Talon (Uncompromising #1)(13)
Nic looked at me with wide eyes.
I snorted. “I’m all good, thanks. Say hi to Nic. You’re on speaker.”
“Did my asshole boss get you patched up?” Kendall asked, sounding only marginally less bored.
“He’s not an asshole.”
If I were a better man, I wouldn’t have smiled.
“I suppose where you’re coming from, it’s a matter of perspective,” Kendall said bluntly.
I didn’t disagree but I jumped down Kendall’s throat anyway. “Watch it, Kendall.”
“What? You think she doesn’t know what a piece of—”
“Point made,” Siren interrupted Kendall’s rant with a formal tone. “Thanks for your concern but I think you should save it for yourself.”
Damn. Assertive Siren was sexy. I cleared my throat to hide my chuckle. “Kendall, you’re closing tonight.”
“You do it,” she said stubbornly.
As much shit as she gave me on a daily basis, she wasn’t irresponsible so I ignored her. “Don’t lock up early.”
“Whatever.” She hung up.
“Is she always like that?” Siren asked.
“No.” I glanced at her and smiled. “She’s usually meaner.”
Siren turned back to the window. “Where are we going?”
“My house.” When she didn’t respond, an itch picked at my conscious. The thought of checking her into a hotel made my meager Southern chivalry bristle but I offered anyway. “You want me to get you a room instead?”
She let out a slow breath. “Your house is fine.”
I reached for her good hand. “You’re safe with me.”
“I know.” But the tone of her voice said otherwise.
“Not sure how many ways I can reassure you.” Convincing women they were safe with me wasn’t my MO.
“I’m not concerned about that.” She took her hand back.
Trying not to be irritated, I pulled into my driveway and cut the engine. Tired as shit, the past few days catching up with me, I wasn’t in the mood to dick around. “Listen, here’s the deal. I brought you to my house so you could shower and have a place to crash. I don’t have ulterior motives. I’m no hero but I’m not an asshole either. I’m not gonna leave you alone like this. I’d like some sort of consent from you that we’re on the same page, but I can’t read a fuckin’ thing behind that closed-off expression of yours.”
She stared straight ahead. “You’re honest.”
“To a fault,” I lied.
She nodded. “We’re on the same page.”
“Terrific,” I murmured, reaching for my door.
“I’m staying with you for one night?”
I knew it’d been too easy. Women were never easy. I looked at her and not only was the thought of one night not sitting well with me but I was still trying to figure out what the hell was going through her head. “Yes.”
“Okay.” She breathed out.
“Then we’ll reevaluate in the mornin’.”
Her chest rose and her shoulders went straight. “I’m not a charity case.”
“Never said you were.” Her reactions were starting to paint a picture that made my back teeth grind. Even if she were telling the truth about Randy’s violence being a one-time deal, he’d been treating her like shit. “C’mon, let’s get you somewhere more comfortable.”
I helped her out of the car and led her inside. I showed her the guest room downstairs and told her to help herself to whatever she needed in the bathroom. She stared at the shower but didn’t say a word.
I leaned against the doorframe. “Keepin’ your leg dry isn’t gonna be easy with only one hand. You want help?”
Her face flushed. “No.”
She was fucking with my head. I needed to walk away but seeing her stand there, lost and vulnerable, it was making a part of me I thought was dead twist with shit I didn’t want to think about. “You sure?”
“I’ll figure it out.”
“You wanna use the Jacuzzi tub in my bathroom?” Having her in my bedroom was a bad idea. I needed to back the hell off.
“Um…” She looked around. “I’ll just wash my hair.”
Fuck this. I was no more going to leave her alone than she was going to be okay being left alone. I grabbed the wooden desk chair from the bedroom and hauled it into the walk-in shower. I took the handheld showerhead and turned the water on.
She glanced at the chair nervously. “What are you doing?”
“Washin’ your hair.” I felt the temperature of the water to make sure it was warm enough. “Sit.”