Page 55 of Hard to Handle
“Oh,” I exhaled sharply, my eyes locking on a familiar face.“Mornin’, Copenhagen.”
The giant dog shifted closer, and I found myself smiling as I reached over and rubbed his head.
“Not used to wakin’ up with strange boys in my bed,” I murmured.
As soon as the words left my mouth, last night came back to me in a rush, and I sighed heavily.
What the hell was I going to do now?
Well, the first thing I needed to do was call the insurance company.That would have to take placeafterI got out of bed, though.Or rather, tomorrow, since it was Sunday.I doubted they were open to take my call.Not that I wouldn’t try.The sooner I got that claim filed, the faster I could find a way to rebuild.
Sure, I could probably sit around, whine and cry about all that I'd lost, but that wasn’t going to help.And I'd never been that kind of girl.I was the take-the-bull-by-the-horns type.Responsible for myself.As it should be.
Forcing myself to sit up, I felt the aches and pains from last night return with a vengeance.My head was pounding from where I'd hit it on the wall, and I doubled over, clutching my skull with both hands, fighting the wave of nausea that hit me suddenly.
“What do you think you’re doin’?”
The gruff, raspy voice came from behind me, but I didn’t move.“Right now?I’m tryin’ not to puke my guts up on your pretty wood floor.When that passes, I’m gonna take another shower.”
There was a soft grunt that sounded closer.I managed to sit up straight, take several deep breaths, and get the world to stop spinning.
“Here.”
I looked up to see Lynx holding a couple of pills and a glass of water.
“Ibuprofen,” he added.
“Thanks.”Doing my best not to touch him, I took the two pills from his hand and tossed them in my mouth before taking the water glass.Once those were down, I took a deep breath.
“You hungry?”
My stomach lurched at the mere thought of food.“No.Thanks.”
“When you’re outta the shower and feelin’ better, we’ll head into town.Rhys took your truck to the station.We can pick it up there.”
I nodded but kept my eyes on his legs as they moved out of my line of sight.
Lynx clicked his tongue twice.“C’mon, Cope.Let’s get you some food.”
I managed to breathe a little easier when Lynx was out of the room.He seemed to overwhelm me with his presence, not to mention his kindness.Yesterday I'd been a total bitch to him and today he was taking care of me.Honestly, I had no idea why, either.
Twenty minutes later,I was showered and dressed.I had managed to finger-comb my wet hair, and I'd used Lynx’s toothpaste—my finger sufficed as a toothbrush—to bring myself to a relative state of normal.My head didn’t hurt nearly as bad, nor did my body, which I considered a good thing.I had too damn much to do to deal with that shit right now.
The second I walked out of the bedroom, there was a knock on the front door.I stopped, glanced at it, then over at Lynx, who was standing in the kitchen.He shrugged, as though to say he had no idea who could possibly be there.Since I was closer, I headed that way.
Figuring it was my brother coming to check on me, I pulled it open and came face-to-face with…
“Who are you?”the woman hissed, glaring back at me.
Oh, what a way to start the day.With Lynx’swifestanding on the front porch.
I gave a small smirk.“The fuckin’ maid.Who’re you?”
Without waiting for a response, I spun on my heel and headed for the kitchen, rolling my eyes at Lynx as I passed.
“What the hell are you doin’ here?”Lynx growled, moving toward the door.
“I heard what happened,” Tammy said, her tone sugary-sweet.“I wanted to check on you.Make sure you were all right.”
