I winced as the EMT pressed an ice pack to my head.
He gave me a kind smile. “Sorry, but this will save you some pain in the long run.”
“It’s okay. Thanks, Greg.” My words were barely audible. The lights from the police cars and ambulance were making my head throb even more.
“I want to see my friend!” Grae demanded from where an officer held her and Wren back.
I winced, feeling bad for whoever was on the other end of Grae’s tongue.
Clint moved closer, glancing at Greg. “She need to go to the hospital?”
“It’s probably not a bad idea. She likely has a concussion.”
“No hospitals.” I’d hated them ever since I’d spent so long in one after my father’s attack.
“It’s better to be cautious,” Clint began.
But I was distracted by a flurry of movement. Several figures jogged across the grass, but I only had eyes for the one in the front. Even in the dark, I could make out the brilliant green of his eyes. But tonight, they were bright with fury.
Nash stormed through the gathering crowd, all but shoving Clint and Greg out of the way. “Mads.”
My name cracked as it slipped from his lips. He raised his hands, hovering them over me as if he wanted to check for injuries but was too scared to touch me.
I closed the distance, leaning into him and pressing the uninjured side of my face into his chest. “I’m okay.”
“What happened?” he growled.
I instantly felt safer with Nash wrapped around me, a little less on edge. “I’m not totally sure.”
Lawson moved to his side, Holt, Caden, and Roan behind him. “Just tell us what you do know.”
“You let them by?” Grae hollered. “That is BS!” But the officer didn’t budge.
I straightened but kept a hold of Nash’s T-shirt, needing that connection to him. “I was inside with G and Wren. We were dancing, and I got hot, so I came out for some air. There were people smoking on the patio, so I walked down to the water.”
I could still see the pristine surface, but it was a little darker than before. Maybe it was because the moon had passed behind some clouds, or perhaps it was because of the night’s events. “I was just looking at the lake and heard a twig snap. I turned, but before I could see anything, someone hit me over the head with something.”
Nash’s muscles hardened to stone under my touch. He wrapped an arm around me, holding me closer.
“Then what happened?” Lawson prodded.
“Everything went black for a second, but then I heard someone yell.”
Clint inclined his head toward a couple speaking to another officer. “Tourists in from Seattle for a few days. The husband thought he saw a struggle and called out. Whoever hit Maddie took off.”
“Did they get a look at him?” Nash gritted out, his anger barely restrained.
Clint shook his head. “It was too dark, and whoever it was wore a hoodie.”
“What about size?” Lawson asked.
“Nothing concrete. They were too far away.” Clint held up an evidence bag with a piece of driftwood. “We think this is what they used to hit Maddie.”
Lawson’s gaze narrowed on the piece of wood. “Not planned, then. Crime of opportunity.”
Nash glared at the stick. “We need to put a rush on prints.”
Lawson nodded. “I’ll make a call.”
“I think it might be difficult,” Clint said. “The wood is wet. Bark peeling off. It’s gonna be tough to get anything.”
Nash cursed and then turned back to me. “Did you get anything? Just a glimpse? A sense of size or even a smell?”
I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to remember anything that might be useful. But there was nothing. My eyes opened. “I’m sorry. I didn’t.”
One of the beacon lights passed over my eyes, and I winced.
“Cut the lights,” Nash barked.
Lawson looked at him in confusion.
“They’re hurting Maddie’s head,” he shot at his brother.
Lawson motioned to one of the other officers, and the lights turned off one by one.
Greg handed me the ice pack. “I think we need to take you to the hospital and get you checked out.”
“That’s a good idea,” Nash said. “I’ll ride with you.”
“No.” My hand tightened on Nash’s T-shirt. “No hospitals. Please.”
My eyes said everything I didn’t want to give voice to in front of all these people. Nash knew how much hospitals freaked me out.
I saw indecision warred within him. “We need to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m sure I’m fine,” I said hastily.
Nash pulled his phone out of his pocket and typed out a text, but he kept one arm around me as he did. “I can’t take chances. Not with you.”
The fear in Nash’s voice broke something in me. I turned into his hold. “I’m okay. I promise.”
Nash’s phone dinged. “Doc said she can take a look at you at the clinic.” He looked down at me. “If she says you need the hospital, we go. Okay?”
I nodded, instantly regretting the action when pain sliced through my skull. “Thank you.”
Nash’s lips ghosted over my head. “Scared the hell out of me, Mads.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No, I am. I should’ve been with you.”
Clyde’s soft snores sounded from his dog bed as I settled against the pillows. I didn’t miss the assortment of shoes and other stolen items nestled around him. I would’ve smiled, but dread had been pooling in my stomach since we’d left Doc’s office.
Nash’s expression was carefully blank as he set a mug of tea on the nightstand. He’d been quiet all night—as he’d driven me to Doc’s office, as she’d examined me, on the way home, and as he’d helped me settle into bed.
The only flicker of a reaction had been when Doc told us that I had a mild concussion, and that Nash would have to wake me up every few hours tonight.
I looked up at him, searching. “Lay down with me?”
He opened his mouth as if he might protest but then nodded.
Nash kicked off his boots and rounded the bed to climb in on the other side. He scooted over, gently wrapping his arm around me. “How’s the head now?”
“The meds helped. It’s really not very bad.”
Nash didn’t say anything.
I rolled into him, my face resting on his chest. The steady beat of his heart was reassuring in a way I desperately needed. I swept my thumb back and forth across the ridges of his abdominals. “Are you okay?”
Nash stayed quiet for a moment. “You got hurt again.”
I rolled my lips between my teeth. “But I’m okay.”
“I knew going out with the girls alone was a bad idea. I should’ve been with you. I should’ve—”
I pressed my hand to his stomach, cutting off his words. “You can’t be with me twenty-four-seven. We both have jobs. Lives.”
“I would agree with you under normal circumstances, but things aren’t exactly normal right now. Adam’s still in town. Your dad’s out. We need to err on the side of caution.”
I slowly let out a long breath. Nash was right. I knew he was. “I missed my normal.”
Nash brushed the hair out of my face. “What do you mean?”
“A night out with girlfriends. I never had that in Atlanta. Just being with Wren and G felt so good. We laughed. We danced. I forgot about all the heavy stuff hanging over my head.”
Nash’s expression gentled. “And you’ll have more of that. I promise. We’ll find safe ways for you to have it now.”
I tipped my head back so I could meet his eyes. “Like you sitting in the corner playing bodyguard?”
Nash’s lips twitched. “Maybe.”
I huffed out a breath.
He bent and brushed his lips across mine. “Hey, a little bodyguard roleplay might be fun…”
I grinned against his mouth. “You might have a point there.”
I sank into the contact, deepening the kiss. My tongue tangled with Nash’s until he pulled away, breathing a little heavier. “We can’t. Not tonight.”
I groaned and let my head fall back to his chest. “Fine.”
Nash chuckled as his fingers tangled in my hair, moving in gentle strokes. “Do you want to go to The Wharf next weekend?”
I pulled my face back a fraction. “The Wharf?” It was Cedar Ridge’s fanciest restaurant. I’d been there a handful of times over the years, mostly with the Hartley family for one special occasion or another. The food was delicious, but it wasn’t really Nash’s scene.
He swallowed. “Isn’t that what you do when you’re dating? Go to fancy dinners?”
A hint of a smile played on my lips. “Do you think that’s what I want?”
Nash sighed, his fingers stroking through my hair again, the feeling heavenly. “The guys were giving me a hard time about the fact that I hadn’t taken you on a proper date. I’m not good at that kind of stuff, but you deserve it. To be spoiled with all the stuff that comes with a relationship.”
I pushed up on my elbow so I was looking down at Nash. “You’re right. I do deserve to be spoiled. With the things that mean the most to me. Do you know what those are?”
He stared up at me, so much emotion in those green depths. “What?”
“Feeling your arms around me. Having that sense of comfort and home just by being in your presence. The certainty that you know me so well that you would bring a dog home before I even told you that I missed having one.” I pressed a hand to Nash’s chest. “You make me feel safe, understood, seen…loved. You have for my entire life. I wouldn’t trade that for a million fancy dinners.”
He reached up, his hand sliding along my jaw. “You can have the fancy dinners, too.”
“Honestly, I don’t really want them. I’d much rather have our all-the-toppings pizza from Wildfire while sitting on our couch.” I’d had the fancy dinners and extravagant galas, and the truth was, I didn’t like them all that much. “I love the way things are between us. The way they’ve always been. I just wanted to add some hot sex to the mix.”
Nash barked out a laugh. “How’d I manage to land my dream woman?”
I grinned. “Just lucky, I guess.”
He pushed up, taking my mouth. “Damn lucky.”
Nash’s phone let out a series of signals, and he cursed as he pulled away.
I glared down at the device as he tugged it out of his pocket. “Now it’s your phone that’s the cockblock.”
He smiled, shaking his head. But that smile fled as he scanned the screen.
“What is it?”
Nash’s knuckles bleached white. “Lawson went to interview Adam tonight. He has an alibi for your attack.”
My stomach twisted. “It could’ve been my dad. Or it could’ve been random.”
“Or Adam got someone to cover for him.”
That did sound like something he would do.
Worry carved itself into the planes of Nash’s features, and shadows swirled in his eyes.
My fingers trailed over his face. “We’re going to figure this out. And in the meantime, I promise I’ll be more careful.” I would’ve given anything in that moment to ease the storm inside Nash.
He cupped my face. “Can’t have anything happen to you, Mads. It would ruin me.”
