Page 35 of Dusty and Dented
“I left it on ...it must have finished.”
She lifted one shoulder and let it fall.“We’ll figure out where you were, or close, and start from there.”She lifted her head from his shoulder and turned to look at him expectantly.It only took him a second to realize she was waiting for him to move so she could get up.
Dagger got up and stood to one side while she made her way out of the corner.He watched as she headed for the stairs and started up, then he went to the bar to get their drinks.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Andy climbed the stairsand headed for Dagger’s bedroom, wondering if she was doing the right thing or if she should insist Dagger take her home so she could deal with her past coming back to haunt her on her own.Wouldn’t it be better if she let the Angels stay out of her trouble?How would she feel if Tony, or one of the men he sent, killed one or more of the Angels?
What if she got Dagger killed?
That thought made her breath catch in her throat.The tears that recently seemed so close to the surface pooled in her eyes.She blinked rapidly to keep them from spilling over.Reaching Dagger’s room, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.She stared at the bed for a moment wondering if she was being selfish then stopped herself before climbing in.Instead, she went into the bathroom and after using the facilities, she stared into the mirror at her reflection.
Her eyes looked sunken, and her skin was paler than she remembered.She shook her head and pushed away thoughts of things she could do nothing about as she pulled down a washcloth, wet it and washed her face.It only took a couple of minutes, but it helped her feel worlds better and gave her the energy to push away the doubts that had been plaguing her mind on the trip upstairs.When she’d finished, she stepped back into the bedroom and found that Dagger had returned.She wondered for a moment how he’d managed to get in without her hearing him, but decided it wasn’t important.
“There you are,” he said as she stepped into the room.“Are you okay?”
She nodded but didn’t say anything as she moved closer.She let her eyes skim over him, making sure he wasn’t carrying anything that would get in her way, then she moved in and pressed her face against his chest, her body against his as she wrapped her arms around his waist.His arms came around her and she took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of leather, soap and she wasn’t sure what else, but it was what she’d come to associate with Dagger.
Odd how it had happened so quickly, but the feeling of his arms around her, combined with his scent did something to calm her that little else had in a long time.Not even Travis had been able to calm her this quickly or easily.
“You sure you’re all right?”The concern in Dagger’s voice made her pull back enough to look up at him.
“I’m good.I just needed a hug.I needed to feel you holding me and breathe you in.”
He scowled down at her for a moment, but it didn’t strike her as an unhappy scowl, only that he was trying to figure out what she meant.Andy buried her face against his chest once more and took one last deep breath before she released him and stepped back.
“What’s the last thing you remember before you left?”she asked.Talking about the movie was safer.She didn’t want to talk about her feelings, and she didn’t think he wanted to listen anyway.
He stared at her for a moment, as if the sudden change of topic took his brain a moment to catch up.Then he told her what he remembered about what had been happening in the movie.Andy had seen the movie enough she knew exactly where that was.
“I didn’t last long, did I?”she asked as she picked up the remote and turned on the TV.
“No, but I didn’t mind.You needed the sleep and I had something I needed to do.”
“Do I ask about it, and the blood all over when you came back, or do I just let it go?”
