He saw the sadness in her eyes. “You miss it?”
“I miss being around books. They’re not as scary as people can be.”
“You’re afraid of people?”
“I have this wild imagination. If I see someone buying plastic, shovels, and rope, my mind goes straight to murder. Not to mention the fact that I’m a huge hazard in the workplace.” She laughed. “Please, don’t take it as a fault, or me complaining.” She covered her face. “I’m so horrible. I do love working there, I do. I really need to shut up.”
“You’re adorable,” he said.
“I do love working there. It’s hard work, which I’m not afraid of. But when someone asks me what the best tool is for a job, I must look so stupid because I don’t have a clue.” She laughed.
“Deuce is good for that. It’s why I have you working with him. That way you can take over whatever job he’s doing, and he can guide them.”
“And I really appreciate it,” she said.
They finished off their cake, and he watched as she licked her lips.
“That was divine, Cole. Thank you.”
“It’s been my pleasure.” He took the plate, and made his way toward the kitchen.
Elena followed him. “I’ll help with the dishes,” she said.
“No. I’ll do them later.”
“And things can stick. Don’t worry about it. I’ll help.” She grabbed a clean towel. “Wash or dry?”
“I’ll dry,” he said.
“Excellent.” She stuck her hands in the bowl and cried out. “Ouch! Fuck!”
She pulled her hand out of the water, and Cole knew it was bad the moment he saw the blood.
“Fuck!”
He grabbed the towel, and wrapped it around her hand, keeping it tight. “I need to take you to the emergency room.”
“What did you have in the damn water?” she asked.
Carefully, he placed his hand in, and then winced as he pulled out the newly sharpened chef’s knife.
She glared at him.
“Hospital it is,” he said.
“Why would you put a knife in bubbled water? No one can see it,” she said.
“I know. I know.” He’d not been thinking, and now he had seriously hurt the woman he’d been trying to impress all night. This wasn’t going well at all. Making sure everything was turned off, he ordered her to keep the towel secure, and then helped her out toward his truck. Just great. His second date, and it was ending in a hospital trip.
She sighed. “A year.”
“What?” he asked.
“The last time I visited the hospital was over a year ago, and that was because I fell and hit the back of my head on a rock. It was bleeding everywhere, and Juliet had to drive me. We’d decided to take up running, which if you ask me is a stupid sport. You run away from things, not for fun.”#p#分页标题#e#
He was trying not to laugh. Was she talking because she was nervous?
“I’ve got to call Juliet. Let her know what is happening. She’ll put it on a tally.”
“You’ve got an injuries tally?”
“Yep. I’m trying to prove I’m not a klutz, and so far, I think she’s winning. I know for a fact I’m not.”
He stayed silent as she dialed Juliet’s number. She surprised him even more by having it on speaker phone.
“You’re calling me already? That was fast?” Juliet said.
“Yeah, erm, I’m heading toward the hospital.”
“What did you do?”
“Hey, I was being polite, and offered to wash his dishes for him.”
“Why has that ended with a hospital trip?” Juliet asked.
“Because there was this large, scary chef’s knife, and I think I’m losing a lot of blood. I won’t be able to make rent for the rest of the month.”
“Yet you can still talk to me. One year you lasted. I’ll restart the tally.”
“You’re an evil woman,” Elena said, hanging up.
“You love her, don’t you?”
“Yep, I love her like a sister.”
They arrived at the hospital, and he dropped her off at the entrance as he parked his car. He was climbing out when his cell phone rang. Vincent was calling.
“I don’t have a lot of time right now. I’m about to enter the hospital.”
“What the fuck? Is everything okay?”
“Of course it’s okay. I, er, I, I’ve cut Elena. I’ve not cut her, cut her. I put a large ass knife in the sink. I didn’t stab her or anything. She’s got a big cut in her hand, and I’m going to take care of her. I fucked up.”
“Holy shit, it must be love.”