Page 46 of Crossed By the Stars
“Have a seat, madam,” I told her with a curve of my lips.
She rolled her eyes but did what I asked. I pulled my comb from a drawer and ran it through her hair, tugging gently at each knot. Her eyes were closed again. It was as if she was struggling to keep them open.
“I’d really like us to go to Vanya’s place for a few days,” I told her, bringing up the topic she’d argued against at the hospital.
She sighed, shoulders dropping. “Why?”
“To get you out of the city and away from prying eyes. But mostly, to give you a chance to heal.”
“I meant why do you need to go with me?” she asked, tired eyes barely opening to watch me in the mirror.
“You need someone you can trust with you.”
“I can trust you?” she asked, doubt in her voice.
It twisted my heart that she questioned it, but I knew the reasons why. I’d run from her every time things had gotten hot and heated in her life. I had a lot of work to do in order to prove I wasn’t going to run again.
“Yes,” I said. It was deep and throaty, a promise in the sound of it as much as in the words.
“I don’t know what I’ll do if something happens to the people I care about because of me,” she said. It was so quiet I could barely hear it.
“Are you worried about me,mon bijou?”
“You. Dawson and Violet. Joel and Ashton. The rest of the employees atForce de la Violette.”
“We’ve got protection. And we’re working on finding whomever this is.”
“Protection didn’t help Bobby. It cost him his life,” she said, tears in her eyes, a catch in her throat.
“It’s horrible, but it was also his job. He chose to put his life on the line.”
“For me!” she said fiercely, with regret, as if she wasn’t worth his loss.
I kneeled, swiveling the stool so we were eye to eye. “Mon petit bijou, you don’t deserve less because of your father and the name you bear.”
We stared at each other as she fought emotions. And then she smiled. It was tired and sardonic, but it eased the tightness in my chest. “Are you trying to tell me to change my name? I’m not going to marry you, Armaud, no matter what you told the folks at the hospital. I can change my name legally without marrying anyone.”
“You can indeed,” I said, spinning her toward the mirror and drawing the comb through her hair once more until it was silky and smooth again. I was pretty sure she normally would have dried it, but I just wanted her to climb into bed and get some rest.
I helped her up and walked her into my room. The sun had faded completely behind the closed blinds, darkening the room even more than earlier. The only light was from the lamp on the bedside table. She was so tired her eyes were drooping even as she walked. I helped her slide under the sheets, supporting her as she lay back, biting her lip the entire time.
“Do you need water? More pain medicine?” I asked.
She shook her head slightly.
“Vanya’s tomorrow, right?” I said, knowing it was unfair of me to ask her when she was already half asleep, but also knowing I had to get the answer from her before she thought of a million reasons not to go.
“Fine,” she breathed out, slurred.
I stood staring at her for longer than I should have, watching her chest rise and fall until it became a steady rhythm. I wondered how I’d ever let her out of my sight without thinking the worst was going to happen to her.
We had to find out who was coming after her. If it was her father, so be it. If it was some runaway faction of theKyodaina, we’d deal with that as well. I wouldn’t be able to go back to any sort of normal life until this was over.
I turned toward the closet, found a pair of workout shorts, and slipped into them. I didn’t dare get into the bed with her in my normal naked state—not after what had happened the last time. But there was also no way I was sleeping on the couch where I wouldn’t hear her if she needed me. So, for the first time in years, I went to bed in clothes.
I lay down on my side on the mattress, staring at her closed eyes and the scratches and bruises, hating with a violent intensity whoever was doing this to her. As my eyes closed and sleep started to drag me under, visions of Jada in all levels of undress swam through my brain, but what lingered the longest was the utter vulnerability of her eyes in the mirror.
Jada
