I stared at the black bruise on my arm. “Oh.”
Ava was looking at my legs. “Mee, did someone hurt you?”
“No,” I grumbled darkly. “I fell at the stairs last night.” I looked at the dark marks on my legs, my arms, and the blackening of my toe. “I think that was the step.”
“Mia, all of this isn’t from one fall.” Ava looked at me with wide eyes. “Fucking hell, he’s going to go berserk.”
“Who will?”
“Me.”
I whirled around to look at Ash, who stood like an angry bear in the doorway. “Who the fuck did this?” he asked as he prowled toward me. With care, he lifted my arms, his own hand covering the upper part of my arm, his fingers resting in the spots. “Red, tell me who hurt you.”
“No one hurt me,” I protested. “I fell. And your stupid mayhem caused me to walk into a lot of things,” I told him hotly.
“We didn’t do Mayhem; there was a genuine power cut.”
“Oh.”
“You pushed Shane away,” Ava spoke up from her spot.
“Shane? You had your hand up to slap me last night when you thought I was him.” Ash was watching me closely. “Explain.”
I was still too tired for this. “He became octopus hands. I said no, he was drunker than I was. It took me more than once for him to listen.” I felt so tiny next to Ash. “It was nothing. I had it handled.”
Ash looked at Ava. “Ishethe drummer?”
“Guitarist.”
“Fuck me, so it’s just the whole fucking band panting over her?” Ash shook his head as he turned back to me. “I’ll have a word withShane.” Ash turned away to walk back out of the room.
“Please don’t.” I grabbed his hand. “It looks worse than it is, and I fell.”
Ash watched me, and then slowly he reached out, lifted my arm, and pointed. “Those are finger marks. From where you’ve been grabbed so roughly you bruised. You know this as well as I do, Red.”
“I think he was just drunk.”
Ash straightened. “Okay, lift your shirt.”
I took a step back at the anger in his gaze. “What? Why? No.”
He smiled, but it didn’t meet his eyes. “Ava.”
Ava stepped forward. “He’s right, Mee. Show me under your shirt. Come on, we can go into the bathroom.”
“I have nothing to show.”
“Well, I don’t agree with that.” Ash’s eyes softened as he looked at me, and I looked away. “Can’t you just for once, Red, do what I ask you to?” he asked in exasperation.
“Ugh, it’s a good thing you’re pretty,” I snapped as I pulled my shirt over my head and squeezed my eyes closed.
“Holy shit,” Ava hissed.
I opened my eyes when the door slammed and looked down at my chest. The bruises and marks were over my breasts, and my side had dark bruising on it, too. “Some of this will be when I bounced off furniture.”
“And some of it is quite obviously from someone’s hands.” Ava looked at me. “You knew?”
Pulling the top back on, I shrugged. “Well, it’s not like my body doesn’t ache.”
