She turned to face him. “I love you, J.T., but if you don’t want to get hurt, you’ll get out of my way. I need to talk to my new boyfriend and tell him exactly what I think of all this macho BS.”
J.T. groaned. “Rena, maybe you should—”
“Bye.” She slammed out of his vehicle and stomped up the steps into Axel’s house.
He was standing near Sam and Foley in his living room talking until he saw her and froze.
She swallowed down her gasp of surprise, not liking the purplish bruise under his eye that seemed to spread across the half of his face not covered by his beard. She pretended she didn’t see the arm cradling his side slowly drop, as if he hadn’t been hurt. He straightened, no longer putting most of his weight on one leg either.
“Gentlemen, thanks for helping Axel,” she said. “I’ve got this now.”
Sam and Foley looked at each other, at her, then at Axel, who said nothing. His face looked as if it could have been carved from granite.
Foley chuckled. “There. Now your girl is safe and sound with you, and you’re safe and sound with her.”
“Safe?” Sam shook his head and said to Axel, “You poor bastard.”
They left, closing the door behind them.
Axel looked at her like a sulky little boy in a big man’s body. “It’s not so bad.”
“Liar. And you know I hate liars.” Worry and affection turned her ball of anxiety into anger that he’d put himself in danger. She stalked to him and poked him in the side.
He winced.
“Why did you try to fight two men at once and not come in for help?”
“Help?” He seemed confused. “Why?”
“You lied to me. You don’t have a meeting tomorrow, do you?”
He at least looked shamefaced. “No.”
“Then why did you say you did?”
“I didn’t want you to worry.”
“Well, I’m worrying,” she shouted. “You’re a moron. And what is this?” She waved the small envelope in his face.
“Your valentine.”
She opened it and saw a Claire’s gift card for $10.What the hell?
“Do you like it?” He looked hopeful, that battered face eager to see her joy. No matter that he stood there injured, a warrior fresh off the battlefield. He wanted her to be happy.
As a twelve-year-old wanting to shop for glittery earrings, costume jewelry, and Hello Kitty doodads, she would have loved it. As a thirty-three-year-old? Not so much. So she lied. “Yes, thank you.”
He sighed. “Gut.I hoped you would. They have colorful jewelry in there.”
“I know.” What should she do with this man? “Come on. Let’s get you fixed up.”
He followed her meekly into his bathroom and did what she told him.
Once he’d gotten naked and she saw the myriad bruises on his body, she wanted to hit him for getting hurt. Her eyes welled.
“Ah,Häschen,don’t cry. I have been hurt much worse than this. I’m okay. Just some bruises that will fade in a week or two.”
“I don’t like seeing you hurt, okay?” She wiped her eyes, annoyed she’d cried.
