Page 49 of Her Brother's Keeper

He put an arm around my legs, cradling my head still with the hand that he’d touched me so gently with, letting it slide to the back of my head. I moved with him, easily, doing what he wanted, almost instinctively by touch alone as he laid me back, face up on the table.

He lifted my sweatshirt a bit and tugged down the corner of my yoga pants until he could dip his fingers below the waistline of both the pants and my panties beneath. My breath caught and I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how this would look if anyone came in here, like Sage…

“I’m going to press, and I’m going to lift your leg against my shoulder, I need you to remember to breathe, you get me, Baby?”

“I… I think so.”

He lifted my leg with his free hand and braced it against his shoulder in a stretch I’d seen the cheerleaders do a thousand times with one another at my school. Then, he pressed a couple of inches down and to the side of my right hipbone, in the soft spot and holy god thathurt!I yipped and bit down on it, whimpering and holding my breath as he mercilessly worked the spot.

“Breathe, Angel,” he ordered and I sucked in a deep breath, tears stinging the corner of my eyes. “That’s it, let it out.” Nox breathed exaggeratedly, in a bid for me to follow by example and I did.

“That hurts!” I cried and he nodded.

“Only for a little bit, just breathe for me, Baby,” he said but he backed off to where the pain was tolerable. He flexed my leg back and forth and pressed in that same damn spot, ordering me to breathe as he worked the muscles loose on first the right side before starting on the left.

A knock fell at the front door, and Nox called out, “Come in!” I tried to sit up but he put a hand to my chest and pressed me back down, he pressed in that spot hard enough to make me go “Ouch!” just as my brother and I’s caseworker from the state walked through the door…

“Oh my god, Pam!” I cried and covered my face with my hands as it flamed away.

Nox, not to be deterred, said sternly, “Maren, I need you to breathe.” I immediately sucked in a deep breath and wished I could melt into the floor.

“What are youdoinghere?” I asked voice muffled as it was still hiding right along with me behind my hands.

“Sage called, said someone was hurting you… I can see the rumors of your impending death were greatly exaggerated, as I suspected they would be.” Her voice was tinged with amusement and I lowered my hands.

“Hi, I’m Nox,” Nox said and followed it up quickly with, “Probably looks bad, but I’m licensed and working here, do you mind? She’s tensed up as it is and it’s not making my job any easier.”

Pam fought to suppress her smile and said, “By all means, I’ll wait in the kitchen.”

“Do me a favor and start some water for some hot tea?” he called.

“Huh,” Pam muttered, looking Nox over before turning and walking into the kitchen. I tried to sit up again and Nox pressed me back down.

“Relax, Maren. I can’t help you if you don’t relax.”

“Kind of hard, don’t you think!?” I demanded and he sighed, letting me up.

“We aren’t done here,” he murmured low, a sexy growl next to my ear that made me bite my lower lip. I told my teenaged overwrought sex drive to chill and swung my legs over the edge of the table, blinking, my cramps much diminished but still there. I looked at Nox who smirked, bemused.

“Okay,” I griped. “We aren’t done, but let me deal with one disaster at a time, this one takes priority.”

“I don’t disagree,” he said and held out his hands. I put mine gently in them and he helped me hop off the table, trailing into the kitchen behind me.

“So you’re Nox,” Pam said switching on the stove beneath our kettle. I slid into a seat at the kitchen table while Nox moved around my kitchen getting down tea and sugar, cups and saucers. It never failed to amaze me just how civilized he was, for being a rough and tumble biker.

“I’m Nox,” he confirmed. I’d told Pam about him before, and she eyed him critically now.

“Somehow I pictured you a little…”

“Younger?” he supplied. Pam’s response was for her mouth to flatten down into a thin line. Nox set down cups and saucers and asked, “What kind of tea would you like?”

“All due respect, I’m not here for the tea,” she said and I closed my eyes. Her tone wasn’t especially thrilled and I cleared my throat.

“I can explain,” I murmured and Pam’s keen brown eyes flicked to me.

She tucked some of her long, frizzy, dyed blonde hair behind her ear from where it was parted on the side and said, “I’m all ears.”

Shit, she wasn’t happy… I scrambled, “I wasn’t feeling well,” I flamed a special kind of crimson, “Cramps, and well, Nox was just trying to help…”

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