Page 77 of Pretend You Love Me
“You should see the other guy,” she mutters.
We both look over at Blue who is just thumping his tail on the ground and watching our every move with excitement.
“He doesn’t even feel any remorse.”
Hawk returns with a washcloth. She holds it over her mouth, and I gently place a bag of peas on her eye.
“You think she needs to see Paul?” Hawk asks as I help her to her feet.
“I don’t think so,” I say, looping my arm around her waist and leading her over to a chair.
“It’s just a black eye and a busted lip.”
She pulls the washcloth away from her mouth, examines it, and then returns it to her lip.
She mutters, “I’m not normally this accident prone.”
Hawk and I exchange glances, and then he says, “Well, I came to get a statement from you, but I guess I’ll come back.”
She nods. He doesn’t move, and then he continues, “I want you to know that creep is wanted in four states. He’s a registered sex offender with outstanding warrants. He’s not getting out of jail anytime soon or maybe ever.”
She rubs her forehead, “That’s good. Do you even need my statement then?”
Hawk’s eyebrow arches. “We should document...”
I cut him off. “Let’s discuss this later. I don’t think now is the time.”
Hawk just nods. “Okay.”
He doesn’t move. I’m not sure what he’s waiting for now, but then I remember our phone conversation.
“I’ll walk you out.” I meet eyes with Hawk. He nods. When we get out of her earshot, I whisper, “Any news?”
“The crew is just getting out there now.”
I nod. “Okay. Keep me posted.”
I watch him leave, and then I go into the kitchen and grab some water and ibuprofen. When I walk out to the patio, I see Blue curled up at her feet.
“Blue, you have some explaining to do.” I sit down beside her. He just continues thumping his tail on the ground.
“I should have been paying better attention,” she says.
“Bullshit.Heshould have been paying better attention.”
She laughs and leans her head on my shoulder. “I’m really not normally accident prone at all. I swear.”
“I’m having a hard time believing that, Ginger.”
“It’s true, really.”
“Okay, if you say so, but if you were just trying to avoid Hawk, we could have come up with some other excuse that didn’t involve you smashing your face on the table.”
She laughs. My arm is around her shoulder; she’s leaning into me. This feels right, and I hate it. I don’t hate it, actually. That’s the problem. She feels so good. I haven’t enjoyed being around someone like this in years, but everything I know about her is a lie. I push it all aside. It doesn’t matter in this moment.
“Want to watch a movie with me?” I ask. She moves the peas away from her eye, so she can see me better.
“I don’t want to keep you from work,” she says.
