“The doctor came in and released me just before you got back. I told Lisa and Stephanie just to come by the house later.” The sadness was still in her eyes, but Alex noticed there was also something else too that he couldn’t place. “I’m ready to go home.”
“Then, let’s go.”
Chapter 10
The moment Braylee and Alex entered his bedroom all she could think about was trying to thaw out. She was still in shock about the pregnancy, numb emotionally, and physically sore all over. “I feel like I need a long hot shower.” Braylee hoped the steam and spray of water droplets against her skin would help with the chill that went all the way down to her bones.
“Should you be standing? Would you like a bath instead?”
She was agitated. “I don’t have any restrictions. I. Want. A. Shower.”
He put up his hands as if surrendering. “Okay. How about I get it started and then check with Claudia about bringing you some lunch.”
Braylee could probably count the times on one hand where someone else tried to take care of her. It had always been the other way around. The few times where she’d been taken care of was with Alex. Braylee was so inexperienced with letting others help her that she wasn’t even sure if she was doing it right. Especially, when all she wanted to do was crawl up into a ball and cry. That wasn’t an option either. For now, she would attempt to accept the care Alex offered. “Thanks. The shower sounds great, but I’m not very hungry.”
“Yeah, but you need to eat.”
Braylee quickly figured out there was no arguing with Alex when he was in the role of protector. She didn’t have the energy for it anyway. When he went into the bathroom to get the shower going, Braylee started to undress. As she stretched out across the bed to grab her silk robe, she saw an image of herself in the mirror. Were those bruises? Braylee walked over to get a closer look. God, they were all over her body. She slowly put the robe on but letting it hang off of her shoulders and down her waist as she continued to study her appearance.
Braylee hadn’t heard Alex come back from out of the bathroom. When he returned, she was still staring at herself.
His anger went from zero to one hundred in a nanosecond. The moment he saw all the bruises over her body it took every ounce of willpower not to completely lose it. The rage coursing through him was reflected in his eyes when their gazes met in the mirror. Braylee quickly pulled up her robe and tied it tightly.
Breathily she answered the questions in his eyes. “It looks a lot worse than it is.”
He nodded. “The shower’s ready” was all he could manage to say.
In an attempt to diffuse the situation, Braylee pasted on a smile that was as fake as her masks. “Great. I’ll be out in a minute.”
It didn’t work. Alex was more than just angry. His tone reflected it. “Take your time.”
Alex watched Braylee intently as she quickly walked past him to take a shower. The moment he heard the shower door open and close, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. Just when he thought it would go to voicemail, Gina picked up. “Alex.”
His voice was gravelly as he ground out the words. “I should have killed you when I had the chance.”
Gina had been expecting his call and his anger. “Maybe you should have but not for the explosion. That wasn’t me just like I had nothing to do with Luciano’s death.”
“Then, why did you take the first flight out of Chicago back to China when it happened?”
“Alex listen to me. I am not the person you should be worrying about! I didn’t have anything to do with that explosion. Had we had an opportunity to meet like we were supposed to, I would have explained that not only do you, and I have a common interest, but we also have a common enemy.”
“We’ll have that chance to talk because I’m getting on a plane to China. You can explain it all to me then. And, Gina, I’m not playing any more games with you so be ready.” Alex disconnected the call.
“You know she came to see me.”
Alex whipped around. He hadn’t known that Braylee had gotten out of the shower. She was standing wrapped in a towel. “That was a fast.”
“I left the conditioner for my hair in the bag you packed for me.” She repeated herself. “You know she came to see me.”
Alex wasn’t quite sure how to respond. He’d heard her the first time. “Who?”
Braylee stared at him dumbfounded. “Alex, after everything I’ve been through are you really going to stand there and pretend like you don’t know who I’m talking about? SHE came to see me just like SHE came to see you the other night. Then my damn TRUCK exploded!” The lawyer in her was turned all the way up. It had always been a source of protection for her in the past. “That’s who was at the door the night you came home from China wasn’t it? She’s the reason you went over there in the first place.”
“I didn’t want to worry you but yes to both questions. I needed to get
