Page 27 of Hidden Shadows
CHAPTER10
Finley gasped when Nixon threw open the door. He looked big and angry and dangerous.
Shit.
Quickly, she tugged her sleeve down and scrubbed the tears from her eyes even though she knew it was too late. He’d seen everything.
She tried to rise, but Nixon was across the room before she could move, lowering to his haunches in front of her and wrapping his fingers around her arm. Gently, he pushed up the sleeve of her shirt, growling low in his throat when he revealed the gash. “How did this happen?”
“It’s nothing.”
His gaze shifted from the cut to her face, his brows slashed together. “It’s notnothing. You’re hurt. Tell me how this happened.”
She swallowed, hesitating a beat too long.
His eyes widened. “DidIdo this? When I pushed you down?”
“It was my fault,” she said quickly. “I left my skates on the ground behind me, and I fell on one.”
His eyes darkened, an emotion she couldn’t identify slipping over his face.
“I’ll be back.” His words were short and clipped.
He moved back into his room and returned a second later with a small bag. He sat beside her on the bed and opened it, revealing a first aid kit. He slipped his finger around her wrist again, his touch tender and light.
Carefully, he used an antiseptic to clean the cut. “Why didn’t you tell me you got hurt?”
She lifted a shoulder. “It didn’t hurt that much. And I was distracted by what had just happened.”
“But it hurts enough for you to be upset now.”
God, she hated that he’d seen her in tears. “I’m not crying because of the cut.”
His gaze flashed up. “Then why are you upset?”
“I cry when I’m frustrated. I don’t know why, it’s just something I’ve always done. Sometimes I cry when I’m angry too.”
And God, she was both of those things right now.
Another tear fell down her cheek, but before she could scrub it away, he reached up and grazed it away with the pad of his thumb. His touch was so gentle that she wanted to lean into it. Let his calm seep into her bones.
“I’m sorry you’re frustrated,” he said softly.
“I know you don’t understand me staying,” she said with a sigh. “But I’ve got no one to rely on but myself. The Hunters are family, but they’re not blood related, and I would never want to rely on them financially. Nate has already done too much by hiring you. I’m proud of the business I’ve built, and I put everything into making it a success.”
“I understand the need to make something of yourself,” he said quietly.
He held her gaze for one more intense beat before grabbing a bandage from his first aid kid and wrapping it around her forearm. The cut wasn’t huge, but it was too big for a Band-Aid.
“Your sleeve was pulled up when you fell?”
She nodded. If it hadn’t been, it might have saved her from the wound.
His jaw clenched, and she could see the emotions swirling in his dark eyes. The blame he was putting on himself.
Unable to stop herself, she reached out and cupped his cheek. “Hey. It’snotyour fault. You wanted me down in case the guy had a weapon. You chased after him. You did everything you could to keep me safe.”
“I hurt you.”
