Chapter Forty-Five
Axle
The first thing I feel when I wake is pain.
It sits low in my ribs, sharp and deep, like somebody took a hot branding iron to my side and forgot to remove it. My face isn’t much better. My jaw aches. My cheekbone throbs. Even my damn eyebrow hurts.
A small smile tugs at my mouth.
Cabe hits harder than he used to.
I brace my hand to my right side and start to sit up when I feel Jovie. She’s curled against my side beneath the blankets, one arm stretched across my stomach, her face tucked against my chest. Her warmth penetrating my body.
I lie still for a moment, staring at the ceiling of her cabin while the morning sunlight spills through the curtains.
My girl.
The realization settles deep in my chest.
After everything that happened yesterday—after the fight, after the shouting, after the look on Cabe’s face when he found us together in the barn—I’m still here, and so is she.
I glance down at her.
Her blonde hair is a complete disaster, tangled in every direction imaginable. One strand is somehow stuck to her lips.
God, she’s beautiful.
But then my smile fades.
The dark circles beneath her eyes stand out immediately. Her eyelids are swollen. Her whole face puffy. Like she spent half the night crying.
Guilt punches me harder than Cabe ever could.
I carefully try to shift, hoping to get a better look at her without waking her. Which is a big mistake because the second I move, she jolts upright, and her eyes fly open.
Worry flashes across her face so fast that it steals my breath.
“Axle!”
Her hands and eyes focus on me as she gently checks and scans my shoulders, my chest, and my face.
“You okay?” she blurts. “Are you hurting? Is it your ribs?”
The questions come so fast that they trip over each other.
I can’t help smiling.
Even looking half asleep and completely terrified, she’s the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.
“Morning to you too, Doc.”
She doesn’t laugh. Doesn’t even crack a smile. “Axle.”
“I’m okay.”
Her eyes narrow.
I sigh. “Okay, I’m probably better than I look.”
That earns me a glare.
Truth is, my ribs hurt like a son of a bitch, and my face feels like it got introduced to a battering ram. Repeatedly.
Jovie studies me for another second before throwing the blankets back.
“Don’t move,” she commands. “I’ll get you something for the pain.”
She starts climbing out of bed, but before she can escape, I catch her around the waist.
The movement sends a bolt of pain through my ribs.
She squeaks as I pull her backward.
“Hey!”
I drag her right back into the mattress. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To get your medicine.”
“I don’t need pain medicine.”
“But you’re hurting.”
I tighten my arm around her waist. “I’m fine.”
She growls, “Axle.”
I squeeze her again. “I’m serious, Doc. It looks worse than it feels.”
“You’re impossible.”
“Been told that before.”
She huffs, making me grin.
Then I pull her fully on top of me.
Her eyes widen. “Careful.”
She’s trying so hard not to put any weight on my ribs that she ends up hovering awkwardly above me. I have to bite back a laugh, and I promptly regret it.
“Ow.”
“Told you.”
I ignore her.
Using my good arm, I pull her a little closer. “Relax, baby.”
“I’m going to hurt you.”
“No, you’re not. You weigh a buck ten, soaking wet.”
She rolls her eyes but finally settles slightly, still holding most of her weight off me.
I lift my head. The movement hurts. Everything is stiff, but when I press my forehead against hers, it doesn’t matter.
Her eyes close, and a shaky breath leaves her.
There it is.
The tension she’s been holding on to all morning dissipates, and I brush my nose against hers.
“Hey.”
She swallows and lets out another shaky breath. Then a tear slips from the corner of her eye.
My chest squeezes.
“Damn it.” She quickly wipes it away.
“Jovie.”
Her eyes lift to mine.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper.
The words hang between us.
She shakes her head. “Axle—”
“No.” I brush a strand of hair from her face. “The fight was my fault.”
She opens her mouth to argue, but I keep going.
“I should’ve talked to Cabe before anything happened between us.”
The words feel bitter because we both know they’re true. Maybe it wouldn’t have changed anything. Maybe Cabe still would’ve been just as angry. But he should have heard it from me, and not found out the way he did.
“He deserved better.”
Jovie’s eyes soften. “You didn’t even defend yourself. You just stood there and let him hit you.”
I shrug.
“You didn’t even try to walk away,” she says quietly.
I meet her gaze. “No.”
“Why not?”
I think to myself, Because he’s my brother. Because I love him. Because I hurt him. Because I saw the betrayal in his eyes and knew exactly where it came from.
Instead, I simply say, “I wasn’t gonna hit Cabe.”
Her brows pull together. “He was punching you.”
“I noticed.” I smile.
She definitely doesn’t.
“I deserved his anger.” The words come out rougher than I intended. “And he needed to get it out of his system.”
Her expression softens. “That’s stupid.”
I bark out a laugh, which again proves to be a terrible decision. “Shit.”
She points at me. “See?”
Still laughing, I catch her hand. “That’s how brothers work things out.”
She shakes her head. “You men are ridiculous.”
“That’s also true.”
A reluctant smile finally appears.
There she is.
I’ve been waiting all morning to see that smile, and for a few seconds, we just look at each other.
The sunlight catches in her hair. Her blue eyes shine.
God, I love this woman.
The realization settles over me so naturally that it doesn’t even scare me anymore. It’s the truth.
“You didn’t sleep much. Did you?” I ask as I sweep her wild hair from her eyes.
Her smile disappears, and she shakes her head and sighs. “I went to see Cabe.”
That surprises me.
“When?”
“Last night, after you fell asleep.”
Of course she did. She’d never leave a wound untreated if she thought there was any chance she could help. Even one like this.
I rub my thumb across her hip. “How was he?”
The answer takes a moment.
Finally, she says quietly, “Hurt.”
I close my eyes.
Yeah, that sounds about right.
“Hurt real bad.”
The guilt settles heavier in my chest.
I nod. “I figured.”
She studies my face. “I apologized.”
I don’t respond.
“And I tried to explain as best I could.” Her voice cracks slightly. “But honestly? It sounded weak, even to me.”
My heart breaks a little because I know exactly what she means. Some things don’t have a good explanation. Some things don’t make sense. This is one of them.
“What’d he say?”
She runs her fingers through my hair. “He said we’d be okay—eventually.”
I nod slowly.
“I think he needs time.”
“He does,” I agree.
Neither of us speaks for a moment. The silence isn’t uncomfortable. Just loaded with sadness.
“He’s in love with you too.” There’s no jealousy in me when I say it. No accusation. I’m simply stating the truth.
Her eyes find mine, and she exhales softly. “He thinks he is.”
I raise an eyebrow.
“What he and I had was puppy love. We were kids.” Her fingers lace with mine. “What you and I have isn’t the same thing. It’s bigger. It’s scarier. It’s …”
“Big dog love,” I finish.
She laughs, and my chest warms.
“And you and Cabe?” I ask.
She looks toward the window for a second. “He’s important to me. Always will be.” Her voice grows stronger. “Our bond is unshakable.”
I squeeze her hand. “I hope so.”
The last thing I wanted was to drive a wedge between them—her losing him or him losing her.
After a minute, I sigh. “I’ll give him a few days. Then I’ll go talk to him.”
She narrows her eyes. “A conversation. Just talking. No punching,” she says.
“No punching. I promise.”
“But if he does try to hit you …”
“I’ll block, and I’ll walk away,” I finish for her.
“Good.”
Another comfortable silence settles between us.
Then an entirely different thought enters my mind. A much more pleasant one.
I grin.
“What?”
I slide my hand a little lower along her back, and her eyes widen.
“How about that reunion we didn’t get to finish in the barn before we were so rudely interrupted?”
Her mouth falls open. “Seriously?”
“What?”
“You’re in no condition for any kind of reunion.”
“Sure I am.”
My hand slides down to her ass, and I pull her against me. I kiss her nose, her cheek, and the corner of her mouth.
“You might just have to do most of the work,” I say against her lips.
A blush spreads across her face, and she offers a sexy smile. Her eyes sparkle for the first time since yesterday. “Oh?”
I nod. “Think you can do that?”
Her smile turns downright wicked.
Something I never would’ve expected from sweet little Jovie Asbury, and my cock stirs at the sight.
Her mouth comes to mine, and she finally melts into me. When she pulls back, she brushes her nose against mine. “I can do that.”
My grin widens as she stands up on the mattress, pulls her tank top over her head, then steps out of her shorts and sinks to her knees, straddling my hips.
I fold my arms behind my head and settle deeper into the pillows as she reaches and guides me inside of her, then begins to slowly ride my cock.
Fuck. She’s perfect.
“Now, this is the only medicine I need.”