Page 37 of Undisputed Player
"No hospitals," he answered quickly, firmly, his blue eyes searing into mine. I could barely hear him over the thumping of my heart.
"I have a private doctor. I just need to clean up and maybe ice this wrist."
Of course he did. Men like Jax obviously had private doctors on speed dial. I don’t think I’d seen a doctor in… Ever.
Leo edged closer, curiosity overcoming caution like a tiny explorer. "You're Avery's uncle, the lion,” he said, recognition clear as he eyed the godlike man who clearly didn’t belong here.
Jax smiled through his grimace of pain, and even injured, sprawled on filthy concrete, he was devastatingly handsome. The kind ofhandsome that made you forget how to breathe, that made you aware of every imperfection in your own appearance.
The universe had really gone all out when it created this man. No expense spared, no detail overlooked.
"That's right, little man,” Jax said, his voice warming as he focused on Leo. "And you're the dinosaur expert."
I was still trying to process what was happening, my brain cycling through possibilities like a computer stuck in an infinite loop.
Jax Easton, boxing champion and millionaire playboy, was sitting on the filthy sidewalk of my neighborhood, talking to my nephew like this was perfectly normal.
Maybe I'd finally snapped. Maybe this was what a mental breakdown looked like. Hallucinations of attractive men appearing in places they had no business being.
My mind raced with questions, with confusion, with the uncomfortable awareness of how his cologne created a bubble of expensive air in our usual atmosphere of urban decay. I watched the fading sunlight turn his hair to pure gold, and my throat went dry like I'd been wandering a desert.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, unable to keep the shock from my voice. It came out sharp, but honestly, this was like finding a fancy car in a junkyard; it required explanation.
He reached for a bag that had fallen nearby, grimacing as he moved like someone unaccustomed to being anything less than perfectly coordinated.
"Actually, I was looking for you," he said, pulling out a glossy hardcover book that reflected the streetlight in a rainbow of holographic colors.
He was looking for me? Jax Easton was looking for me.
The thought sent anxious excitement through me that I tried to squash like a bug, but it persisted, buzzing around my brain.
"Avery's been begging me to get this to Leo," he continued, holding up what was apparently the holy grail of dinosaur literature. “She saidthere's a debate about whether T-Rex could swim, and this is the definitive proof."
I stared at the book, one that looked like it had cost fifty dollars, one I'd let Leo look at but never buy, because fifty dollars was grocery money, and then back at Jax, dumbfounded.
He'd come here. To our neighborhood. To deliver a book. To Leo.
"Had to play the celebrity card," he admitted with a shrug that ended in a wince. “I asked the academy director for your address. Thought I'd drop it off on my way to... well, somewhere else."
Guilt immediately washed over me like a cold shower, dousing the inappropriate heat that had been building in my chest. He'd gone out of his way to do something kind for Leo, and now he was hurt because of it.
Because he'd ventured into our world, a world where hit-and-runs were this common.
“I’m so sorry," I sighed, the words feeling inadequate as I helped him, uselessly, to his feet. He mostly helped himself, given his size.
"Our apartment is just down the block. Let me at least clean those scrapes and get you some ice." The offer felt inadequate, but I didn’t have anything else.
He swayed slightly as he stood, and I instinctively steadied him, my hand landing on his arm. And holy shit, the man was solid. I could feel the muscle beneath the fabric of his hoodie, warm and firm and definitely real, which meant this wasn't a hallucination due to too much instant coffee.
This was really happening. Jax Easton was really here, really hurt, really about to enter my sorry apartment.
I dropped my hand quickly, heat rising to my cheeks as I wiped my palms on my jeans like his touch had been electric. Which it kind of had been.
His smile was slow and satisfied, like he'd just won something important. "Lead the way."
He was really coming to my apartment. Jax Easton was coming into my disaster zone of an apartment.
Leo held the book with reverent hands, his eyes wide with excitement despite the circumstances. "Thank you, Mr. Lion,” he said with pure wonder. "I'll take really good care of it."
