Wanting More (Mitchell Family #5)(8)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“Does it smell bad?” I was so embarrassed.

“No, the cologne is nice.”

He handed me the medication and a soda with a half-smile across his face. “Take these before the pain gets worse.”

“Are you a pro at getting beaten up? Are you some kind of boxer?” I had to know more about him, even if I secretly hated him, I just had to know. Besides, talking about anything was better than discussing me.

He started laughing as he walked away. “Nope, not a boxer.”

“So you got beat up a lot?”

I sat down on the bed beside him, making sure to take my time so it didn’t hurt so much. He slid down on the floor in front of me and placed his hands on my knees, making me very nervous. “Hold still.” His large hand got a hold of the edge of my shirt and lifted it up to reveal my skin. My body began shaking and it wasn’t from being cold. I was afraid to be touched. I closed my eyes, because I knew what he was looking for. When I opened them again, he was looking right at me with an angry look on his face. “Take off your shirt.”

I pushed him away. “Screw you!”

He sat back up and shook his head. “Dammit woman, do you want to stop breathing because you punctured a freakin’ lung? Let me see the damage. I can promise you that I’ve seen my share of naked women and have no interest in having sex with you.”

That hurt! I didn’t want him, but that really hurt to hear.

“You’re an ass**le.” I lifted my shirt a little further up. He was telling the truth as he guided me to lay down on the bed and started tracing his fingers around my bruises.

He laughed at my comment, but continued to look at my skin. “I was the youngest of the cousins. When we were younger, I was always the guinea pig. I got beat up from doin’ stupid shit more times that I can count. I fell out of a tree one time and broke a couple ribs. Another time I fell off a horse. They had to take me to the hospital because when I went to go to bed I turned a certain way and I couldn’t breathe right. I was just makin’ sure that you were alright, darlin.”

I could smell the cologne as he touched me and even though he was fully clothed, I could see the form of his hot ass body underneath. As his fingers continued to trail over my sensitive skin, the goosebumps covered my body. I knew he could see them forming, but he said nothing. I took my shirt and pulled it back down. ‘I’m fine. Thanks for checking, though.”

He sat down in front of me and shook his head. “I ain’t all bad, you know.”

“You ain’t all good either.” I mocked him.

“That’s not what I’ve been told.”

I hated his cocky ass. Who really believes they are that good?

“Good thing I never care to find out.”

He reached over and grabbed my hand, playing with my wedding ring and looked into my eyes again. His green eyes were hypnotizing me. “Good thing you have this, cause it’s the only thing keepin’ me from provin’ it.”

I made my way slowly to the top of the bed and crawled under the covers, while Conner sat on the floor watching me. “You may as well talk to yourself, because I’ve had enough of the ‘Conner is Awesome show’ for the night.” I leaned over and turned out the light, getting myself comfortable to try and go to sleep. As soon as I did it, I realized that I’d stopped crying and had almost forgotten what had gotten me here. I sat straight up and saw Conner sitting in the same spot on the floor. When he smiled at me and waved, I rolled my eyes and laid back down.

I wasn’t about to thank someone who was being so cocky. He didn’t need praise; he needed to be kicked in the balls.

Of course, I laid there awake, replaying the whole night in my mind. I’d done nothing to provoke this new beat down that I received and as much as I wanted things to be better, they were getting worse by the second. I needed to save more money before he put me in the hospital. I needed to talk to my father and see if he would help me if I had to leave in a hurry.

I felt the mattress and turned to see Conner climbing in the bed beside me. “What are you doing?”

“I’m tired and the floors no good for my back. I won’t touch you, so don’t get yourself in a tizzy.”

I hated that he wasn’t interested at all. I mean, I know I was married, but every woman wants to feel wanted, even if they wouldn’t act on it. “Fine! Don’t you dare touch me, Conner. You stay on your side of the bed.”

“No problem, Blaze.”

“Blaze?”

He laughed and I watched him in the dim lit room pulling his shirt over his head. Oh my God he was built like a model and my nostrils filled with the sweet scent of him. I could see his white teeth smiling at me as he caught my stare. “You’re like a ball of fire. I think Blaze is appropriate.” He looked down at me. “See something you like?”

“No! I see a shallow prick, though.”

He laughed before turning the other way and covering up. “Would a shallow prick save you from sleeping in your car? Would he make sure you were safe and stay with you so you could actually get a good night’s sleep?”

“I would have said no, until I met you.” I wanted to smack him, but I was thoroughly enjoying looking at his tattooed muscular body.

He caught me off guard when he turned around and came face to face with me. “Amy, you don’t know me. You think you do, but you don’t. You can call me whatever you want, but I guarantee you that everything I say is the truth. Unless you want to take a ride on my love train, I think it’s best you stop calling me names.”

“Did you just say love train? Jesus, I am in bed with a male gigolo. This is the reason I got the shit beat out of me.”

I went to roll over, but Conner grabbed my arm and held it. “There ain’t no reason that son of a bitch put a hand on you. Even if you were having some hot affair, it still ain’t a reason. He should have just taken it up with the guy involved.”

A hot affair? Not in my lifetime…

“There’s no other man. I’ve never had an affair. In fact, he’s the one that cheated. According to him, there isn’t anyone that would want a piece of shit like me.”

He still had his hand on my arm and slowly sat it down in front of me. I was taken back when he leaned his body over mine to reach over to turn on the light. His skin brushed against mine as he backed down to be beside me again. He had a couple tattoos on his arms of some kind of tribal art. On his chest were the initials C.H. in a cross, which I knew were his father’s initials. He caught me staring again and pulled my chin up to look at him. “My granddaddy beat on my grandma and after one drunken night left her paralyzed in a wheelchair after he threw her down the stairs. I never met him, but I heard the stories and know there is no reason for someone to beat on a woman like that. You may hate me, but I can promise you that I am a hell of a lot better than that ass**le you are married to. Hell, he probably told you it was all your fault too.”