Page 5 of Saved By Two

“These should help somewhat with the pain, but they’re strong, so don’t take them on an empty stomach. You’ve broken a couple of ribs, and they’ll take about six weeks to heal. So, I mean it,rest.”

I silently watch Mitchell as he finishes tidying up and closes his bag. He reaches down and places his hand on my forearm. “And deep breathing exercises for your ribs. If anything changes or you start to feel worse, have one of the guys call me or get yourself to the hospital.”

I try to force a smile, but all it does is aggravate my lip. “Thank you, you’ve been very kind.” At no point did he judge me, and for that, I’m grateful. Goodness knows I’m doing enough of that myself.

I wait until the door closes and I’m alone. I carefully swing my legs over the edge of the bed and stare at the floor. The urge to cry is there, but I don’t know if I can. Breaking down in front of Mitchell was terrible enough, but if I really let go, if I let it all out, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop.

Mason will be so disappointed in me when he sees what I allowed to happen. I’m stronger than this, yet my broken body contradicts that. All I want to do right now is get clean, if that’s even possible.

I can’t stop thinking about all the things Curtis has said, all the things he’s done to me. It’s like a veil was hiding what was right before me. I wouldn’t be in this position if I'd left him sooner. I know I only have myself to blame for being so weak.

And now I’ve dragged Caleb and Noah into this. The sooner I get myself together and find somewhere to stay, the better this will be for everyone.

ChapterThree

CALEB

I pace up and down the hall, only coming to a stop when Noah reaches for my arm. I end the call again as it rings out and goes straight to voicemail.

“Fuck.”

Noah takes my phone from my hand, knowing I am on the verge of throwing it against the wall. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“I’ll get one of my guys on it. We’ll track him down.”

Noah is a fucking genius hacker, and he has a lot of people who owe him favours. Ironically, it's how we met Jessica’s brother, Mason.

“How long do you think that’s been happening?” I wave my hand in the direction of the guest bedroom. Mitchell has been in there for over twenty minutes, which only adds to my frustration. I have to keep telling myself it’s because he’s being thorough and doing his job.

Noah shakes his head, eyes trained on the closed door as if he can see through the wood.

“Fuck knows.” He rubs his palm over his face and lets out a heavy sigh.

“I’m going to kill the fucker.” If I get my hands on him, he’ll wish he were dead. I clench my fists, and Noah grabs my wrist, tugging me towards him.

“I’m sure there’ll be a queue, but we need to ensure she’s all right first. She’s the priority.” Of course, he’s right. He is always the voice of reason. Where I can be hot-headed and quick to act, he’s the strategist.

“There’s no way in hell her brother would have allowed her to be with him if he knew,” Noah says, as he brings my clenched fist to his mouth and kisses my knuckles, grounding me in a way only he knows how. Sometimes it still blows my mind that this man is mine.

I don’t deserve him, not even a little bit, but I’m a selfish bastard. He got under my skin and weaved into my inner reaches, connecting with my heart and soul on a level I never thought possible.

Before him, I would have continued to fuck my way through random men, but he changed me. Some might say you can’t change people, but I’d have to disagree. Until Noah, I was never my true self. He changed me for the better.

Gripping the back of his neck, I squeeze. His eyes are stormy, his nostrils flaring.

I know long-hidden demons of his own are trying to surface, so I offer him the only thing I can now—me.

Covering his mouth with mine, I don’t hold back as I force my tongue past his lips, demanding entry.

It’s so easy to get lost in his touch, his tastes, his warmth. Where I’m a cold son of a bitch, he’s warm and affectionate. Sure, I am those things, but only for him. What others see isn’t what he sees, because this man will always get all of me, no holds barred.

Until him, I never believed in showing public displays of affection; to a point, I am still quite private. But Noah needs reassurance more often than not; his love language involves touch, so if he needs me to kiss him in a room full of people, then so be it.

Of course, there are more particular things I like to partake in, but that will be in the safety of a club we frequent or at home, just the two of us in our bed.

The handle of the door jiggles, and I pull out of the kiss. Noah’s hand is still wrapped around my wrist when Mitchell steps out into the hallway and closes the door behind him with a soft click.

“Is she okay?”

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