blue. He remembered she’d had some slight bruising the last time he’d helped her undress. This was something different entirely.
“Where the fuck did you get these from?”
She froze. Shit. Shit. Shit. Why hadn’t she remembered? Stupid. She’d never intended him to see them. She’d been trying hard to stop, but with Jed away, the voice came back. And then her anxiety over the flowers and notes just seemed to stir things up more. Until her thigh was a mess.
She was so screwed up.
She placed her hand over the bruises, as though hiding them would make him forget that he’d ever seen them.
Jed gently pried her hand away. He just stared at her thigh and she braced herself for his disgust. His horror.
You are such a mess.
“Jed, I can explain.”
He stared up at her and the look in his eyes was so dark and cold that she couldn’t even breathe.
“Who did this to you?”
She shook her head.
“Don’t you fucking protect them,” he said in a harsh voice. “Don’t even think about it. I want a name and I want it now. Who did this to you?”
She licked her lips, her heart racing.
“Who. Did. This?”
“It’s not what you think,” she managed to whisper.
He just waited. Stared up at her. And the room filled with his fury. Foreboding. An imminent storm.
She braced. “I did it.”
17
He rocked, falling back onto his ass as he stared up at in her shock. It didn’t even register that he’d lost his balance or that he probably looked like an idiot.
She. . .she. . .
“You did this to yourself?” he whispered.
Her face was blank as she stared down at him. “Yes.”
His mind whirled, trying to process that. Why would someone hurt themselves like that? He managed to pull his shit together when he noticed that she was creeping away from him, watching him with a wariness that told him she thought he was on the edge of exploding.
He got to his feet then wished he’d moved more slowly as she flinched.
“Baby, you’re scared of me?” He forced himself to calm his voice. It was obvious she was getting ready to bolt and he really didn’t want to chase her through the house.
“No.”
He raised his eyebrow.
“I-I’m scared of what you’re gonna say or think.”