A fast-food order should not make me want to cry, but here we were. This hinted at how thoughtful Punc could be, and I yearned for that to be my future. But we were wrong for each other, and probably always would be.
I glanced out the picture window at the river. I needed to thank Muriel for getting me into a room with such a fantastic view.
“Shit. You didn’t wake up and suddenly decide to be a vegan now, did you?” Punc asked.
I looked at him. “You remember my McDonald’s order.”
He settled a hip on the bed. “I also remembered how much you love Renna’s pepperoni. It’s not that hard, sweetheart.”
“Well, I’m going downstairs. The smell of those fries reminded me it’s time to eat,” Rita said, standing.
I shot her some side-eye. Rita kept a strict schedule and always ate lunch at eleven-thirty.
“See ya, Rita,” Punc said.
“Great to see you, Punc. Take care of our girl.”
I ignored the fact that Rita not only knew his road name, but called him by it.
I pulled my food out of the bag. “Don’t you have to get to Platinum’s? It’s almost two.”
“I’m off this week.”
My gaze caught his. “You are? Have you been on vacation?”
He stared at me for a long moment. “No, Savannah. Eat.”
The moment I swallowed my first french fry, I realized how hungry I was and all decorum fell by the wayside. I snarfed down my burger and Coke like I hadn’t eaten in days.
The satisfied smile on Punc’s face didn’t make my breath catch - it made my heart skip a beat.
“Why are you looking at me like that, Punc?” It struck me that I had to look awful. “Oh God. I must look like hell after—”
He leaned forward and slid my hair behind my ear. “Savannah, you’re healing up, but your beauty is more than skin deep. It’s a fucking shame neither of your parents helped you see that.”
I swallowed. “You didn’t answer my question. Why are you looking at me like that?”
He leaned back. “Sweetheart, I’m fucking thrilled you’re awake for me to look at. Now, do you need anything? They were out of cookies. Do you want dessert?”
“No,” I blurted. Then I realized I should have said yes. He’d have to leave the room and it would give me time to regroup. All of his attention on me wasn’t exactly unnerving, but it feltunusual. Especially since we’d agreed Wednesday night that we had to stop because we were co-workers.
“You’re covered,” he said.
My brows furrowed. “What?”
“The bills. The club’s got you covered.”
My eyes went wide. “Use some of my money from Sunday night—”
“Fuck, no,” he bit out.
“Ted.”
“Punc,” he corrected.
I shook my head. “That’s going to be thousands, probably tens of thousands—”
“You’re covered, Savannah. We still don’t know who attacked you and Prime, but it never should have happened and we’re covering you.”
