Page 7 of Maddog

“I’d appreciate it if you’d help me wash the grime off my back. I’m tired and sore and I can’t reach or see everywhere I need to get.”

“Well, that went much easier than I thought it would.” I gave her what I hope was an amused smile when I was more relieved than I was prepared to admit she needed my help.

“I can’t very well have the road name Maddog if I’m too big a pussy to admit to someone I trust I need help when I do, now can I?”

I chuckled softly before leaning in and kissing her temple. The more I gave her little kisses like that, the more I had my lips on her skin in even the most platonic of kisses, the more I wanted to taste her lips, to slip my tongue into her mouth and taste her until she was whimpering with need in my arms. Unfortunately, now wasn’t the time. Didn’t mean I wasn’t going to have the pleasure of holding her. I was going to wrap her up in my arms while she slept and keep the nightmares at bay. Because I knew from experience, the second she closed her eyes the nightmares would definitely come.

“Nope. If you’re gonna have a name like Maddog, you have a certain reputation to maintain. I’m proud of you for livin’ up to your name, baby.”

That got a genuine snort of laughter from her. Then she chuckled. It didn’t last long, though. As I started washing her back, her chuckles turned to quiet sobs. I got the worst of the dirt and mud, then helped her put on the T-shirt Razor left for her. I reached under the shirt and unfastened her bra and helped her thread her arms through the straps and her sleeves. Holly didn’t protest once.

I almost helped her into the soft cotton pants without having her remove her underwear, but I knew she had to be uncomfortable. They hadn’t exactly been wallowing in mud, but it looked like she’d landed in a puddle at some point. So, without saying anything or making a big deal out of it, I faced her away from me and pulled her panties over her hips and let them pool at her feet. I used the cloth to wash her hip where she was starting to bruise. She must have landed on that side because she had dried mud from there to the top of her thigh. She winced once but didn’t move or say anything. She didn’t balk at my care of her, or the fact that I’d just removed her underwear without her permission.

When I wrapped my arms around her and held the pants in front of her, she took the material and stuck her feet into the holes. With a muffled groan of pain, she paused and gripped my wrist to steady herself. I didn’t waste time or ask if she wanted my help. I pulled them up her hips and tied the drawstring in a bow at her belly button.

I did my best to keep my touch as clinical as I could. The very last thing I wanted was for her to feel like I was taking advantage of her vulnerable state of mind. I turned her to face me before I picked her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist, and I sat on the cot.

I reached for one of the blankets lying beside us and draped it over her before pivoting a quarter turn on my ass and resting my legs on the cot so I could fully recline with Holly draped over me. She lay her head on my chest and continued to cry softly until she finally drifted off to sleep with me rubbing her back in a gentle caress.

As I lay there holding her, another band of pressure released from my chest. Not only that, but a deep satisfaction filled me at having her in my arms like this. Wrath was right. I had loved Holly from the moment I saw her. It had taken time to develop into the love I felt for her now, but it had been there from the start. I had to figure out a way to keep her from pulling away from me, because now that I knew what it was like to have this woman sleeping so trustingly in my arms, I knew there was no way I could ever let her go.

Chapter Four

Holly

Raised voices penetrated my sleep fogged brain. I was alone, but my head rested on a surprisingly comfortable pillow and there was a blanket draped over me. The room was lit by only a couple of small markers at the base of the wall, like safety lights or something.

One of the voices was Chris. It took a couple of minutes, but once my head cleared somewhat I could make out what he was saying.

“We’ve been treated like dogs on this trip home,” he snarled. “I demand you let me in there to get some rest. We’ll all be going back to Rodadero to finish what we started, and I have to be ready.” Yep. That was definitely Chris. Pompous, selfish asshole. And who in their right mind would turn around and go back into that hell? I knew I wasn’t going. Fuck that shit.

I sat up on the cot and groaned. The walls must have been paper-thin, because Chris heard me.

“See? She’s awake. Make her go back and sit with the others while I take a power nap. You can come get me when we’re ready to land.”

“Jesus Christ.” I swore under my breath. “What a fuckin’ pussy.”

I didn’t have on shoes, but a thick pair of socks were on my feet. I was dressed in a T-shirt that was a size or two too big and some soft, cotton pants. The pants fit loosely but weren’t overly big on me. It took me a second to remember how I’d gotten changed. When I did, I sucked in a breath at the memory.

Jax had washed me off and helped me change. I’d told him to help, and he’d been so careful with me. I remember crying myself to sleep while lying on his chest. He’d held me in a protective embrace, rubbing his chin over the top of my head gently. I hadn’t exactly had a restful sleep, but I doubt I’d have slept at all if not for Jax.

With an irritated sigh, I stood and jerked the door open. “There you go, Sir Whines-A-Lot. Get your beauty sleep. Looks like you need it.” I shoved past the bastard and back to the passenger seats. Which… yeah. Military transport. Not exactly Air Force One, but the fucking prick should be glad we were on the aircraft at all. We could be fucking dead.

I sat next to the other women with us. The only people in our group I knew were Andrea and Chris. Chris could go fuck himself, but Andrea was the whole reason I was here. Even though this had been a clusterfuck of epic proportions, I was glad I’d been here because I knew Andrea needed someone, and it was obvious Chris didn’t give a damn.

Andrea looked up at me when I sat next to her, then immediately looked down at her lap. “You told me not to do this.” Her admission was soft. “This never would have happened if we’d stayed home.”

“It would still have happened. Just not to us. Everyone else here would likely be dead or wishing they were.” That’s when I realized that the only men on the trip had been Chris and his bodyguard, and two other men, both of whom were killed in the attack. I think in the back of my mind I knew there were more women than men on this trip, but I’d been focused on other things.

“Chris says you’re all going back to Rodadero.”

Andrea gave me a funny look. “He said what?”

“Yeah. Before he demanded to have the room Jax let me use to clean up. He said he needed to rest before you guys headed back once we landed. Sounded like it was going to be a pretty quick turnaround.” I was fishing. From the expression on Andrea’s face, this was news to her.

“I’m not going back.” Andrea shook her head violently. “He can’t make me this time, either.”

“Make you?” That surprised me. “I thought you wanted to go.”

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