She laughed, coughing on a huge swallow of beer. “Please don’t ever call meprincess.” Taking another gulp, she seemed to be thinking. “Call me Thorn, then. It’s pretty accurate to my prickly personality, anyway.”
Surprise saw my brows hitch. “Thorn?” I tested it out, holding her golden-green gaze. “I like it.”
Her lopsided grin turned brighter, and my breath caught. “So, what do I callyouthen?” she asked, her gaze leaving mine and running down my bare chest. My jacket was open, my ink on display. Was I imagining a touch of heat in her eyes when her gaze returned to my face?
I took a sip of my beer to distract myself.
“What do you call me?” I repeated in a somewhat husky voice. Shit, I evensoundedhorny.
Anything you fucking want, Thorn.
Clearing my throat, my gaze scanned around us, noting the attention we were already holding. Our time was limited. Either my security would find us or the press would. So I’d damn well better make the minutes count.
“Rhett,” I told her honestly, watching for even the slightest flicker of recognition in her eyes.
She tipped her head to the side. “Rhett,” she murmured, her voice turning my name into something sinfully sexy. “That’s so… old Hollywood glam. Not what I expected from a guy like you.”
I chuckled, relaxing more into the sofa and letting my fingertips brush her golden hair. “Oh yeah? What did you expect my name to be? Probably something totally douchey like Zeplin or Razor,huh?”
She gave a soft laugh, shrugging. “If the shoe fits,Zep.”
Giving a dramatic groan, I indicated to the waitress to bring us another round. Thorn had nearly finished hers already, but it was comforting to see she’d stopped twisting her fingers in the hem of my shirt. Like maybe she was relaxing?
“So… want to tell me what happened to you tonight?” I asked gently after a beat of silence.
She shook her head. Fair enough.
“Are you sure it wasn’t your blood?” I asked instead, worried she might have a wound hidden from me right now.
Her nod was tight. “I’m fairly sure,” she whispered. This time when her amber eyes met mine, they were haunted by shadows. “It was my friend’s. S-she…” her chin wobbled, and I reacted on instinct.
Closing the gap between us, I wrapped my arms around her thin frame, pulling her into me like I could somehow shelter her from the demons already inside her head. “Hey,” I whispered, my lips against her hair. “I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have pried. You don’t have to tell me.”
Her shoulders trembled, but she pulled away a moment later. “I shouldn’t be here,” she told me, shaking her head. “If he finds me—”
“Hewon’t,” I growled. I didn’t even know whohewas, but goddamn if I wasn’t already committed to saving this girl fromhim. “Where would you go if you weren’t here? Where were you running to when I found you?” She’d said she had no money. No possessions. It wascoldout there tonight too.
My hands were still on her back, and she didn’t seem bothered by it. But the way her cute nose wrinkled confirmed what I already suspected. She had no clue where to go or what to do. If I let her walk away now, she would be right. By morning, she’d be a Jane Doe in the morgue, the victim of either crime or the cold.
“Here’s what we’re going to do,” I told her, struggling to keep my voice calm and reassuring. “You’re going to come back to my hotel with me. Not… likethat.” Unless you want to, in which case I won’t say no. “Just to sleep. Shower. Warm up. Eat. Then in the morning, if you want to tell me more about who you’re running from, maybe I can help.”
She drew a long breath, her brow marked with a crease of worry. “And if I don’t want to tell you?”
I gave a small shrug. “I won’t make you. But at least I can have a clear conscience for not leaving you out there on the street tonight. Deal?”
My lungs flat fucking refused to work while I waited for her answer. It was probably foolish of me to push this so hard. She could be making the whole thing up to get close to me and sponge off my fame. It wouldn’t be the craziest shit we’d seen. But… her genuine fear was unmistakable. This girl was shit scared ofsomeone,and I needed to help her. Need, not want.
Finally, though, she gave a small nod. “Okay. Deal.” Then she blushed. “Thank you, Rhett.”
Christ, that was like an arrow through my heart. “No thanks needed, Thorn. Come on, I just need to let my friends know I’m leaving. Otherwise, they’ll send a fucking search party out after me.”
Ignoring the fresh drinks that had just been delivered, I offered my hand to Thorn, weaving our fingers together as I pulled her to her feet. I liked the way her hand felt in mine. Like we just fit together perfectly.
“If you’re here with friends, I don’t want to—” she started to protest as I led the way back to the VIP area.
I spun around in midstride, giving her my full attention. “Trust me. You’re doing me amassivefavor giving me an excuse to bail out. I definitely need to be the one thankingyou.”
Her answering smile was sly, almost flirtatious. I loved it. “Well then, in that case I feel better about accepting your help, Rhett.”
