The back of his skull smacks the wall as blood sprays all over us both.
The teensiest twinge of satisfaction blossoms in my chest.
He hunches over, clutching his nose. “What the fuck?”
He never saw the hit coming.
Funny…neither did I.
Chapter 35
Kellin
What the hell was that for?
No way did she haul me into an empty room to blow me and then bust my nose. Though she is a mafia kingpin’s daughter. Maybe I don’t know her at all.
Any other woman, at any other time… I’d have them in a vice grip while demanding answers. My little boxer wannabe’s lucky I didn’t swing back out of pure instinct.
I swipe beneath my nose, streaking blood down my shirt when I use it to clean my hand. The suit and shoes survived one hell of a day. Too bad my night is only just beginning.
“Maeve…” I shove my dick back in my briefs and zip up as fast as I can, staring at her with wild eyes the whole time.
She’s ashen, and her knuckles are clenching her phone so tightly, they’re practically shining in the dim light. Her right hand must be bloody as hell, bruising and swelling or even broken. But it’s dangling by her side, hidden in the shadows. I’ve still got one eye on it, watching for any sudden movements.
“That was one hell of a right hook.” I wipe my nose again and cringe at the metallic taste of blood. “What the actual fuck?” I blink a few times, attempting to mute the pain.
Damn, my girl can punch.
“Care to help me understand what’s happening here?”
Maeve sucks in a breath. “I’m… I…” She drifts backward as she struggles to form a sentence.
I lurch in her direction and reach out. “Maeve?—”
She recoils and stumbles back, arms windmilling.
I catch her by an elbow, but as soon as she regains balance, she shakes my hand off.
I release her immediately. I’d prefer to skip a second assault on my nose.
“Everything’s wrong. Everything!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Everything about you…about us…was a lie. I know who you really are.”
The ground drops out from beneath my feet. I couldn’t hear what Brody whispered on the phone. Dumbass me, I assumed he kept his voice down because of whoever hovered within earshot ofhim. It never crossed my mind that his conversation involved me. Exactly zero blood pumped to my brain at that point.
Desperation claws at my chest. “Whatever he said, I can explain. Just give me a chance. Maeve, I lo?—”
Shit, I almost told her I love her.Get a fucking grip.
“You.” She points at my right shoulder. “That’s a gunshot wound. I can recognize scars like that, Kellin. I know who you work for.”
Silence stretches out between us as I grapple with how to fix this—fix us—and still accomplish my mission.
My mind blanks. My nose throbs. My lungs constrict. Or maybe that’s my heart cramping with a damn charley horse.
