Page 32 of Until It Was Real

My cock jumps. It’s down with this idea. I tell it to calm down. She’s hurt. Now is not the time to get horny.

I locate the bump and examine it. “It’s not very big, but we should ice it before it swells further.”

I help her stand. “There’s ice in the breakroom.”

“I blame your square jaw for this,” she mutters as I help her to the breakroom.

“Yes. The incident has nothing to do with your propensity to have accidents.”

She gasps. “Accidents! You make it sound as if I’m incontinent.”

“I was trying to say you’re a klutz without using the word klutz.”

“Beep.” She feigns hitting a buzzer. “You have failed.”

I pull out a chair for her and make sure she’s steady before opening the cabinet under the sink. I dig out the first aid kit and rummage around for a cold pack. I squeeze the bag to activate it before shaking it. Once it’s cold, I place it in a towel.

“Let me know if it’s too cold,” I mumble as I place the pack on Dakota’s head.

She grimaces. “It’s not too cold but it’s not pleasant either. Not completely horrible. Maybe a four on the scale of injuries.”

I chuckle. “Scale of injuries?”

She shrugs. “I am a bit accident prone.”

“Aha! I knew it. My poor jaw has been wrongfully accused.”

She wags a finger at me. “Not true. I maintain your square jaw hurt more than a squiggly jaw.”

“A squiggly jaw? I would never have a squiggly jaw.”

She giggles and the sound fills me with warmth. This woman is amazing. Despite what an asshole I was to her, she’s laughing and joking with me. She doesn’t put up with my shit.

No wonder I’m drawn to her.

Too bad she’s hiding secrets. Secrets destroy lives. I won’t allow her to destroy any Raider lives.

Chapter 11

“Is there a limit to how many mess-ups a person can make in one day? Asking for a friend.” ~ Dakota

Dakota

“Where are you going?” I holler after Rhett when he sails past the end of the line to check in for our flight to Atlanta. “The end of the check-in line is here.”

He snorts. “We’re not flying economy.”

I hurry after him. “But I booked the tickets. And I booked economy.”

“And I upgraded our seats to business when I checked us in online.”

I blink. He’s acting as if flying business is no big deal. Meanwhile, I booked the plane tickets. I nearly had a heart attack at the price for business class seats.

“You upgraded us?”

He shrugs. “It’s not a big deal.”

Maybe not to him. I’ve flown exactly twice in my life. Once to Cancun for my honeymoon. And back from Cancun when it ended.

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