Page 37 of His to Defend

“Oh my God!”

“What is—”

“What the hell?”

Nina froze as the other women reacted with horror at her spin. She turned. “What?” she asked. “What’s wrong?”

The other women exchanged glances but still didn’t say anything.

“What?” She was starting to get worried. No one was laughing. The atmosphere in the room had shifted. A trail of fear trickled down Nina’s spine. “What!”

Harper took one more look at her friends and then stepped forward. “Um…Nina. Is your back sore?”

Nina felt a blush cross her face and dip down between her breasts. She shrugged in an effort to be nonchalant. “I’m kind of sore all over. Ryker and I, well, we kind of—”

“You kind of what?” Natalia stepped forward, her pretty face twisted into a look of concern and…anger? “What did you do?”

“We had sex.” Nina stared at the woman. Did she want her to spell it out for her? “We had lots of—”

“Okay.” Chloe stepped forward and gave Natalia a stern stare. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”

“What’s nothing?” Beyond worried, Nina was starting to get concerned. “What the hell is going on?”

Chloe took a breath and put a smile on her face. “Nina, did you know you have a bit of a bruise on the back of your shoulder?”

Nina tried to turn her head, but she already knew what they were talking about. She blushed and shrugged a bit. “Well…yes.”

“You knew?” Kira stared at her.

“Well, how could I not?” Nina looked between the women, who all looked as if they’d seen some sort of ghost. She was a grown woman, but all at once she felt like a teenager confessing to her sexual exploits. “It’s not a big deal,” she said with a wave of her hand. “Ryker and I got…well, we got a little carried away the other night.”

“Shit!” Natalia swore and turned away.

Nina shook her head. “It’s not a big deal.” She turned to Harper. “Unless you don’t want me to wear the dress. Is it really noticeable?”

It was a stupid question. Obviously it showed in the dress or the girls wouldn’t have freaked out when she turned around. “Maybe we can put makeup on it tomorrow.” Unexpected tears welled in her eyes, which was crazy. It was just a love bite. And yes, it was ridiculous that a grown woman had a hickie, but still…

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Harper stepped up again and gave her a hug. “It’s fine. And you aren’t going to ruin my day with a little bruise. We’ll put a bit of makeup on it and if you wear your hair down, no one will even know it’s there. We all just overreacted. It’s not a big deal. Is it, girls?” She turned away and a moment later, all the other ladies muttered and nodded, their smiles returning.

“It’ll all be fine,” Chloe assured her.

“If you’re sure. I mean, it’s not like anyone is even going to be looking at me tomorrow.” Nina laughed. “All eyes will be on you.”

“Si.” Ella stepped up. Her smile was bright, but Nina couldn’t help but notice a trace of concern in her eyes, too. “Don’t worry, mi amiga. It’s fine. In the morning, I’ll put a bit of makeup on it, and no one will even know it’s there.”

“Oh yes they will.” Natalia crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head in disgust.

“Natalia!” Kira scolded her.

“Well, they will and you know it. Ryker should be—”

“Warned to be more careful when gowns are involved,” Kira finished while giving her a hard stare.

“Whatever.” Natalia shook her head and turned away. “But you all know as well as I do that this is not okay.”

Nina, confused again, looked to Bree, who was the only one who hadn’t said anything. But Bree only shrugged.

“Honestly, Nina.” Harper put her arm around her. “You look amazing and it’s nothing a little makeup won’t cover up. It’s fine. Everything is fine.”