Page 57 of The Secret We Keep
Paddy definitely laughs this time. “He can’t hurt me, curly fries.”
Seriously? My jaw clenches. Turning to face him, I hold out my arms, palms faced up. “He already has, Paddy. Please, don’t make this any worse.”
“Worse? You little fruitcake. Things can’t get much worse,” Jerry argues.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Paddy fires at Jerry, swiping away the blood dripping from his nose.
“Leave it, Paddy,” I try to tell him, wanting nothing more than to just get in the car and get out of here. I can see his anger at how Jerry speaks to me, but it’s nothing new.
“Trust me, O’Keefe, one day you’ll be thanking me that I saved you from her.”
Shame and doubt circle me when I see the look in Paddy’s eyes. I wish the ground would just open up and swallow me whole. How can one of the best nights of my life turn into the worst so quickly?
“I’m not going to let you talk about her like that.” Paddy’s nostrils flare, and his shoulders stiffen with tension.
My eyes widen Paddy’s way when he steps closer to Jerry.
Jerry laughs in his face with malice. “Is that right, O’Keefe? Tell me, you doknowwhat’s going on, don’t you?” Paddy remains quiet, but he sighs heavily, the side of his jaw ticking as he gets more and more annoyed by the second. “Oh shit, you don’t. Well, let me save you the trouble—”
Paddy’s elbow retracts before his fist slams into Jerry’s nose.
Jerry lands on the floor with a heavy thwack.
I gasp in shock. “Jerry,” I cry out as his eyes roll into the back of his head.
He groans a chorus of pained moans and rolls to his side.
My brows lift in panic. “Paddy, you could have killed him.” I lean down to check on Jerry who starts coughing.
Paddy looks shocked by his own strength, lifelessly rooted to his spot. He doesn’t move. Doesn’t even blink when I look his way.
“Paddy,” I yell at him, concerned by the horror in his eyes.
He snaps out of his trance, his worry not for Jerry. “Morgan…” His shaky words trail off, but his eyes never break away from me.
“Help me get him up.”
Paddy then moves quickly, bending and helping me move Jerry to sit, like a bolt of lightning’s hit him with force.
Jerry jumps to his feet, shrugging us both off. “Get off me, O’Keefe.” He spits out some blood before heading back to his car, and I know this time I have to follow him.
Still, I find myself just staring at Paddy, at a complete loss for words. My head is suddenly clouded. Nothing seems to make any sense.
“Make him go to the hospital to get checked,” Paddy says, breaking the silence. We share a moment of understanding, but neither of us says anything more.
I make it to Jerry’s car and slide in, seeing Paddy still standing where I left him.
I’ve sat on the sofa for the past forty minutes listening to my parents go ballistic at me over the events from tonight. Like always, they’ve blindly trusted Jerry and his account of what happened, rather than listening to my side of the story.
Did Paddy kiss me?
Yes.
Did I kiss him back?
Certainly.
Did I throw myself at him and make a fool of myself like Jerry recounts?
