The large wound on her shoulder is still bright red and looks painful, but it’s healed.
I have no doubt Nick sees it, but he doesn’t say anything. I want to know who or what hurt her, but something deep in my gut warns me that maybe it’s better if I don’t. A flash of her coming through the door with blood splattered across her chest zips through my mind as she turns around.
“I’m. . . I’ve got to check in and do some stuff.” She scans Nick again, probably making sure she’s taken in every detail, and then those eyes move back to me. A turquoise blue that reminds me of the ocean.
Her gaze holds mine, checking in and ensuring everything is ok.
I’m not sure what she sees, but after a moment, I recognize what might be a hint of a smirk. Just anyone wouldn’t be able to tell, but I’ve learned, and it’s definitely a smirk.
I glare at her, which only makes that one side of her mouth curl a little higher.
Then, just like that, it’s gone.
“Remember the rules, Matthews.” She takes a drink of her water and then heads to her room.
I hear the click of the door.
“Rules?” Nick’s eyes widen in amusement.
Ryder is going to pay for that.
Nick runs a hand over his thick scruff. “I get it now.”
“Get what?”
“Your sister sent a message telling me Icould notmiss Thanksgiving.” His mouth creeps into a shit-eating grin, and I want to punch it off his face. “Cole Matthews finally has agirlfriend. I feel like a proud papa bear. It’s about damn time, man.”
My shoulders fall, but the pressure in my chest doesn’t go anywhere. “Maggie texted you?”
He strolls to the glass door, pulling the curtain aside to check out the ocean. “Shit, man. What do you think? Your sister wanted to know if I had information.”
I fall onto the couch. This just keeps getting better.
“Ryder isn’t my girlfriend.” His disbelieving eyes zero in on me. “She’s my protection agent. Apparently, someone wants me to quit, or they’ll end me.”
He blinks a few times slowly, sorting through what I said. If he even comes at me with some statement about Ryder being a woman, all my pent-up irritation might actually explode through my fists.
“You have a bodyguard? And she’s living with you?”
I feel only a small amount of relief that he didn’t go there. “Yes.”
“It must be serious.”
I run a hand over my face. “They started out subtle. The latest one took aim at Ryder.”
“What the hell, man? What do they want?”
I shrug, sinking into the couch a little further. “I don’t know. None of it makes any sense. This stays between us. I haven’t even said much to Maggie. She’ll. . . ” I pause, and he nods, understanding Maggie’s overprotective tendencies. “There’s an asshole on the team—”
“Bonnard?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve been wanting to kick his ass for years.” Nick’s hands round into fists.
Nick doesn’t mess around when someone pisses him off, and it would be a good idea to never have him in the same room as T-Bone.
“He took it too far when we got off the bus last night. He made comments about Ryder.”
