Page 23 of Wild Card

The door closes loudly as Rush releases it.

He chucks my jacket—the one the taxi driver returned—over the chair at the small table. His hands meet my waist, and he lifts me, setting me on the edge of the bed.

I do a double take as one of his knees hits the floor, and he lifts my leg, pulling off the double layer of socks that went up to my knee.

Once that’s tossed aside, he does the other leg.

“It’s better than you walking back barefoot, but your skin is turning blue.” He stares up at me, and I’m still so overloaded that I blink without saying a word. “Are you in the early stages of frostbite from the walk or in shock from seeing that man?”

My chin wobbles, and I glance away from his piercing stare.

My shoulders rise and fall as I shrug. “I’ll be fine.”

I always am.

It’ll hurt for a while, but I’ll live.

“Thank you for everything, Rush. You can go. I’m good.” I do my best to steel my voice, so it doesn’t wobble.

“You’re a terrible liar.” His calloused fingers meet my chin, tilting my face back to his. “Hopefully, Bear’s coat kept your chest and upper extremities warm. I’m going to run in and start the shower for you.”

“I can do it.”

“I don’t mind.” He pushes to his feet but offers me his hands. My fingers wrap in his, and he tugs me up. “I’ll get that going and be right back.”

I’m a little obsessed with the way he brushes his thumbs over my inner wrists.

It’s such a comforting move.

Only, it reminds me a lot of Thorne. When he knew I was anxious, he would hold my hand and tease his thumb over the same place. Anytime anything big went down at the club, we had to be careful.

Dustin knew we were hooking up, but Avan didn’t.

I don’t even know if it’s right to call Thorne my ex.

We never went on dates or did other relationship things, like meeting each other’s family. He didn’t even trust me enough to tell me that he was undercover.

Rush comes back to find me standing in the same spot.

I’m sure he thinks I’m an airhead.

The water runs in the bathroom, and now that I’m starting to thaw a little, it becomes clear exactly how sore my hands and feet are.

I try and fail to grab the zipper on Bear’s coat.

My cheeks heat as I shake out my fingers and try again.

Rush sighs like an old man. “Fuck knows when I turned into Bear, but here we are.” His massive hands brush mine away as he handles the zipper. “It’s strange, smelling your scent mixed with my brother’s.”

“Bear is your brother?” I ask as he helps tug off the coat.

“We’re twins—fraternal, obviously—but yeah, that’s why I asked him to keep an eye on you. We own the bed-and-breakfast and Dry Dock, but he mostly runs the club. I’ve been sticking over here, since we’re so short-staffed for the winter.” He steps back and nods to the bathroom. “I know omegas are resilient to heat, but I kept the temperature pretty mild. Take it easy while you adjust.”

“Thanks.” I give him a sincere smile as my arms prickle with goose bumps. “I appreciate it and not just this. Thank you for asking Bear to look out for me last night. I haven’t really been in the best place, and…” I’m sure he gets the picture.

“I can have that guy out of here in two seconds flat. There are no other hotels open at this time of year.” His brow wrinkles. “I mean, there’s The Exchange on the fancy side of the island, but?—”

“No,” I blurt out before I can stop myself. “Please don’t ask him to leave. Not for me. Things are complicated, but…”

---