Page 5 of Wait in the Truck
Despite Cassidy’s joke, something doesn’t feel right. Following my gut instinct, I head to the same door Sage exited. My chest rattles with uneven breaths as I hightail it outside and dart toward the alley. En route, I pass her pickup in the staff parking area, but she’s nowhere to be seen, which increases my panic. Quickening my stride, my boots crunch against the gravel. “Sage! Are you out here?”
Where the fuck could she be? Drawing closer to my destination, I hear a quiet, ragged whimper coming from the shadows. A sense of dread washes through me. My feet echo the beat of my heart as I race in the direction of the hiccupping cries and strangled breaths. “Hold on, Sage. I’m coming.”
Tearing down the alleyway, my eyes adjust to the dark as I scan the area, looking for her. I pull my phone from my pocket and click on the flashlight, hoping to utilize it in my search. Finally, the glowing beam catches on her, and she comes into view. Hidden between two dumpsters, sherocks back and forth, her knees to her chest with her face concealed by her palms.
My phone falls to the ground as I drop to my haunches. I itch to reach for her. “Sage, darlin’, can you look at me, please?”
She refuses me with a shake of her head, then drops her chin to her chest, burrowing her face further. Her body shivers as she gasps through her muffled cries, and suddenly, I can’t stop myself from attempting to comfort her. The moment my fingertips graze her wrist, she rears back, flinching at the contact. The light from my phone illuminates her face, and I catch sight of the fresh bruise marring her left eye. Blood trickles from her nose, and her bottom lip is split and swollen.
A kaleidoscope of emotions ripple through me—fear, sadness, protectiveness, and finally, murderous rage. Gritting my teeth, I growl, “Who did this to you?”
SAGE
3
The pitch-dark alley behind Boozin’Boots reeks of stale beer. When I curled myself into an aching, wretched ball between the trash receptacles, I hadn’t expected anyone to come looking for me, least of all Kade Rivers. I tear my eyes from his probing gaze and hide my face once more. Humiliation washes over me as I consider how to answer his question.Who did this to me?
Feeling the torn skin of my lower lip with every ragged breath that rattles from my lungs, I remain silent. I can’t bring myself to voice what happened to me. Instead, my mind replays every horrific second of the assault that occurred after I walked out of the bar. It never crossed my mind what—or who—might be waiting for me out here. To most, this town is a relatively safe place. But I know better. The monsters lurking in my closet are gettingbolder. What happens behind closed doors is now in the open.
A harsh shudder rocks my body as the salt from my tears stings my battered face.Stupid.I’d been really fucking stupid to think that Toby wouldn’t want to take me down a peg or two. Especially after I’d emasculated him in public. Being thrown out of the bar wouldn’t have sat well with his fragile male ego. It’s too bad that treating me like shit makes him feel like more of a man.
How do I begin to explain that the person who is supposed to love and protect me did this? Inwardly wincing, I slowly shake my head back and forth as I tremble. Iinvitedthis,lethim treat me this way. Time after time, I’ve taken Toby back. I only have myself to blame.
The crunch of gravel less than a foot in front of me reminds me that Kade is still crouched there, observing every move I make. I peer through my fingers to find him catch something in his palm. “Sage,” he rasps, his voice calm and steady, “I know you’re hurtin’. I need to help you.”
Unable to contain the sob that scrapes up from my throat and bursts into the quiet night air, I consent with a tip of my chin. A muttered curse tears from Kade’s lips, and a moment later, this guy I’ve hardly spoken to in years picks me up and cradles my bruised body against his broad chest. His strides are quick and sure as he heads from the alley and proceeds around the exterior of the bar.
Where is he going?“No-o,” I croak, grasping the front of his shirt as if I can make him stop and turn around with a simple tug on the fabric. “I don’t want anyone to see me.” My voice sounds small and pitiful to my own ears, so I can only imagine what he thinks. I turn my face into the soft cotton of his shirt, groaning softly.
A low grunted growl rumbles from his throat. “Customers have fucked off. Billy and the girls are still inside working. Nobody’s left to witness a goddamn thing. Probably what the motherfucker who did this was banking on.”
Through the eye that isn’t swelling shut, I hazard an upward glance. His jaw is chiseled granite, hard and unmoving. He comes to an abrupt stop, his intentions unclear. My stomach lurches violently, but a second later, he shifts me in his arms as he opens the tailgate of a truck before easing me to a seat on top of it. Perched on the edge like this, I have to look up to see into his eyes, and when I do, I’m met by a dark, blazing fury. It’s not directed at me but takes my breath away all the same. In self-protection mode, I wrench myself free of his stare, glancing down at my hands as they shake in my lap.
Slowly shifting my head, I take in the entire gravel lot and surrounding area. He’s right. There’s no one, and his is the only truck left. I’m alone with Kade. There’s this raw energy emanating from him that would probably scare the shit out of most, but it only makes me secure in the fact that if Toby were to return, it won’t be me who regrets it.
His muscular chest rises and falls for several beats of my banged-up heart, then one big hand falls to the tailgate next to my ass, and he bends to get an up-close accounting of my injuries. Thanks to the lights coming from the bar in the distance, I’m positive he can seeeverybruise,everyhandprint, andeverymoment of wrath I suffered.
“Hey.” His sole whispered word draws my attention at the same time his other hand lifts to the underside of my chin. His fingers gently maneuver my head from side to side. What he sees there makes his lips tighten. The muscle at the back of his jaw twitches hard, like he’s grinding his teeth into oblivion.
“Is it that bad?” I whisper.
“It’d take more than this to make you look bad, Sage.” He winces, turning my head to the side with a gentle grip as he inspects the damage. “Am I wrong in thinking this was the handiwork of your gutless boyfriend?” I can feel his rage bubbling to the surface as his words punch into the night. If Toby were standing before him, I doubt he’d be left breathing. Considering what I’ve gone through in my life, that should frighten me, but it doesn’t.
I’m not surprised he suspects Toby after what happened earlier. But it still doesn’t make it any easier to admit. I swallow hard, giving a subtle nod of my head to let him know he’s guessed correctly.
Kade’s gaze roams over me again. “Stay put.”
I don’t know if I could move if I tried. Every minuteshift of my body brings a fresh wave of pain with it. He walks to the side of the truck, pulling the rear door open, but is back in a flash with a small first-aid kit. He doesn’t say anything more, understanding I’m not up for idle conversation. Or maybe it’s simply his way—heisthe quiet, brooding one of the Rivers brothers, after all.
Kade grimaces, eyes narrowing as he gives me another once-over. His expression tells the story of every transgression against me. With a gentleness I wouldn’t have expected from a man of his size, he prods the area around my eye, and when I flinch away, there’s an apology carved into the features of his face. “Sorry,” he grits out, as if causing me more pain has hurt him, too. He uses some gauze to soak up the blood flow from my nose before getting out a disinfectant wipe, which he dabs over a cut on my cheek.
Staring straight ahead, I decide it’s easier to focus on the swallows that work along his corded neck and the dark stubble coating his jawline rather than the various areas of my body he’s cleaning with the antiseptic.
It’s not until he pulls out an emergency ice pack that I pay more attention. Once he’s activated it, he places it in my hand. “Hold this to your cheek and eye.” I don’t question his gruffness, figuring he’s simply taking care of business. From there, he tends to my knees and palms. They’re badly scraped up from Toby throwing me to the gravel.
I hiss as he gingerly cleans me up. As he’s blowing onmy cuts to take away the sting, I finally mumble, “Why do you have all this stuff in your truck?”
His brow lifts, and he answers with a smirk, “Ranching 101. Anything can happen and usually does. Do you not have a first-aid kit in your truck?”
