Marked (Marked #3) (5 page)

“We…” Simon waved a finger around the table as he spoke. “Are not interested in her. Don’t want her. We came to eat and drink, not be accosted by your staff since the moment we arrived. Enough already.”

Mouth opened and closed, he looked like a gaping fish. “I am so sorry. Please let me—”

“I don’t care.” Pushing my chair back, it scraped against the floor loudly. Looking over at my boys, I pulled my wallet out and threw a hundred-dollar bill on the table to cover our food and drinks. “I’m out. Got better shit to do than continuing with this conversation.”

“Where are you going?” Lance yelled out.

“To see my girl and fix this mess.”

“Hi.” What else could I say?

Maya’s eyes snapped up at the sound of my voice. It wasn’t the greeting she’d been accustomed to and the down-turn curve on her lips told me as much. Small, withdrawn, she looked miserable on that damn bed.

“Hi.” Her voice was low, almost too low for me to hear. She gave me a timid smile before reaching over, and with slow and measured movements grabbed the cup of water on the rolling table/tray thing beside her bed.

My fingers twitched, desperate to help her, but instead I closed my fists tight. “How do you feel?” Even a blind person could see the discomfort she was in, but at this point I just wasn’t sure about where I stood with her. What was okay and what was overbearing.

“Very sore.” Thickness clouded her words, and the need to comfort her almost bowled me over. Maya paused to take a sip of water; the action caused her to grimace, face pinched tight in distress. “Doctor said I re-bruised my ribs with all my jerky movements today. I’m confined to this bed for a day or two...it all depends on how I improve over the next twenty-four hours.”

I took a couple steps toward her and paused at the foot of the bed. “How bad?”

“Not horribly, but I’m stuck in bed.” At her petulant expression, I cracked a small smile. She huffed. “Not funny, Talan.”

“A little.” Fucking with her never stopped being amusing to me, but just as soon as it came, my smile fell. The room became overpowered, overwhelmed by the seriousness of her—our situation. “Shouldn’t you be sleeping?” Our conversation could wait. Her health would always be my priority.

“Can’t,” Maya spoke through a tiny sniffle she tried hard to contain. “Needed you.”

“I’m here now.” It was my truth; there was nowhere else I’d ever want to be. Yes, Bitty drove me insane, but she was mine. At the end of the day, I’d take her bad any day over losing her.

Taking the remaining steps, I took a seat beside her on the edge of the bed and cupped her face with both hands. That simple gesture made her smile; caused her to nuzzle me with her cheek.

A content sigh escaped her. “We still need to talk.”

I agreed, but not now. Laying my forehead against hers, I closed my eyes and breathed her in. “But it can wait until tomorrow morning—”

“No.” Taking my hands in hers, Bitty pulled them off her face and then settled them in her lap. “Now, baby. I don’t ever want either one of us to go to bed worried or upset. We talk it out. Always.”

“Bitty...” at the sound of her nickname a happy grin overtook her face “...it can wait.” Squeezing my hand once, Bitty released her hold and moved away from me, squaring her shoulders. I missed the connection immediately. Her tired, grey eyes locked with mine firmly, her focus set on trying to read my expressions. Girl was cute even when I was pissed at her.

“Do you really need to add another argument to the long list today?”
What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Is she kidding me?

“Of course not.” At my huff, she raised a brow and then grimaced. “Don’t do that.”

Instead of acknowledging my reproach, she waved her hand in the air. “Glad you see it my way.” With a satisfied smirk, she lay back comfortably and watched me. Minutes ticked off the clock, her gaze unwavering. “Go on, now. Get it off your chest…I’m a big girl and deserve it.”

“Fine,” I grumbled before leaning forward and laying a tiny kiss on the tip of her nose. “You’re a real pain in the ass...did you know that?”

“So I’ve been told.” With a nod and an understanding look of acknowledgement, she spoke low. “There are so many things I’d like to say to you, but I’ll wait. I know I hurt you. The least I can do is hear you out and accept my faults.”

“Thank you.” Another kiss, this time on her cheek. “There’s really only one thing that’s bothering me, baby, and that’s the way in which you saw me.” Maya opened her mouth to speak, but I held my hand up. “I’m not done.” She closed her lips. “Is that how you see me…as just another macho
asshole
that belongs in a zoo? What have I ever done to give you that impression?”

“You haven’t.” The remorse in her tone touched me. It wasn’t a false,
“I’ll placate you,”
sorry. Real emotion lay beneath those few words. “I’m so sorry, Talan. I reacted instead of verifying the truth. I’m the asshole in this relationship, not you.” Taking in a deep breath, she looked down and spoke. “All you’ve done since we met is love and care for me, and at the moment, I don’t deserve any of it.”

Cradling her face once more, I tipped it up and our eyes locked. “You’re more than worthy of my love and devotion. You fucked up, yes. That’s why I’m here to talk it out. But I’m not going anywhere...understand?”

Bitty’s answer was a small nod and an almost too low to hear: “I do now.”

I appraised her with a raised brow. “Good. Now answer me. Why, Maya?”

“To be honest, I don’t know. So much was happening around me, and I freaked out.” Bitty wrung her hands in her lap. A nervous gesture. “You were gone after those two cops left and we took a shower. No one knew where you’d gone...or so I thought at first.”

“Explain.” Tone terse, I sat back and put a bit of distance between us.

“I’m not an idiot.” With a nod, I agreed. Taking her time, she gathered her thought before continuing. “Yet my parents came in looking all freaked out, guarding the door against some unseen threat.” Her hiss of anger didn’t escape me. That rage I’d seen earlier today still lingered beneath her tired surface. Maybe Lance was right. Maya needed the truth, not a mild version of it. “No words or explanation. Just a ‘hi’ and ‘stay in bed.’ Of course I asked them what was up, which obviously they denied there being anything wrong.”

“Sorry, Maya, for what I’m about to say...but what the fuck is wrong with them?” Getting up from the bed, I squeezed her hand and then began to pace the floor in front of it. That was another thing that was bugging the ever-loving crap out of me. I was doing my job protecting her, but instead of backing me up, I was hung out to dry. “Especially your mom? One minute I get a ‘thank you,’ and the next I’m fucked over.”

“Scared. Concerned. Dumb as fuck…” She let out a tired sigh that quickly turned into a yawn. “Take a pick.”

It was that exhausted tone that made me pause. We were getting nowhere, and she needed to sleep. This conversation, while not as deep as I would have liked, needed to be wrapped up.

Pausing at the foot, I leaned against the mattress and met her eyes again. “So what did they say to blow your fuse? What caused that epic boom of distrust?”

Bitty let a small giggle pop free at my explanation of the events. The sound lightened the heaviness inside the room—even I smiled a bit.

“When Detective Marquez came to assure us you were just giving a statement about the altercation. They had no choice at that point.”

“So if they—wait, that doesn’t make sense, babe.” Nothing added up. Yes, I could see myself in her shoes. Understand the fear that grips you when things go unexplained and you start to formulate your own conclusion. Motherfucking lightbulb moment if I ever had one. “What exactly did Marquez say? Word for word.”

“Mr. Cox has been taken down for questioning. There was a physical altercation which led to one of our suspects in the case being found unconscious. We need answers that only he can provide. He’s not being arrested at the moment, and will call shortly after we are done.” There it was again, that simmering anger. “I fucking freaked.”

“Understandable. And for what it’s worth…” Taking in a deep inhale, I weighed the words I was about to say before walking back over to stand beside her. “I’m sorry, babe.” With the one hand closest to her, I ran the tips of my fingers through her silky black hair—caressing her scalp gingerly, just grazing the back of her skull in a soothing gesture. “Sorry so much has been kept from you and that we haven’t taken into account your emotions. You were put in the middle of a situation that had nothing to do with you, and you bore the brunt of the fucked-up storm. We have hid the truth from you a bit, and made things worse by trying to protect you…for that I am very sorry.”

“You owe me no—”

“I wasn’t done, Bitty. And we will finish this later.” Much later after she’s rested and no longer trying to hide the pain she was in. A good actress she was not.

Maya opened her mouth to protest, but before she could, I kissed those sweet lips. Tasted her very essence on my tongue and drowned in her. In my love for her. The kiss was supposed to be soft, sweet, but my girl had other ideas and fisted my hair in her hands. She pulled hard enough to sting—
an exquisite pain that shot straight through my body like an electrical current and settled on the tip of my dick.

Throbbed.

Pulsed.

I fucking leaked for her.

“God, I fucking want you. Miss the feel of your cock stretching me.” Her moan was like a bucket of cold water thrown over my head. We couldn’t. Not yet. Not while she was still laid up in this room and bruised. Not while I couldn’t bend her over and tinge that sweet ass of hers red for doubting me.

When I couldn’t fuck her hard, like a wild beast dominating his female. When she couldn’t handle the bruises my fingertips embedding themselves into her hips would leave.

“Stop,” Stern, an almost angry growl against her supple lips. Maya moaned at the feral sound and pushed herself up, arching her neck to reach my lips. A whimper escaped her as they touched. Pained, her gasp caught between our mouths while our tongues caressed the others. “Bitty, we have to stop.” It left me as a rumpled groan this time.

A plea for her to behave for once. Have mercy on my cock and me.

“No.” A shake of her head, before she caught my bottom lip between hers and clamped down, held me hostage.

“Mother of fuck, babe. Let go.” Pulling back, I disentangled her fingers from my hair, or at least I tried. Maya refused to release me and for a second, I gave in. To see her want for me so open and on display was my undoing.

“Please, I need you.”

The desperation.

The desire.

The fucking need drove me right past Give-a-Shit Drive. I took her mouth just as I had every time since we’d met. Punishing. Bruising. A claiming.

Placing a hand on her neck, I squeezed just a tiny bit and was rewarded with my favorite sound in the world. A singular soft mewl of pleasure.

“Fuck, I love you.” At my words, Bitty lifted her hips off the bed and then cried out. Not because she wanted more—no, this time it was in pain.

I froze above her.

“Oh God.” She took in a deep inhale and held it. Cheeks puffed out, her face turned red while she held her side.

“Baby, let me call the nurse.” Reaching over her, I pressed the red call button on her control and turned back toward Maya. “Just take slow breaths and don’t move. Fuck, Bitty...we shouldn’t have—”

“What’s going on in here?” A frantic nurse yelled while running over to my girl. “Her blood pressure’s through the roof!”

Running a hand roughly down my face, I turned to face her. “We kissed.” At my sorry explanation, she raised a skeptical brow and pursed her lips. “She arched up...”

“I get it.” Jenny, as her name tag read, chuckled lowly while waving her hand in the air. Her reaction was as if this was a normal occurrence. Made me wonder how many people actually tried to have sex while visiting the local hospital.

With a tiny shake of her head, Jenny walked over to Maya’s IV and pressed a few buttons before addressing us once more. Gone was the humor this time. “Don’t do it again until she’s healed, or I’ll kick you out after visiting hours. And for your information…there are cameras everywhere. Behave.”

“Hey!” my girl slurred, and Jenny’s pinched face loosened a bit, relaxed back into the all-knowing smile she wore when she’d come in. “I need my man here. There’s a crazy lady after...” She conked out mid-sentence. Completely out of it, and it was hilarious if I were being honest.

A snort escaped me before I could stop it. “What the hell did you give her?”

“Something to stop her from attacking you.” At this, she shrugged with a smirk on her face, and I found myself cracking the fuck up. My life was insane and if I couldn’t beat the crazy, I’d join them.