He comes closer to grip the shoulder of the axe with a sharp look. “Your fractures are acting up because you pushed yourself too much.”
It’s true that I’ve ignored the throb in my stomach for the last few hours, and annoyance filters into my expression, “I really don’t like when you do that.”
“Who’s going to stop you from ruining yourself if not me?” Reuben’s glare sharpens, but he looks away and backs down almost immediately with a sigh. “The guards told me you saw us at the gate.”
“I did.” I pull the axe out of his grip and turn away to pick up a new woodblock. “How was the mission?”
“Fine. Christian, I didn’t—”
Chop.
Reuben’s jaw twitches.
“The Don doesn’t like your history.”
My ‘history’.
It could only mean the deaths of the Adler Squad.
“Sounds like something you knew from the start.”
“Yes, but he’s not thinking straight because I jumped in to save you.”
“It’s looking more and more like you shouldn’t have.”
Reuben grabs my inner elbow and pushes me back so forcefully, the axe falls out of my hand, and my back hits a tree roughly.
“Don’t.” His low voice is a final warning and my protest dies in my throat when I see the anger in his eyes. “Ever.”
“I already told you once before.” His eyes are burning with heat again. “You're one ofmine.”
Somehow my pulse feels louder than it should be, and my heart squeezes tightly in my chest.
“Father’s given me some… idiot veteran,” he continues. “But when you recover there’s going to be a match between you to see who gets the spot on the team.”
Another test.
“The whole team hates him. So the best thing you can do for us is not make this worse. Recover quickly so you can kick this guy’s ass and send him home.”
Reuben’s body is close to mine, but even though we barely touch, the space between us feels electric and alive.
“Don’t be upset over this,” he says quietly. It doesn’t sound like an order, but a request.
When did you start being so soft on me, Reuben Taiga?
“You’d be able to tell if I was upset, wouldn’t you?” I reply and I shake my head once. “I’m not upset.”
There’s a frown between his brows as he holds my chin in his fingers to tilt my head up, his palm cupping my throat. “No… you’re not upset.” It looks like even he can’t tell what I’m feeling, and there’s a worry in his eyes because of it. His eyes darken as they fall to my lips, and his grip around my throat tightens just a fraction as he gives me a hard stare.
“No more work today.” This time I can tell it’s an order. “Go home. Call Lucia or something and let her distract you.”
I swallow lightly against his hand and his eyes are drawn to the movement. “Yes sir.”
His grip tightens in response and there’s that expression again, the one that makes me stop breathing. When he releases me, I’m becoming more and more certain that this isn’t normal. Whatever it is between us that creates these tingling sensations beneath my skin.
I can only hope it doesn’t get in the way of what I’m trying to achieve here.
Chapter 14
