Page 83 of Austin
Kristen knew about Austin being tough as hell, and she also knew about him being stubborn as hell. It was the stubbornness she was there to deal with today.
His eyes opened as she came into the room, slowly at first, as if he was getting his bearings, but as soon as he saw her standing in the doorway, his gaze sharpened.
“Kris.”
“Yeah.” She moved closer to the bed. “You’re looking better.”
“Better than what?”
Better than a big hole in my life.“Better than you did the last time I saw you.”
“You were here last night.” A flat statement of fact, but spoken in a way that told Kristen that he couldn’t remember what had happened while he was under the influence of the pain meds.
“I was.”
“We talked.”
“We did. You told me I shouldn’t be here.”
“I had a good point.”
She simply shook her head. “You didn’t.”
His mouth flattened briefly as he held her gaze, but Kristen remained stubbornly silent. If she didn’t say anything, he couldn’t argue.
“How did you find out about my wreck?” he finally asked.
“Your sister-in-law called me as soon as they got word.”
“Shelby.” Austin pressed his hand over his forehead as if he had a sudden headache.
“She called and I started driving.”
He dropped his hand back to the sheets, drilled her with a hard look edged with something else. “Why?”
She studied him instead of forming an immediate answer, taking in his pale, beat-up face, spiky hair, the scruff covering his cheeks and angular jaw, which gave him a sexy unkempt look, if one ignored the big abrasion and the bruise that was starting to bloom under one eye. “You know why.”
“Damn it, Kris.”
“Austin…” His name came out softly, almost as a plea.
He reached out his hand, almost as if he couldn’t help himself and she came closer, slipped her fingers into his. His grip tightened as if he was willing her to understand what he was about to say. “I have no job, Kris. I have no way to pay my bills other than tap into my savings.”
“I don’t have a job either, so I guess we have that in common.”
His gaze went dark. “What happened to Reno?”
“I turned it down.”
“You’re killing me, Kris.”
She let out a small choked laugh, feeling like she was on the edge of losing it, but needing to hold it together to get a toe hold in this battle of wills. She gained a measure of strength from the fact that he hadn’t let go of her hand.
“We have something else in common. You’re killing me, too.”
“That’s not my intention.”
“I know your intentions.” She pulled her hand out of his and took a step away from the bed, out of reach. “You know how much my life changed after we got together—for the better. I started thinking in ways that I never thought I could. I started looking at life differently. But you…” She glanced down at the tile floor as she tried to find the words to express her frustration. “You have this stubborn idea in your head about protecting others, about protectingme. But you’re not protecting me—you’re hurting me.”
