Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
I darted outside just as he’d made his way up to the porch. He looked tired, really tired, but he was here, and he was safe. Without a second thought, I rushed toward him. He let out a low grunt as my body collided with his, but his hands were already sliding around my waist, pulling me close like he’d missed me just as much.
“You’re back,” I whispered against his neck, my heart thundering in my chest.
“Yeah,” he rumbled, his voice rough, but there was a softness in it that I’d come to love. “I’m back.”
I pulled back just enough to look up at him. His eyes met mine, and something inside me melted. Without thinking, I inched up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his, kissing him. His grip on me tightened as he kissed me back, slow and deep. God, I’d missed him.
After a few seconds, Sutton eased back and asked, “Did you and Toby make it okay?”
“It wasn’t easy being away from Mr. Steel and Sex Appeal, but we survived,” I teased.
“Glad to hear.” He reached for the door as he said, “I need a shower.”
He pulled the handle, and that’s when I finally noticed his hands.
His knuckles were bruised with dried blood and raw, deep scratches that went across the back of his hand. It looked like he’d gone a few rounds in a terrible fight, or he’d been in some kind of accident. I reached out and took his left hand in mine, and I gasped when I saw just how bad they really were. “What in the world happened?”
He looked down at them like he hadn’t noticed the damage before, then shrugged, playing it off like it was nothing. “Just a little scuffle. Nothing to worry about.”
But it wasn’t nothing. Not to me. Those marks looked fresh, like whatever had happened wasn’t just "a little scuffle."
“Doesn’t look like nothing to me.”
“I’m fine, Cricket.” He waved it off and headed inside, trying to avoid the conversation. “It’s nothing.”
I followed right behind him as I argued, “It’s clearly not nothing.”
“It’s just a couple of scratches.”
“You’re really not going to tell me what happened?”
“It’s nothing. Just leave it alone.” I was beyond frustrated that he wouldn’t tell me what happened. I was even more frustrated that he was shutting me out. “I’m gonna take a shower,”
“Sutton—” I started, but he’d already disappeared into his room.
The door to his room clicked shut, and seconds later, the water kicked on. But I didn’t move. I just stood there, trying to shake the gnawing feeling that had settled in my stomach.
Sutton was strong and more than capable of handling himself, but that didn’t stop the ache in my chest when I thought about him being hurt. This was his life and the path he’d chosen to take, but it was hard to shake the uneasy feeling gnawing at me. I just had to focus on the fact that he was back home, and he was okay.
Nothing else really mattered—at least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
I kept repeating it to myself every time I caught a glimpse of his hands. It wasn’t easy, but I decided that I had a choice to make. I could let this become an issue and put a divide between us, or I could remember that Sutton was a man I trusted. He’d never given me a reason not to, so I decided to let it go.
After his shower, he’d gone out to the garage, and he’d been there for the better part of the afternoon. I gave him his space, but when it started to get late, I decided to go check on him. When I walked up, he was piddling with some old bike parts. “You hungry?”
“Yeah, I could eat.” He glanced back over his shoulder, and my chest tightened when those baby blues met mine. “Whatcha got in mind?”
“There’s some hamburger meat in the fridge. I could make some of my mini burgers or some spaghetti.”
“We could do that, or we could head over to the club. Goose and some of the guys are grilling ribs, and I’m sure Garrison’s there with Dagger.”
I had no idea that Toby was in the garage with him until I heard him shout, “That would be awesome! Can we go, Mom?”
“Sure, sounds good to me.”
“Yes!”
Sutton closed his toolbox and started toward the house. “Give me a second to get cleaned up.”
“Toby needs to do the same.”
“But...”
“Come on, buddy. It’ll only take a minute.”
Toby groaned, but he did as he was told and rushed inside to get cleaned up. Once they’d both changed, we headed out to the truck, and Sutton drove us over to the clubhouse. As soon as we were parked, Toby took off to find Garrison and the other kids while Sutton and I made our way around back.