Chapter 10 Davis
DAVIS
Fucking hell.
This was exactly the reason I had told Roger that I didn’t want Rae coming up here. This right fucking here.
My dogs barked at the woman hanging from my arms, as though a princess had just dropped out of the heavens, and I was the villain keeping her captive. That’s the story the town will spin when they get wind of this, so might as well embrace it.
“Dove, Duke! Fucking sit before I kennel you both.”
That shut them up, and they gave one last little collective whine before padding off toward their places in front of the fire.
Slamming the front door shut with my foot, I walked over to the couch and gently laid Rae down. She let out a small hiss, bringing her hand to her head, trying to gauge where the wound was.
Once letting her go, I stood and turned away from her—stretching my fingers to get the feel of her out of them. The last thing I wanted to do was get used to how soft her skin was, or admit that I liked how she felt pressed close to my chest.
“I’m going to call your dad.” I said matter of fact, but she seemed to panic at the suggestion.
“No! Please…I don’t” —she paused, wincing as she adjusted her hand—“I don’t want him to worry.”
Fuck, she was bleeding and hurt, and I was standing there staring at her like a prick.
“I’ll grab you some ice and pain meds.” I didn’t wait for her to respond.
I grabbed ice, a wet rag, and some peroxide—along with a water bottle and a container of aspirin.
Padding back toward Rae, I noticed she’d shifted her body so that she was more reclined, relaxing into the couch.
The sight of her closed eyes and supple body made my breath hitch.
I had never had this, a woman in my space. It felt strange, but not in a bad way.
Blinking away the image, and clearing my head, I stepped closer and took a seat on the coffee table across from her.
“Here…” I hesitated, trying to sound a little less like the Davis Brenton in all the rumors she likely heard growing up. “Be careful as you sit up.”
My hand was out, careful not to touch her as she moved.
I wouldn’t make her uncomfortable, and I sure as shit wouldn’t touch her again if I could help it, but that didn’t mean I didn’t notice how good she looked.
She had smooth, creamy skin, with a few independent freckles—one above her left brow, one on her nose and one near her jaw.
Her dark lashes fanned the top of her cheeks, and her lips were plump and pink.
She looked like a fucking princess: hair too perfect, and shiny, skin too clear and creamy, lips too kissable.
Her lashes fluttered, and two bright blue eyes stared back at me. For one small moment, she seemed completely at ease just staring at me, but then her gaze narrowed, and her face went from pale to slightly red. I was sitting so close to her that my knees practically touched her hips.
“You okay?” I asked, hoping to ward off her panic.
She thrust her palms back, trying to adjust her back into a sitting position.
“Careful,” I reiterated, finally applying pressure to her back to stabilize her.
She muttered something under her breath and kept her gaze low, as though she didn’t want to look at me.
“Can you say something coherent, so I know that you’re okay?”
Wincing, she finally settled her gaze on mine. “Why did you place an order and not add your name?”
Her confusion made my composure break, forcing a smile.
“I did add my name.”
Her confused stare stayed in place as she waited for me to elaborate, but I needed to be sure she was physically okay first.
“Now that you’re sitting up, I need you to take this.” I nodded toward her injury and reached for the bottle of aspirin.
“Here.” I handed her a bottle of water, and medicine.
She gave me a long look, her left eyebrow arching, as if she was weighing how likely I was to poison her.
I glared back. “It’s not drugged or anything. Look, the seal is still on the bottle.”
That eyebrow stayed arched, challenging me.
“What?” I asked, trying to shake off the feeling she stirred in me. She looked at me like she knew that deep down I was just a piece of shit, trying to hide from my sins.
“Why are you being nice to me? We didn’t end our last conversation on good terms…”
I smiled. “No, we didn’t, did we?”
Those eyes flicked to mine as though she were searching something out.
If she was starting to pick up on the fact that I was attracted to her, well, good.
It would save me from having to explain that I had liked her long before she ever showed up.
That I used to think about her after those long summer nights when her parents would get done talking to her, or share a new story about her escapades in New York.
“I’m not being nice. I’m just trying to make sure you don’t die.” Shaking my head, I popped the lid off the aspirin bottle.
Seemingly at ease, she carefully took the offered water and pills. I stayed where I was but leaned over her to see the cut on the top of her head. With her dark hair and the graying sky outside, I didn’t have a clear view.
“Hang tight, I need to grab a flashlight.”
Rae’s eyes moved upward, while shaking her head, which made her flinch. “It’s not a big deal.”
I walked toward the laundry room, ignoring her calls from the couch about it being fine, and tugged open the junk drawer.
Grabbing the slim flashlight, I headed back and settled into the same spot I had before.
“Come here,” I ordered gently, placing my hand around the side of her head.
She leaned into me, allowing me to inspect the top of her scalp. She smelled like some sort of floral blend that made me want to sink my nose into each and every silky strand on her head. Pushing past my odd, yet growing obsession, I focused on her injury.
With the flashlight, I could see the gash, which was still bloodied but had already clotted.
“This is going to hurt,” I whispered, letting her go and reaching for the antiseptic and the rag. Gently pouring a small amount over the cut, I wiped at the blood with the rag, pressing it into the wound to ensure it was done bleeding out.
Rae let out a small hiss, moving her hand up to grab my wrist. The jolt of heat from her touch ran up my arm, instantly making me think of having her in my bed, her gripping my wrists while I fucked her slowly.
Working to get that image out of my head, I cleared the lust from my voice. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay, thank you…” Rae said softly.
Things were silent for a few seconds as I continued cleaning her wound, and she continued holding my wrist, maybe she didn’t realize she was doing it. Maybe it was because it was too painful not to…but I liked that her hands were on me. So, I may have taken a little longer than necessary.
“All done,” I rasped out, still trying to clear the attraction to her out of my voice.
She let me go and leaned away from me, the tops of her cheeks flushed as she tipped her head back to let the remaining water drops trickle away.
Sitting back and setting the rag down, I let the quiet fill up the space between us, hoping she’d be the first one to talk.
“I’m going to get going before it gets too dark.”
Fuck, that wasn’t what I wanted her to say.
She swung her legs, attempting to swing them off the couch, but I wouldn’t move from my spot on the coffee table, blocking her path.
I stared at her for a beat, trying to wrangle the emotions clogging my chest.
There was this dam inside me, bursting at the seams with her nearness.
Thinking how throughout the years, Raelyn Jackson had become like a celebrity to me.
I had begun salivating for stories about her, and before I knew it, a small crush had developed over this girl I had never met, nor seen.
The Jackson’s had never once shown me a photo of her, never once introduced me while they facetimed her.
Yet, this girl never left my head. She was there, lurking the back of my mind like a shadow.
Now she was here, and she was about to leave. Something about it ripped at my insides, screaming at me to make her stay. It wasn’t that I was just lonely, it was…her.
“Do you drink coffee?” I stood, looking down at her.
She just sat there, staring up at me.
Blinking, and closing those sapphire eyes off to me, she exhaled through her nose. She stayed like that for a few seconds then looked up at me from under her lashes and said, “I need to use the restroom.”
I held out a hand to help her up, but she ignored it.
“First door of your left, down the—”
She stood, took one step and nearly fell over. My hands were at her waist in the blink of an eye, which made her inhale sharply.
“Can you wait for one goddamned second or let me help you? I don’t need you falling and getting hurt any worse than you already have.”
She half turned toward me, a glare firmly in place as her lips turned down and she jerked away from my hold.
“I’m fine.”
I ran a nervous hand through my hair, realizing I’d snapped too harshly at her.
Once she was tucked into the bathroom, I ran outside to grab the box of groceries and food she’d delivered, right as it started to sprinkle.
Bounding back up the steps and back inside, I set everything down on the counter and settled a few perishables in the fridge before letting out a small sigh.
I shouldn’t have been such a dick; it wasn’t like she’d want anything to do with me even without my gruff nature… but now.
Sneaking a quick glance toward the hall, where the bathroom was, and hearing the sink turn on, I checked the mirror hanging in the living room.
Without thinking, I smoothed a hand through my hair, so it didn’t look so lame.
I was out of hair gel, so mine was flat today.
She probably dated guys that wore suits and had three-hundred-dollar haircuts; there wasn’t a chance she’d be interested in me.
“You have a nice bathroom.” Rae said kindly, coming out of the restroom looking refreshed and still a little nervous.