“Jagger!” I gasp. “He wasn’t… doing that.”
Of course, he doesn’t say anything; he just gives Elias a warning glare as he pulls out the med kit.
“Okay, let’s use this as a sling.” He does something with a piece of fabric he finds, looping it over my head and supporting my arm in front of me. “Is that better?”
“Yeah, it’s not pulling on my shoulder so much anymore.”
“How bad is the pain, really?”
“I dunno, it hurts, but it’s tolerable.”
“Out of ten, one being no pain, what is it at?”
“A three or four, I guess.”
“Why are you asking her that?” Dex asks, watching us from his seat.
“I’m trying to gauge what sort of damage is done. Without going to a hospital, it’s hard to tell, but it sounds like maybe just a strain. It should feel better in a couple of days, but anti-inflammatories will help. Here, Wren, take these.” He hands me two pills, and a bottle of water is passed back from the front for me.
“Now let’s see to this head wound. While I clean it, can you tell me where else you’re injured?”
He pulls out something that looks like an anti-bacterial wipe and gently dabs at my forehead. “I think it’s just my hands and knees from crawling on the gravel to get into that hiding spot.”
“That was smart, hiding like that,” he says with a nod of approval.
“I didn’t know who was there. If I knew it was you guys, I would have come out.”
He shakes his head as he places a bandaid on my wound. “No, hiding is best, even if it were us there, you could easily have been hit with a stray bullet.”
He asks me to turn, then lifts my legs to lie across his lap so he can assess my knees. “These aren’t too bad. I’ll use some anti-bacterial wipes and make sure there are no rocks stuck in there.”
I watch him work as his eyes keep darting up to my face. “What?” I ask when he does it for the tenth time. “Is there something wrong with my face?”
He frowns a little, looking at my knees as he finishes cleaning them and avoids looking at me. “That must have been really difficult for you. Climbing into that small space? Especially after being in the trunk.”
I don’t reply because he’s right, itwashard, and he didn’t actually ask a question. “Do you still—” His lips twist as he reconsiders his question. “Are you still claustrophobic?”
The side of my face burns where I know multiple sets of eyes have turned to look at me, seemingly very interested in this new piece of information, though they stay quiet. Elias finally looks up at me and sees my red cheeks. He must see the tension, because he looks around the SUV and finds everyone watching me.
“They didn’t know?” he asks, turning back to me.
“It hadn’t come up,” I admit with a shrug of my good shoulder.
“You’re claustrophobic?” Sly asks from the front.
Feeling weird admitting it, I nod quickly. “Yeah.”
“What’s claustro…” Dex asks, trying to pronounce the word.
“Claustrophobic,” Pete tells him. “It means she’s terrified of small spaces.”
“Or enclosed spaces,” Elias adds.
“Like a trunk?” Dex asks, looking at me with worry. I nod. “Oh, baby,” he coos, undoing his seatbelt and wedging himself on his knees between Jagger and his seat so he can grab both my hands. “That must have been terrible. Did you have a panic attack?”
I hadn’t really planned on telling them that, as it didn’t change anything, but I won’t lie to him. I nod, and his face scrunches with pain. I can’t help leaning forward to stroke his cheek. His care and concern mean so much to me. I’venever had that before I met them. And knowing it comes from a place of love and he expects nothing in return, it just makes me love him that much more.
I’m tempted to tell him as much, but with an audience so close, I decide to wait until we have a moment alone together. I have a feeling his reaction will be larger than life.
