Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95906 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95906 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Pain.
Breath-stealing, blinding pain.
I couldn't even pinpoint one place on my body where the pain didn’t seem all-consuming. Hell, I could barely pinpoint anything. I felt like one raw, exposed nerve. And my head… God, that felt like it was going to explode. I closed my eyes as a wave of nausea washed over me. I actually felt the bile tickling the back of my throat, but I managed to swallow it back down.
“Try breathing through it, sweetheart,” Con murmured as his fingers began gently rubbing circles into my skin.
I opened my mouth to tell him not to call me that, but my brain refused to heed my command. Instead, I found myself doing what he’d said and taking a breath. Then another. It took a good dozen breaths before my muddled mind began to clear and I was able to take stock of my body. The pain became more localized in a few spots instead of all over. I felt hot but the light sheet covering my lower half felt good against my skin…
My skin?
What the hell?
I tore free from Con’s hold and let out a rough curse as raw pain radiated up my arm. How had I forgotten that it was broken? I stifled the whimpers that wanted to bubble up from my throat and instead ripped the blanket back with my good hand. I managed to keep the blanket over my lap even as I exposed my legs.
My bare legs.
I looked over my shoulder at the opposite side of the bed. The sheets were in disarray and there was a clear indent on the pillow where a head had been.
My stomach felt sick as things fell into place.
I was naked in his bed, and I hadn’t been in it alone.
I shot Con a glance and took in the sight of his broad chest, the one I'd seen so many times online but that looked a thousand times more impressive up close. Unlike most fighters, he wasn't covered in tattoos, though he did have a few here and there, including an intricate one running down his shoulder. He had very little hair on his chest so I was able to take in every sculpted muscle that, under normal circumstances, I would have been itching to touch. Now, I just wanted to shove it and him away.
But my fury at knowing the man had taken advantage of me while I’d been passed out was quickly overtaken by another thought.
“Where are they?” I asked as I tried to get out of the bed. Not surprisingly, Con closed his fingers around my arm again to keep me from moving. This time, I didn't care how much pain it cost me to yank my arm from his hold. His eyes went wide, which just pissed me off further. Did the man really think that I'd be okay with his touch after what he’d done to me?
“Micah—”
“Where are they?” I shouted.
I managed to swing my legs off the bed but the second I tried to stand, my body betrayed me and my knees buckled. If Con hadn't been there to wrap his arm around my waist, I would've hit the floor for sure. But as he pulled me flush against his body, I was wishing for just that because even through the haze of pain, he felt good.
Too good.
I tried to shove him away, but his arms tightened around me. Enough to hold me still but not enough to hurt me.
“Knock it off,” he suddenly growled, and I instinctively froze. Strangely enough, I didn't do it out of fear. I did it for some other reason that I didn't want to think too much about.
“Your niece and nephew are safe. They’re asleep in my guest room.”
“I want to see them!” I snapped, though, strangely enough, I didn't try to pull free of him. Even though that was exactly what I should have been doing.
“It's two o'clock in the morning—” Con began to say, but I cut him off with a shake of my head.
“I don't care! I want to see them!”
I didn't care that I was being unreasonable. I’d spent every moment of my life knowing where my niece and nephew were so I could keep them safe, and I wasn't about to stop now. Not just because some gorgeous guy who, okay, might have been somewhat kind to me, said so.
“God, you're stubborn,” Con muttered. But instead of releasing me, he forced me to sit down on the bed. I opened my mouth to lambaste him for the move, but he cut me off by placing his hand over my lips before I could say a word.
“Unless you want to parade around my apartment in nothing but your birthday suit, I suggest you let me find you something to wear.”
It was all I could do to just nod my head. The roughness of his skin against my lips made me want to do all sorts of strange things with my mouth. I actually had to clench my jaw to keep from moving my lips to see if every part of his hand had that same strangely sexy roughness to it.