Page 34 of Roar & Lizzy: A Forever Kind of Love

Not in a position to argue and a little nervous if she tried because he could be formidable when he wanted something done, she flopped over until her cheek landed on his hard, muscled thigh. He put the covered ice on her face. She sucked in her breath.

"Hurt?" he asked.

"Cold."

He rubbed his free hand along her bare arm, warming the skin. She wasn't going to try and figure out why he was taking care of her. It wasn't his fault. He probably felt terrible because she'd been punched at the bar he owned and felt responsible for helping her.

"Try and relax," he whispered.

She listened to his even breathing and took comfort from the warm body under her cheek, a stark contrast to the coldness on her face. The long hours at work, the late hour, it was easy for her to keep her eyes closed, even if her face wasn't pounding.

"Kelli's jealous because Peer shows me how to mix drinks when it's slow at the bar," she whispered. "It's not Peer's fault."

"I know who's responsible." His hand stilled, remaining on her, and that was even more intimate than rubbing. "I'll make sure this never happens again."

His promise helped. She had an idea that nobody, not man or woman, ever went up against Roar and came away feeling good.

"Am I going to have a black eye?" she asked.

"Yes."

She sighed. "I'll have to put a lot of makeup on to hide it."

"You can stay home until it's gone if you want."

She lifted her head. He guided her back down to his thigh.

"I can't. I need to work. I have bills to pay," she said.

"Then, I'll help you."

"That's silly." She rolled onto her back, her shirt getting caught underneath her.

Too tired and in pain to care if her breasts showed more than normal, she said, "I really do have to work. I have a hospital bill that needs to be paid."

"How much do you owe?"

"Now? Twenty-nine thousand, four hundred dollars." She bent her legs and let her knees fall to the back of the couch.

"What happened to you?" He stroked the hair back from her forehead.

"Appendix." She paused. "I have no medical insurance, and of course, I couldn't predict that I would have appendicitis and need to have surgery. It was devastating, knowing I had to have surgery and no way to pay the bill, but the hospital has been really nice about letting me make payments."

His thumb stroked her brow. The motion soothed the ache in her face.

"Thanks to you hiring me, I'm paying more on the bill." She yawned. "That feels good."

He continued comforting her, and they fell into silence. She no longer cared that her head rested on her boss's lap or that she'd interrupted a night at work or that tomorrow, she'd have a face that was less than pretty.

Kelli packed quite a punch for a girl.

Not that she'd ever been hit in the face before. Once in sixth grade, Holly Carter shoved her from behind. She'd fallen on the gravel and skinned both knees and her hands. Lizzy's mom, instead of being irate that her daughter was involved in a fight, lectured her while she bandaged her wounds about how females should build each other up instead of trying to knock each other down.

Instead of feeling comforted, she'd gone to her room and swore she'd never be friends with Holly again. And, she kept her promise all the way up to graduation when she'd moved away.

Most of all, she remembered wishing she had a father who would sweep her up in his arms and promise to go smack Holly Carter for hurting his baby. The guilt over how violent her thoughts had become at the slightest conflict stayed with her.

She tried to understand how she could wish pain on someone else. Fighting was not part of her personality. She hated upsetting people or knowing someone was mad at her.

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