Page 43 of The Scars of Us

Her skin paled, making the slap mark on her face stand out even more. I softly caressed the area on her cheek as her eyes closed and she exhaled a heavy breath.

“I can’t,” she whispered as she shook her head.

Even though I wanted to, I didn’t question her further. She’d already opened up to me more than she ever had before, and she’d been through enough for the night. “You don’t have to tell me now—whenever you’re ready, I’ll be here.”

“Thank you,” she murmured softly as she gazed down at our joined hands. “Oh my God! Your hands!”

Grabbing both of my hands gently, she inspected them before looking up at me sadly. Most of my knuckles had split open, and blood splattered the skin.

“It doesn’t hurt, not yet anyway. This is a perfect example of why you should never punch anyone in the face. I just couldn’t control myself.”

She softly smiled as she pressed her lips to my fingers, careful to avoid my injuries.

How could anyone want to hurt someone so perfect?

Once she finished, she leaned over the center console to lay her head on my shoulder, keeping one of my hands linked with hers.

“I need your address for the GPS.”

“19 Pleasant Street.”

By the time we got to her apartment, Kaiya had fallen asleep. Carefully reaching to lift her in my lap, I cradled her in my arms as I stepped out of the truck.Shit, I don’t know her apartment number.“What’s your apartment number, baby?” I asked softly.

Stirring slightly, she mumbled, “Sixteen.”

Once we made it to her door, I pushed the button for the doorbell. After several seconds, the door opened to a surprised Kamden. When he focused on Kaiya in my arms, his expression morphed from shock to anger as he reached for her. “What the fuck did you do to her?”

Stepping back, bringing her closer into my body, I said, “I didn’t do anything. We need to talk.”

He must have seen something in my face because he moved from the doorway to let me in.

“Where’s her room?”

“I’m not letting you in her room,” he stated gruffly.

“Then, I guess I’m holding her until we finish talking,” I retorted as I looked down at her, sleeping peacefully. She was like an angel, and I couldn’t believe someone had hurt her for so long.

When my eyes went back up to meet Kamden’s, his anger seemed to have receded some. His jaw was no longer tense and his eyes softened as he gazed at Kaiya.

“Her room’s this way,” he sighed.

I followed him down the hallway to the door at the end. After we walked in, Kamden pulled back the comforter so I could lay Kaiya down. As I covered her, I pressed a kiss to her temple and brushed the hair back from her face. “Goodnight, Warrior.”

She drowsily smiled as I pulled away. I shut the door before following Kamden back out into the living room.

“Care to explain what happened?” he asked, his eyes glaring as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Some guy got too handsy at the club tonight. I took care of him.”

He sighed in relief. “Thank you.” He fell back onto the couch and covered his face with his hands. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if something happened to her.”

“Sounds like a lot has happened to her already.” I stood in front of him and folded my arms over my chest. “Care to explain that?”

His gaze snapped up to mine as his body tensed. “You don’t know what you’re talking about!” he spat.

My fists clenched. “Was it you? Were you the one that abused her when she was little?” If he was, I was going to kill him.

He sucked in a breath, eyes wide with disbelief before furiously responding, “No! I would never do that to her!”

---