Road to Victory (Dogs of Fire Book 5) (5 page)

BOOK: Road to Victory (Dogs of Fire Book 5)
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I nodded and he cleaned the wound and laid medicated gauze over my breast. It was so quick, I barely had time to react to the pain, and whatever ointment he’d put on the gauze eased the throb, so I couldn’t help but relax.

“Okay?”

I smiled. “Much better.”

“Good. Let’s get that sweatshirt on.”

He helped me slide the soft fleece over my head and dressed me as gently as a child. As though he cherished me. I blinked back tears and dropped my head.

“Take it easy, sugar, I got you.”

He pulled me up off the sofa and I couldn’t help but slip my arms around his waist and close my eyes. Even if it was just for a second.

“We’ll just stay here for a bit.” Knight gently cradled my head and pulled me closer.

I don’t know if it was the head injury or the fact I was in the arms of the man I’d never have, but I couldn’t stop crying. Knight held me, kissing the top of my head gently, but otherwise just letting me work everything out against his chest. When I felt I could let him go, I stepped back.

Katie walked in a few seconds later. “Hey, Kim,” she said gently.

“Hi Katie.”

“I’m just going to check you over a bit, okay?”

I nodded and Knight guided me back onto the sofa. Katie took vitals and then took blood. I still wasn’t sure why.

“I think you’ll be fine in a few hours. Rest is the key, but don’t sleep. It’s highly probable you have a concussion,” she said. “If you’re not feeling well in the morning, you should call the doctor.”

“Okay,” I whispered.

“Let’s get you home, huh?” Knight said.

I nodded and followed him out of the room. I was moving a little slower than normal, but he didn’t complain, just gave me the space I needed, hovering without being obnoxious about it. God, I loved him. So stupid and so misguided.

“Why don’t you just grab me a cab?” I suggested. “I can’t ride like this.”

Knight smirked.

“Knight,” I breathed out. “This is stupid; I can take care of myself. Just call me a cab.”

I swayed a bit, belying my confidence and Knight wrapped an arm around my waist to steady me. “Babe, you’re not fuckin’ gettin’ in a cab,” he said. “I got the keys to Mack’s car, so we’re all good.”

“What about your bike?”

“I’ll get it later.”

I huffed, but took the comfort he offered. Knight helped me into Mack’s BMW, handling me with the utmost care, which sent me into a tailspin of emotional ping-pong. If I could just keep it together until he dropped me off, I’d be all good.

“Kimmie?”

I rolled my head toward him. “Hmm?”

“Seatbelt, babe,” Knight ordered as he started the car.

I bit the inside of my lip to keep from groaning as I dragged the belt across my extremely sore chest. Knight pulled away from
Blush
and toward my condo in the Pearl and I stayed as quiet as possible. Having him so close to me set my body on fire and my nerves on edge.

We pulled into the parking garage of my building and I fought back the desire to ask him just how he knew the code to the gate. Mack must have told him, because Dani sure as hell wouldn’t have. A guest spot was open two down from my car, so Knight pulled in and shut off the engine.

“Thanks for the ride,” I said, releasing my belt.

He grinned. “I’m comin’ up, Kim.”

“No, you’re not.”

He rolled his eyes and slid out of the car.

I followed and met him at the trunk. “I’m serious.”

“Kimmie, I get you need your boundaries, and I promise, I’ll stay out of your way, but humor me, yeah? I need to know you’re okay.”

I bit my lip, hissing as I touched a sensitive spot.

Knight frowned, reaching out laying his thumb gently on my mouth. “You sore?”

“A little. I’m okay, Knight. Seriously.”

“Sugar.”

I sighed. “You can come up, but only for a little while.”

He grabbed my bag from the trunk and I led him to the elevators and up to my apartment. Of all the Dogs, only Mack and Booker had been to my place, so I was expecting a surprised reaction from Knight. I had the misfortune of being a trust fund baby. My family had been in Portland almost since the day it was settled and my parents owned several of the buildings on Alberta and Mississippi, not to mention the majority of the town of Gresham. Two of my uncles were state senators, one for Oregon, one for Washington, and my grandfather had been governor back in the day. On my father’s side, he had a sister who was a Supreme Court judge and a brother who sat on the board of OSU. All-in-all, we were ingrained in this land and probably always would be.

My parents had set up a trust fund for me and had controlled me very effectively for years. I couldn’t put one foot in front of the other without their input. That was until my mother’s mother passed away, freeing me from the chains of my parents’ money.

My condo had been bought with the inheritance my grandmother had left me. She’d also left me her childhood home (built in the early 1900s), which was currently being rented by a lovely family Gran had met before she died. I was free to do what I wanted with it, but for the moment, I was happy in my apartment. My mother had been incensed. She had an older brother, but she was sure Grams would leave her fortune to her, but she skipped Mother (and my uncle) all together and gave the majority of her assets to me. Tied it up neatly in an ironclad contract so even if my mother was able to manipulate her way to try and get to it, she’d fail. And she had. Don’t get me wrong, Mother and Uncle Daniel hadn’t been left out. They got over five million dollars each, but they wanted more. I really couldn’t have cared less either way... I would have much rather had my grandmother back.

For me, though, the money had afforded me a little freedom and the ability to un-tether myself from my parents. Not that it shielded me completely.

I unlocked the door to my sixteenth-floor home and pushed through. Knight followed and I braced myself. Knight didn’t come from money (at least I didn’t think he did) and I was sure he’d make some form of snarky comment. It had happened to me enough to stop bringing men home.

“Where do you want your purse?” he asked.

“Um... couch is fine,” I said.

He dropped the clutch and smiled. “Nice place.” I studied him for a second and he raised an eyebrow. “You okay?” he asked.

I nodded and headed to the kitchen. “I’m going to take some ibuprofen.”

“I’m gonna hang out on your sofa for a bit.”

“Why?”

He ignored the question. “Got any beer?”

“Yes, but you’re not staying,” I said, and grabbed a bottle of water.

I felt his hands on my waist and jumped. It was a slight and brief touch as he passed me to get to the fridge. “Knight.”

“Yeah, sugar?” He leaned into the fridge and grabbed a beer.

I crossed my arms and tried to make my expression as serious as possible. “You’re not staying.”

“Do your thing, Kimmie. I’ll just hang.”

“Aidan. You’re not staying,” I repeated, hoping by using his real name, he’d listen.

He grinned. “Cute, Kim.”

“What’s cute?” I demanded, and followed him to my sofa, where he sat his sexy butt down and got comfortable.

He took a drag of his beer, set his motorcycle-booted feet on my two-thousand-dollar coffee table, and raised an eyebrow. “You, sayin’ my real name. It’s cute.”

I let out a frustrated squeak. “I’m going to bed.”

“Sugar, you can’t go to bed.”

“Why not?”

“What if you have a concussion?”

I leaned against the sofa. “Katie didn’t seem concerned.”

Knight patted the cushion beside him. “Come sit down, Kim. I’m gonna watch you for a bit. If you’re good in a couple of hours, I’ll let you sleep.”

“You’re not a doctor, Knight.”

“Not yet, no.”

“Smartass.”

“Come on. Katie gave me the signs to watch for and I’m pretty sure they’re not that much different than what happens in animals.”

I wrinkled my nose, but knew he was looking out for me, so I grabbed a blanket and sat on the sofa. Before I could object, however, he reached his arm out and pulled me against his body.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Makin’ sure you’re okay.”

“You can do that without touching me.”

He smiled. “Not as much fun, though.”

I’d like to say I settled in because I was still pretty fuzzy and sleepy, but the truth was, I loved being in the safety of his arms. He made me feel protected.

Knight only left me to get water and force me to drink a couple of bottles to “flush my system out.” About an hour after arriving home, however, things went from comfortable to far too intense for my liking.

“How you feelin’?”

“Better,” I said, and took another sip of water.

He studied my face. “I think it’s safe for you to go to sleep now, sug.” I moved to stand, but he shook his head. “But first. Who was that guy, Kim?”

“What guy?”

“The guy who attacked you.”

“I have no idea.”

“Why do you do that?”

“What?”

“Lie?”

I huffed. “I’m not lying. I don’t know him.” He studied me and I scowled. “Stop it.”

“Stop what, Kim?”

“Stop trying to read my mind.”

“This asshole says he knows you, so I’m tryin’ to figure exactly what that means.”

“It doesn’t mean anything. He introduced himself, but I don’t know him. He said he’d worked for my father.”

“Then why didn’t you just say that?” he challenged.

I shrugged. Dr. Grace would say it’s a form of self-protection... only give concise answers to direct questions. Never give more away than is necessary, lest my heart be threatened.

Knight sighed. “Okay, Kim.”

“Is that all, Sir Nosy Pants?” I ground out as I rose to my feet.

“Yeah, sugar. Sleep well.”

“You’re such an ass sometimes, you know that?”

“Yep.” He raised an eyebrow, grinned, and said, “’Night.”

I stomped off to my bedroom, gritting back a groan as my tantrum created a surge of pain in my bruised leg. Closing the door behind me, I dropped my head to wood and took several deep breaths. Aidan. In my home. Shit.

 

 

K
NIGHT WATCHED KIM walk away. Fuck, she was gorgeous. Especially in a snit. He didn’t like that he couldn’t follow her to the bedroom... didn’t like that some asshole had his hands all over her, let alone hurt her, but he had to take it slow. She had some deep seated fears he was determined to break through, but first, she had to trust him which was going to take longer to achieve.

Tonight was a good start. Tonight he wouldn’t leave her side and when she figured out she was safe with him, he could finally build on her trust. She came from money... a shit ton of it, but she loved Dani and Booker and treated Knight’s brothers, club and blood, like family, so she wasn’t a snob... well, not a big one anyway. Even so, he’d picked up on tension between her and her parents, so he wasn’t sure how murky her family waters were. In his opinion, money had a tendency to fuck people up, so he’d go in easy.

He grinned again, finishing his beer and slipping his boots off. Her sofa rocked. Most comfortable piece of furniture he’d ever sat on, so he grabbed a pillow and the remote just as his phone buzzed. “Hey, Mack.”

“The asshole drugged her. GHB.”

“On top of beatin’ the shit out of her?” Knight sat up. “What the fuck?”

“We’re dealin’ with him, just wanted you to know.”

“Thanks, man.” Knight rubbed his forehead. “I got Kim.”

Silence.

“You hear me?” Knight said.

“Yeah, man, I hear you,” Mack said.

“’Night.”

With a sigh, Knight hung up, found a college football game, and hunkered in for a relaxing night. He was torn between wanting to kill the man who attacked Kim and find out what the hell was actually going, and staying here with Kim to make sure she was safe. Since he trusted his brothers to handle the asshole, he decided he was exactly where he was supposed to be.

These were his thoughts as he drifted off to sleep, only to be shocked awake by soft lips on his, and a firm, but gentle hand on his cock.

“Fuck,” he hissed, blinking his eyes open and finding Kim above him.

“Hey, baby,” she crooned, kissing him again.

He enjoyed her mouth for several minutes before coming to his senses and breaking the connection. “Kim, sugar, what are you doin’?”

“Easing some of my discomfort,” she said. “I’m horny.”

As much as it killed him, he pulled her hand from his rock-hard dick and turned his head to avoid her kiss. “No, sug. Not like this.”

“Come to my bedroom,” she suggested.

“Damn it, Kim.” He took her face in his hands. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

She smiled, her thick, dark hair falling across her face. “I’m glad you think so.”

“But this isn’t going to happen.” He pushed up and stood.

“What?” she asked, her hooded eyes glassy with need.

“Babe, you’ve had a fuckin’ bad night and I’m not takin’ advantage of that.”

She ran her hands up his chest, kissing his throat. “You’re not taking advantage of anything.”

“Fuck.” Knight squeezed his eyes shut and dropped his head back. “No.”

BOOK: Road to Victory (Dogs of Fire Book 5)
13.31Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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