“I don’t think he’s ever told anyone else anything about his childhood. Javier doesn’t talk to anyone he considers an outsider.”
A little part of her liked that Javier had accepted her into his circle, although she wasn’t naive enough to think hereallyaccepted her. He watched her like a hawk. He was Gideon’s family, and the moment something went wrong, or Javier perceived it as wrong, he would turn on her in a second.
“I really love that you have family, Gideon. Maybe it started out rough for you, and even, at times, they are a pain in the ass, but they have your back, and that must feel good.”
He didn’t take his penetrating gaze from her face. “Yeah, Red. I’ll admit to you, as long as none of them are around to hear me say it, it does feel good. Although, when they’re around, they can drive me crazy. I’m used to spending a certain amount of my time alone, and they can be a lot when they’re all together. They like to give me a hard time.”
She couldn’t help giving him a teasing smile. “I can’t imagine why.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Any insight would be welcome.”
“You give off the tough-guy-loner vibe. You have no expression on your face, and you look dangerous and badass. One can’t help but tease you.”
His eyes went dark blue, the silver once more thin rings. She was more than fascinated. It was impossible to look away, especially when amusement had crept in, adding a gleaming brilliantsapphire color to his eyes. “Does that mean I can expect the same kind of sass from you?”
She pretended to weigh the idea while she ate another delicious prawn. Slowly she nodded. “I do believe you’ll have to put up with a lot of teasing on my end just to see if I can get that look off your face.”
Gideon concentrated on eating the soup while he considered her reply. “I see,” he finally replied. “The others I have to put up with. You, I can think up interesting responses to various tactical situations. I’m good at that. It’s one of the things I’m known for.”
A hot, sexy thrill slid down her spine. His voice indicated all kinds of intimate, sinful things she might not have ever heard of.
“Such as?” she prompted.
“If I tell you ahead of time, you’ll be prepared. That won’t be helpful to me, will it?”
The teasing note in his voice made her shiver inside. She’d never had this kind of fun before. “I’ll look forward to your tactical solutions and come up with a few countermoves of my own.”
“I’m always up for a good challenge.”
“I noticed. Particularly when it comes to food. How can you eat like you do and stay so fit?”
He laughed. “I don’t feel very fit right at the moment.”
She put her hand on his lower abdomen. It was impossible to feel the bandage through his shirt. “Are you in pain? You don’t show it, so it’s easy to forget.”
He shrugged. “I’ve learned to ignore it for the most part. I don’t take painkillers. I use ice and meditation.”
“What did your doctor say in terms of how long it’s going to take before you’re really out of danger?”
“Iamout of danger.”
“Gideon.” She didn’t believe him. He might be looking at her with his wide blue eyes, but he was lying through his white teeth.
He gave her a boyish grin that completely transformed his features, lending him a mischievous look for a brief moment. She wanted to see that expression often.
“You’re really not a very good liar,” she reprimanded. “What’s going on?”
He gave an exaggerated sigh. “I despise talking about my health. There’s one wound that’s being stubborn and keeps opening and bleeding. Since it’s internal and no one can see when the damn thing rips open, I lose a lot of blood before I know something is wrong. Doc has been working to strengthen it.”
That didn’t sound right. Stitches. Gluing. What the heck? She frowned at him. “I don’t think I quite understand. You must have had surgery. Didn’t the surgeon repair the wound then? And repair it a second time when it ripped open? What do you mean, ‘strengthen it’?”
He set the containers of food aside and picked up his drink. “Red, does it matter? I barely understand why it isn’t healing. The bullet nicked something vital apparently. That has to regrow, and it isn’t doing it fast enough. I’m too active. I don’t feel like I’ve been active. I feel like I lie around doing nothing and have been for over a month. I even asked him if there was something artificial they could shove in me to replace whatever isn’t working, but he said no.”
Her heart squeezed hard in her chest. “You really could have died, Gideon. There was a reason Javier acted protective over you.”
“Every time I go to work, there’s a chance I could die, Red,” he pointed out. “Every time you go to work, there’s a chance you could. Walking down the street or getting into a car. You can’t live your life in fear. If you do, you’re not living. You’re just existing. You’ve got one life, sweetheart. Live it. You get knocked down, stand back up. Keep going and enjoy the ride.”
“Is that what you do?”
