Page 11 of Toxic

I shook my head. “No need.”

Her eyes hardened and she lost the softness that her vulnerability had created. She was back to being watchful and untrusting. “I insist.”

“Alright,” I said, just to keep an argument from happening. “I’ll be back in the morning. Help with some of the chores. If you want to stay with your Grandfather at the hospital, you can show me how you like things done and I’ll take care of everything for the next few days.”

“Thank you.” Her voice was soft again.

She was in a difficult place. And it couldn’t have been easy to see someone she loved lying in a hospital bed. It was why she was flipping back and forth between resignation with what was happening and what I assumed was her more natural personality. Either way, I was a fan.

“We’ll get out of your hair. What time do you want us here in the morning?”

She stared at me, biting at her full lower lip. “Five?”

“Done.”

“What,” Butcher muttered under his breath.

“See you in the morning,” I told her, standing and all but shoving Butcher out the door. “Don’t be alarmed if you see random trucks, motorcycles, or bikers roaming around. We’ll make sure no one sneaks in to hurt you or the animals.” We left before she could comment.

“Five in the fucking morning?” he grumbled. “Feels like I’m back in the military.”

I chuckled. “Better get to sleep early,” I told him.

“You get to sleep early,” he shot back. “I’ll drive.”

We got maybe a mile down the road before he started in on me. “So…”

“Don’t,” I muttered.

“Noticed you couldn’t keep your eyes off her.”

“When do I ever bother to keep my eyes off a woman?” I asked.

He snorted out a laugh. “True enough.” There was a pause, but I was only lucky enough to have it last for a few moments. “This was different.”

“No, it wasn’t.”

“It was.”

I sighed and shook my head. “You wouldn’t know what fucking different was if it bit you in the ass. Remember how long it took you to realize you were in love with Isla?” I pointed out.

He nodded as he stared at the road in front of us. “All good points…”

“But,” I said with another sigh.

“But this was different.”

“Okay, fucker. Tell me how.”

He wasn’t going to be able to. Butcher wasn’t exactly an expert on human emotion.

“You didn’t flirt with her.”

I looked over at him, mouth hanging open. “What?”

“You flirt with everything that moves and is female,” he said with a shrug. “You smiled at her. Really smiled. And didn’t flirt at all.”

“...her grandfather is in the hospital,” I sputtered, shocked that he’d picked up on that. Who’d been teaching this asshole about emotions? It wasn’t Isla, she was as clueless as he was.

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