Connor caught up in a flash, skidding to a stop and dropping to his knees beside where I lay. “What the hell happened?” he demanded, seeming…angry?
“What the fuck do you think happened, Connie?” I snapped back, angry simply for the fact that he was angry. Fuck him and his attitude—I was the one bleeding. “Clearly I decided I was so done with running and figured I’d deliberately trip over a rock to break my own ankle.”
His eyes widened with visible concern. “Is it broken? Let me see.”
“No, it’s not broken, you asshole,” I growled, swatting him away as I sat up to inspect the damage. “I just tripped. Not a big fucking deal. People trip all the time.”
He scowled back at me. “Why are you snapping at me like this was my fault? You really are a brat, you know that?”
My jaw dropped. “Me? You’re the one who came at me allgrowly when I’d just hurt myself. Where’s the compassion, Connie? You’d be the worst nurse in the history of nurses.”
Barking at him helped me ignore the pain in my palms and knees. I’d somehow managed to graze myself in multiple locations, and the blood was oozing down my legs while the stinging pain burned right through me. Grazes fuckingsuckedbut they weren’t exactly life-threatening.
Connor sighed heavily. “Brat…you know me well enough by now: compassion isn’t in my nature.” And yet, he scooped a gentle arm around my back and lifted me to stand. “Can you walk?”
I gave an irritated sound. “Of course I can fucking walk.” Sort of. Okay, it was more of a limp, but when Connor tried to carry me, I pushed him away so hard I nearly fell on my ass all over again.
Lacey, thank goodness, had been far enough ahead when I fell that she probably assumed I’d stopped for another breather break. One person to witness my clumsy shit was more than enough, it was just a shame it had to be Connor.
When I took another limping step forward, the wince appeared on my lips before I could prevent it, and Connor cursed as he wrapped his hands around my waist. This time, when I batted his hands away, he completely ignored me, leaning down to scoop me up against his chest.
“You can’t carry me all the way back,” I snarled, trying not to think about how easily he held me and how good it felt to be in his arms. This trauma bond was really thefucking worst.
Connor shook his head. “Your sense of direction is as solid as your ability to run without injuring yourself. We’re almost back to Bluebell. Look—” I gasped as he lifted my entire body to the right, as a way to indicate direction. “There’s the edge of the garden and tree off to the side.”
Sure enough, we’d been going in a loop, and I’d been too busy trying not to die to notice. With a huff, I crossed my armsand settled back with the full intention of ignoring Connor completely.
“I was going to tell you about Lacey,” he said after a minute of silent walking. “It’s just…complicated. Not to mention, we haven’t been trauma besties for that long, and I know fuck-all about your life, so I don’t think it’s as big a deal as you’re making it.”
Men really were the stupidest creatures on this earth. “Not knowing that I hate olives and have a fear of continuous rolling waves isn’t the same as not knowing I’min a fucking relationship, Connor. Yeah, we weren’t dating or fooling around or anything, and I get that the one time we kissed I thought you were your brother, but having a girlfriend is a big deal. I would have treated you differently. I’d have looked at you differently. We should never have gotten tothisplace.”
Oh, god. Shut the fuck up, Eve.
Sharing my deeper emotions with Connor was a huge mistake. He couldn’t be trusted, and I’d just been figuring out how to distance myself from whatever bond had been building between us before Lacey returned. Finding myself in his arms now was highly inconvenient. Especially when it caused my mouth to run away with me.
Connor stopped walking, his gaze blazing as he stared down at me. “What place are you talking about?”
Nope. Not a fucking chance. “Put me down. The house is right there, and I can walk the rest of the way.”
With a shake of his head, he ignored me once more and strode up the stairs and straight inside. He called out when we entered, and I could have smacked him up the side of the head. I did not need the others here witnessing my shame as well. It’d be bad enough when Connor told them what happened.
Footsteps sounded from behind us and we turned to find Lacey racing into the house after finally realizing I wasn’t just taking a break. “Holy shit, Evie. What happened?”
Her expression was threaded with concern and not the slightest annoyance that her boyfriend carried me like a damsel in distress. “She tripped and hurt herself,” Connor said shortly, turning away from Lacey to head for the living area. “Can you grab a first-aid kit from under the kitchen sink? I think Haze stashed one there. I need to get her cleaned up.”
Haze had put the kit back there after rebandaging my hand last night, but that didn’t mean I needed Connor’s help as well.
“I can clean myself up,” I called in a rush. “In fact, I’m feeling much better overall. Think it was just a shock.”
“Nice try, brat,” Connor said with a snort of laughter. “But you’re quite possibly the worst liar I’ve ever met in my life. Everything you feel is displayed clear as day on your face for the world to enjoy.”
I reallyreallyhoped he was kidding about that, because I couldn’t be out here with feelings for multiple men clear on my face. That’d be highly inconvenient.
Lacey patted my arm. “Let Connie help you, Evie. He’s really good at this shit. He’s been patching up members of his family for years.”
Connor made a rumbling sound of annoyance. “Enough with story time. Go and get the fucking kit.”
Lacey just laughed lightly, not at all fazed by his cranky ass as she raced off. Meanwhile, I again wanted to smack him upside of the head, but my palm was too injured, so I settled on a jab from my elbow. “That was rude, Connor,” I told him coolly. “She’s a good person and doesn’t deserve you talking to her like she’s unimportant and annoying. Don’t fucking do it.”
