Page 31 of The Bad Boy's Homecoming
She gulped but caught the hint of a smirk on Mrs.Hart’s face.
“Well if being spoon-fed soup by the Bad Boy of Baseball before he cuts me a huge piece of my favorite pie and reads me a bestselling romance novel is considered a fantasy, then yes.Yes I am,” Missy said.
“Well played,” Levi said.
Missy took another spoonful of soup to avoid admitting anything she was thinking.But that didn’t stop the fluttering in her stomach.Levi read to them as she finished her cup of soup and then ate a very generous piece of pie before she lay back into the pillows feeling groggy again.
“Thank you for taking care of me tonight, and keeping me company,” she said as her eyes started to drift closed.She wasn’t even worried about falling asleep knowing Levi was close by.If anything he only made her feel safe.Something that would worry her if she wasn’t so tired.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Levi
A Hard Fall
Levi lost trackof time reading aloud but took a peek every few pages to make sure Missy was still sleeping.Now his grandmother looked like she was fading too.
“Hey, Shakespeare, are you really reading that book for them or for yourself?”Dalton whispered from the doorway.
Levi slowly closed the book and stood to speak with Dalton in the hallway.
“Why don’t you take Gran home.Everyone can get some rest, and you can bring her back in the morning if she’s still worried about Missy.”
“I know it’s weird, but I feel bad leaving her alone.A woman I barely know.”
Dalton shook his head.“What’s weird is that it’s not weird.But you need to be realistic about not getting attached.You aren’t responsible for her injury or for whatever happened before to make her so skittish.She’s safe here.”
“Ya.”He looked back into the room at Missy curled to one side sleeping.
“So get Gran home, and you can be back around eight if you and Gran want to argue with Declan about where the best place is for Missy to recover.”
“I’m sure Gran already has an argument ready,” Levi said.
“What will we be arguing about?”her voice asked from the doorway to Missy’s room.
“I was just saying I think Declan will want Missy home with him to help her recover,” Dalton said.
“Well that’s dumb.She has a quiet room to herself at my house, all her art supplies and two adults to help her.Those boys will not know how to control their rambunctious spirit and Missy’s hand will be at risk of more injury at Declan’s,” Gran said.
“Yes, ma’am.Besides you and Brooke live near Gran’s and can stop in to check on Missy’s wound daily,” Levi added.
Dalton just smiled with his hands crossed over his chest.“Looks like you two have it all figured out, I guess we’ll see if the counselor has anything to say about it.”
Gran patted Dalton on the arm.“Good work today—thank you.We’ll see you tomorrow.”
Dalton leaned down and gave their gran a kiss on the cheek.And Levi had a moment to really study their paternal grandmother.She had always been a beautiful woman, who took pride in her appearance, but there were a few more defined signs of aging each year.He didn’t like the idea of her being alone in the Hart house and now he understood more why Wesley and Dalton had asked Missy to stay with her.He regretted ever questioning Missy’s reasons to agree to stay with Gran.Knowing someone had been rough or even abusive to her in the past lit a fire inside him.
He stepped closer to the doorway to look at Missy’s form under a few blankets as she slept and pulled the door mostly closed.She’d be safe tonight with his brother, a former Navy SEAL, but he was going to find out what and who had hurt Missy in the past.
*
The next morning,Levi was up early and had coffee ready for them when Gran appeared in the kitchen.
“Now I think we better get back to the hospital before Declan arrives so there is no confusion on where Missy will be staying,” Gran announced.
“I couldn’t agree more, Gran, but we’ll need to take your car since I can only fit one other person in mine.”
“That’s right, you can drive my Caddie.”
