Page 89 of Reacher
“Are you trying to break my hand now too?”
I blinked, staring at the tight grip I had on her, forcing my hand to loosen on hers.
“Jesus, sorry.”
“What’s on your mind, old man?”
Hell… I’m just gonna have to ask.
“Did he… uh… did he, you know… hurt you?”
She swallowed hard, staring at me.
“I was stabbed, but I’m not even sure that was him. One of his guys was coming at me with a knife, and…”
She frowned, thinking back, blinking rapidly with the memory.
“Raoul tackled him, to try and stop him from raping me, and he fell on me with the knife.”
It sounded like a b-movie storyline.
“Fucker…”
“Reacher… I… I know what you’re wondering, and I don’t think so, but he did choke me out, so I’m not… I don’t remember…”
“Fuck! I’ll kill him, I’m gonna tear his fucking spine out!”
She slapped at my hand.
“Will you calm the hell down? Don’t go keeling over on me, old man! I woke up covered in his… Jesus… his cum, so I don’t think he did anything other than jerking off over me.”
I felt so many things at once. Anger, no pure black rage. Pain, because she should never have been in his grasp. A deep possessive fury, because she was MINE, and he had no right to put any filthy part of him near her.
“Reacher, look at me, dammit.”
I met her eyes, but I could feel all of these things overwhelming me, and I knew she could see it, feel it.
“Please, don’t make yourself ill. I need you, Reacher. I joke, of course I do, because I know you enjoy it, but honestly, I… I love you, and I can’t lose you.”
My breath rushed out of me at her words, at the reminder of her love. At the fact that she accepted me for the train wreck that I was.
I took a deep breath, sitting beside her once more.
“Can’t wait to get you out of here, and show you just how fucking much I love you, woman.”
Her eyes closed, and she sighed.
“Except your club doesn’t want me, remember? I’m persona non grata with your brothers, and with good reason. I probably caused Ice to get injured, and I forced more contact and threat from the cartel when I got myself kidnapped. I nearly killed you!”
“Don’t be ridiculous. The cartel needed to be taken down, and it would have happened either way. The fact that I wasn’t there when we went in, that part is fucking killing me.”
“I… the club went in?”
I stared at her in wonder. Where the fuck does her head go sometimes? She really thought we’d just leave her in their hands?
“Of course the club fucking went in. You were taken by those bastards, and we weren’t about to leave you there!”
“But they hate me.”
