Shit. I’d scared her.
Fuck, butIfrightenedher.
I softened my voice, knowing the last thing she needed was for me to be lecturing her right now. “I’ll replace the door. Today. I apologize for that—and for frightening you, but beautiful, I was scared shitless.” I paused, swallowing the lump in my throat as my heart called out for hers. “I just needed to make sure you were okay, to get to you as fast as possible.”
“Don’t talk to me like that,” she croaked. “I’ve had a hell of a week.”
I studied her, the large sunglasses on her face, a new concern manifesting. “I know, and we’re going to talk about the shit that’s going on with your school. But first, I need to know why you’re wearing sunglasses inside.” When she said nothing, I took a guess. “Are you not feeling well? My sister gets horrible migraines, and she has to sit in the dark for at least two days when they happen.”
Still, no answer. Instead, she kept those sunglasses pointed in my direction.
I ached to see just a glimpse of her mossy green.
But fuck me, I really fucked this up, didn’t I?
“Are you hungover? Do you need me to go get you some food?” I continued, needing to take care of her.
When she finally answered, her voice was cold and her walls were higher than they’d ever been. “No, I don’t need you to go get me food. I don’t need you to get anything for me. I just need you to leave.”
My eyes narrowed. “I’m trying to help you.”
“Your help is the last thing I need,” she hissed. “Leave me the hell alone.”
She turned, but there was no way I was letting her walk away from me again.
Within seconds, I closed the distance between us and grabbed her hand. “You aren’t walking away from me again,” I clipped, stopping her. She twisted her neck, looking up at me, and a chunk of loose hair fell away from her face. My pulse spiked at the sight of the discolored skin on her cheek.
“What the fuck?” I whispered.
“Hayes, let me go,” she begged, realization dawning, pulling against my hold.
What the fuck?
My hand slid up, my fingers wrapping around her wrist before I tugged her closer, my heart lurching. “Margo, take off the glasses,” I ordered.
She tried to move back, but I spun us, backing her into the kitchen, where I flicked on the light, the bright fluorescents making her wince. “Hayes—”
Still moving, I backed her up into the nearest wall, the yellow landline phone hanging beside us. I pressed my lower body against hers, pinning her in place as I brought my other hand to rest by her head. Not once did I take my eyes off the bruise. “Take off the sunglasses,” I murmured, my voice filled with agony, the tips of my fingers brushing against her hair at the top of her head.
Her bottom lip trembled, her body shaking against mine. “Please leave.”
“Never leaving you again,” I declared, staring into the dark lenses. “Take off the glasses.”
“It’s not that big of a deal.”
My hand at her wrist shifted, and I wrapped my arm around her waist. “Please, baby,” I pleaded softly, my voice jagged. “Let me see so I can fix it.”
She shook her head, her bottom lip trembling. “Hayes, please go.”
Fuck, but the way she said my name.
“Please,”I rasped.
She didn’t move for a long time, but then, time damn near stilled as she lifted both of her hands to her face and pulled off the shades. Every inch of my body tightened, my jaw snapping shut, my eyes scanning every centimeter of the bruise covering her right cheekbone. In the center, there was a line of dried blood surrounded in dark purple that stretched into a concerning blue-black at the edge. Violence swirled inside me, toxic and consuming.
“Come here,” I murmured, staring at it.
Who hurt my sweet Temper?