Chapter 5
five
. . .
Hugh
She was quiet on the drive to my house, and I didn’t miss the way she kept swiping the tears from her cheeks, trying to hide her sadness.
And don’t even get me fucking started about the bruise on her face from that piece of shit who’d backhanded her.
It didn’t matter whether he knew she was there or not.
They were a bunch of sloppy drunk fuckers, and she had no business being around them.
I pulled into the garage and turned off the truck before looking over at her. “You all right?”
“Yeah, of course. You didn’t need to bring me here. I would have been fine there.” Her voice wobbled.
“Not a chance in hell that I was leaving you there.” I turned on the interior light and leaned forward to inspect her face. I gently grazed her cheekbone with my thumb, and her eyes locked with mine. “Jesus, it’s pretty swollen and bruised. Let’s get you inside and get some ice on it.”
I jumped out of the truck and grabbed her bags, and she followed me inside. I flipped on a couple of lights and left her bags by the door as I made my way into the kitchen.
“Wow. This is so nice. When you bought the place, it needed a lot of work, right?” she asked, as she paused at the kitchen island.
I filled a baggie with ice and wrapped a towel around it before gently placing it against her cheek.
Her hand came over mine to hold in place, and for whatever reason, I didn’t let go. I didn’t want to.
“I’ve got it,” she whispered, lifting her hand just enough for mine to pull away.
She cringed a little, and I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out to stroke her hair. She’d been hit and needed comfort, and I wanted to give it to her.
“Yep, I pretty much renovated every square inch of this place with the help of your brother and his guys,” I said, and she leaned into my touch, closing her eyes. Lavender and honey flooded my senses. “You’ll be all right. Just give it a minute, and it won’t feel that cold. It’ll start numbing up.”
And damn it if my body wasn’t reacting. I’d never been big on stroking a woman’s hair or being overly affectionate, but somehow, it didn’t bother me with Lila.
Her eyes opened, and I saw the sadness there. The heartache this girl had experienced with her father wasn’t something any kid should have to deal with. “Thanks for being there for me.”
“Always. You know that.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind me staying in your casita tonight?”
“Listen, Lila, the place is yours for as long as you’re home.
If you don’t want to stay here over the next few months, you’ll have to stay with Trav and Shay.
” I pulled my hand away from her hair and stepped back.
I needed to put some space between us. I couldn’t think straight when she was looking at me like that.
All sweet and sexy. “You know Travis isn’t going to be okay with you staying at your dad’s now.
And I don’t disagree after what I just witnessed. ”
“I can take care of myself,” she said, squaring her shoulders and pulling the ice away from her face.
“That’s not the issue. No one doubts that you’re a strong woman, but you shouldn’t have to take care of yourself when you’re at home. You should feel safe, and there is no fucking way that place is safe for you when your father is drinking or drugging or whatever the hell he’s doing.”
Her face hardened. “It was a slip.”
“Come on, Snow. You’re smarter than that. I haven’t seen him sober in years. Why do you think Travis tried so hard to keep you away?”
Her dark brown eyes welled with tears, and my chest squeezed, causing me to step forward. Closer.
“That’s because he doesn’t have anyone to help him. Travis is too angry. That’s why I’m here.” She shrugged as two tears streaked down her pretty face. One moved over the large bump, which had now turned a dark shade of purple on her cheek. I leaned forward and gently swiped them both away.
“You can’t fix someone who doesn’t want to be fixed.”
“He does, Bear. I know he does.” Her words broke on a sob, and I moved closer, wanting to pull her into my arms, but she set the ice on the island and held up both hands.
“Think about the way your family was tonight. Is it so wrong that I want that for my family? That I want Travis to stop hating our father, and I want Dad to care enough about his life to take care of himself? Why is it so bad to want that?”
Her shoulders quaked, and the tears started falling down her cheeks, and I couldn’t stop myself. I rushed her, pulling her into my arms and wrapping her up.
“It’s not wrong. I understand why you want that. You’re good and strong and kind, Lila. And your father is lucky to have you. But you need to protect yourself while you’re here, all right?”
Her head tipped back, and she looked up at me. Dark brown eyes wet with emotion and pain. “You’re not going to tell me he’s not worth my time like everyone else does?”
“Not if you agree to stay here and be cautious. But we have to tell Travis what happened, because when he finds out, he’ll be pissed we kept it from him.”
“All right.” She nodded. “We can tell him if you promise to support me. I just need someone on my side, you know?”
I wrapped my arms back around her and kissed the top of her head. “You’ve got me, Snow.”
We stood in the kitchen, me holding her for what felt like hours.
And I was in no hurry to let her go.
Lila and I had eventually called Travis and told him her version of what happened, leaving out some of the details.
I’d told him she would stay with me, and that was the only thing that kept him from coming over here and dragging her to his place.
He’d been enraged that his sister had been knocked down.
She’d failed to mention that she’d also been hit in the face, but I didn’t throw her under the bus because she’d looked at me with those pleading eyes, so I’d let it go. For now.
I’d knocked the shit out of the asshole who’d hurt her, and I’d threatened both Bradley and Tate to stay the fuck away from her when Lila was in her room packing.
I knew Travis would be coming to the restaurant to see her, and he wouldn’t miss the swollen bruise on her cheek, but at least he’d be calmer by today.
The casita had a door to the interior of my house, as well as its own entrance on the outside.
It was basically a bedroom en suite with its own bathroom and walk-in closet.
The exterior door just offered a bit more privacy if someone wanted to come and go without entering the house.
I’d told her to come on over in the morning and help herself to breakfast as we’d be sharing my kitchen.
What I hadn’t expected was to see Lila in a pair of tiny running shorts and a tank top, standing in my kitchen looking like a fucking goddess.
Her tan legs were on full display, feminine muscles running down her thighs as I took her in from behind like a fucking creeper.
Her ass was small and round—perfectly peach shaped, and her arms were slim with just enough muscle to make it obvious she was fit.
Her body was a work of art. No doubt about it.
I cleared my throat to let her know I was there before I spent another second checking her out.
She whipped her head over her shoulder and smiled. Her cheeks were flushed, her hair pulled away from her makeup free face, and a dark, long ponytail ran down her back. Her cheek was still swollen and discolored, but somehow, it looked sexy as hell on her this morning.
“Hey, I hope it’s okay I took you up on breakfast. I just went for a run, and I was starving, so I thought I’d make us both some bacon and eggs.” Her gaze scanned my body, moving slowly down my chest and stomach, and her eyes widened, which caused me to look down to see what she was gaping at.
Nothing like a little morning wood to scare the shit out of your best friend’s little sister.
I’d completely forgotten that I had on nothing but a pair of joggers, and they left nothing to the imagination when your dick was rock-hard.
And mine was.
I chuckled because there wasn’t much else I could do in this situation.
“Sorry about that. It’s a morning thing.” I smirked.
It’s actually a Lila thing.
She shook her head as if she hadn’t realized she was staring and turned back to the stove. “Oh, no. I hadn’t noticed. I mean, of course, I noticed, because it would be impossible not to, but I wasn’t staring. Oh my gooooooood,” she groaned.
“There’s no shame in looking, Snow.” I shouldn’t have said it, but I liked seeing her all worked up.
A pink hue ran up the back of her neck, and I adjusted myself because this shit was getting painful. “Do I have time to grab a quick shower?”
“Yeah, yeah, of course.” She waved a hand over her head, and when I got to the doorway of my bedroom, I heard her shout. “I’d make it a cold one, Bear!”
I laughed my ass off as I stood under the freezing cold water. I was not proud when I gripped my dick and leaned my forehead against the wall and thought of the way Lila had just looked at me. All innocent and sexy. Curious and wanting.
Her body in those little running shorts and tank top.
The way I could see the outline of her perfect tits through the fabric.
How badly I wanted to touch her.
Taste her.
It didn’t take long to find my release, and I made a silent promise to myself that this would be the last time I allowed myself to fantasize about her. She was going to be staying with me. I needed to pull my shit together.
Maybe I just needed to get laid.
By someone other than Lila James, of course.
I’d make that my mission this weekend. I was probably just horny because it had been a while.
I slipped on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and made my way out to the kitchen.
She’d just plated some eggs and bacon and toast, and damn if my stomach wasn’t rumbling.
“This looks amazing. I’m usually lucky to grab a piece of toast before I get out of here,” I said, moving to the fridge to pour us each a glass of juice.