Page 3 of The Hitman's Virgin
He crouched down, hiding Mitch from her gaze.
She flinched as he put a finger beneath her chin and tilted her head back. “Are you okay?”
Tears filled her eyes. She was in pain but she never asked for help. It was one of the few things she had learned as a young person—to never ask anyone for anything, that way she wouldn’t be disappointed.
“Th-thank you,” she said.
“I’m not going to leave you alone, Callie. He won’t hurt you again. No one will ever hurt you again.”
She wanted to call him a liar, that someone was going to hurt her, they always did, but there was something in his voice, she wasn’t sure what, but it made her pause. This time when he touched her, helping her up, she didn’t flinch. His touch was soft, gentle.
There was still pain in her stomach, and she put a hand on it. Evander captured her wrist and moved her toward the light, and she saw that her hands were covered with blood. She’d hurt herself more than she realized.
She was just about to warn him that blood made her faint, but the world went dark before she got chance to utter a single word.
Chapter Two
Evander watched Callie sleeping in the hospital bed. She looked so peaceful and innocent. Her blonde hair, even in disarray, was beautiful. Everything about her brought out his protective instincts. Normally he was inclined to kill, but with her, all he wanted to do was protect.
He checked his watch. She’d been out for a couple of hours now, but he’d had his nurse put a little something extra in her IV to keep her rested. Evander hadn’t wanted things to move this fast, but he wasn’t about to let that asshole hurt her more than he already had. It still pissed him off that he hadn’t gotten around to the back in time to stop him from hurting her at all.
His friend and colleague, Bastian, peeked in the doorway again. “Still out?”
He nodded. “She’s just exhausted. She’ll come to anytime now.”
“Then what?”
Bastian had been on him about not obsessing over the girl. She’d been all Evander wanted to talk about lately, and his friend was getting concerned. He’d never been attached to anyone or anything in his life. He was afraid of nothing, which meant no one dared to fuck with him. The fact he was showing his softer, twisted side seemed to freak out those who knew him well.
“I’m not kidnapping her.”
“You sure about that?”
“Look, I already explained I had no choice in the matter,” Evander said. “I’m not an animal.”
Bastian crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe. “You could have easily dropped her off at the local hospital, but instead you brought her to your private clinic. This place is supposed to be off the grid.”
“It’s not like she was conscious when she came here. She has no clue where we are.”
“So, you’re okay with her returning to work at that strip club tomorrow? Same shit. Same assholes. You can’t watch over her every second, and you’re already behind on your contracts.”
“I have two outstanding, and I’m dealing with them. And guess what, Bastian, my caseload isn’t your fucking concern. Worry about your own hits.”
He began to walk away. “I’m starting to think you just liked going there every night to look at the naked bitches.”
“Fuck off, Bastian.”
Evander couldn’t stand the women he had to deal with in his line of work. And the last thing he wanted to do was stare at dirty whores all night in a piss-stained dive. He wanted the angel asleep in front of him, and nothing more. She stole all this logic. She’d become his obsession.
The sound of her steady heartbeat on the monitor was soothing. This clinic was state of the art, unlike the local hospital. She’d still be in the waiting room if he’d brought her there. He only wanted the best for Callie. He’d started this clinic with several colleagues over a decade ago to serve them when they had injuries that needed to be kept off the radar, like gunshot wounds. Now, others in their line of work paid top dollar to use their off-the-books clinic.
She began to shift in the bed, her breathing changing as she started to gain consciousness again. Her eyes fluttered open and she immediately started looking around, trying to ground herself.
“What do you remember?” he asked.
She turned her head in his direction, the sudden awareness seeming to take her by surprise. “It’s you.”
“My name’s Evander, by the way. I wasn’t expecting you to pass out, but you’re in good hands now.”
