Page 46 of Double Trouble
“It’s fine,” Cin said, allowing her head to loll into my chest. “Hey, what happened to your face?”
“It’s nothing,” Owen said quickly.
I gazed at his reflection in the rear-view mirror. “That gash on your cheek doesn’t look like nothing.”
“The other guy got me ok,” Owen admitted, smiling grimly. “But he looks way worse.”
It was a mostly-silent drive on the way back, and we insisted on walking Cin up to her room. There, she wouldn’t agree to sit down until she’d patched Owen up.
“I mean it,” she said. “You don’t treat that wound, it’s going to get five times worse.”
“Fine,” Owen finally agreed.
So, all of us parked on her couch, I watched on as she applied antiseptic and a bandage to the bloodied spot.
“How things have come full circle,” she commented after she was done, smiling a little.
“I’m so sorry,” I told her, taking her in my arms. “This is my fault too. I was supposed to throw the fight so Rodney could make money. But when I saw you all upset like that, I couldn’t go through with it.”
“I couldn’t bear to see you lose,” Cin said quietly.
“I should’ve just gone through with it,” I said. “Then, you wouldn’t have been taken and the whole business of Rodney would have been over.”
“Still probably wouldn’t have been over,” Owen cut in. “I know that guy. He would just keep trying to take and take, until he’d sucked us both dry.”
“Maybe he would’ve tried to,” I said. “But it would’ve been better than him taking Cin.”
Owen didn’t argue about that. Although he did get up to head to the kitchen.
“Anything I can get you?” he asked Cin. “Hot chocolate, marshmallows, cookies?”
“Uh, yes?” Cin said with a little smile.
Not to be outdone, I got Cin all cozied up with blankets and a pillow.
Once she was wreathed in blankets and pillows and outfitted with hot chocolate, a mountain of marshmallows, and no less than seven chocolate chunk cookies, she gave us both a sly smile. “There’s just one thing missing?”
“What?” I asked.
She patted on the two free spaces on either side of her. “You.”
Never had Owen and I pounced on a couch so fast.
33
Owen
After a few minutes of cuddling and cookie-munching, I went to the bathroom. There, I got to pacing. What had happened still hadn’t quite registered. Although the conclusions it drew had. Our relationship endangered Cin – or at least it had. While I’d hoped to be the man to protect her, I’d inadvertently done the complete opposite. And the consequences had almost been fatal.
In the bathroom, I checked the window. Ridiculous, seeing as she was on the sixth floor, but still, seeing how impossible they would be to open from outside calmed me. Going back into the main apartment, I checked the front door. It was good too. Jake and Cin were busy chatting, which was good. I went back into the bathroom and ordered a new heavy-duty lock for Cin.
No way would I be able to sleep at night if I thought there was even a hint of a chance that she was in danger. I glared at my reflection in the mirror. Who was I kidding? Of course she was still in danger. Whatever threats we’d made to Rodney’s men would just as likely piss him off as deter him. I needed something more.
That something more came in the form of a phone call.
“Hey, long time no see,” Yarvis said when I called.
“Yeah. I’m telling you, you should really come downtown and hit up one of Jake’s fights one of these times,” I chided him gently. My tone changed. “Although this time, I’m calling for a favor.”
“Yeah?”
“Do you know Rodney Smith?”
“A small-time crook, yeah. What about him?”
“Why isn’t he behind bars again?”
“No evidence of any of his various misdemeanors.”
“What about texts and threatening phone calls – would that do the trick?”
“Sure it would. Though you might have to testify.”
“I’d be fine with that.”
“Alrighty then.”
I pumped a victorious fist in the air. “Thanks Yarvis.”
“No, thank you. That asshat has been on the street for far too long.”
“Far too long,” I agreed.
Afterwards, I was able to breathe freely for the first time in a while. Now, Cin really was protected. Why hadn’t I thought of this earlier? Probably because I knew idle money demands wasn’t cause for a good arrest. But kidnapping a woman and threatening her for money?
Rodney was dumb and cocky, and now it was going to cost him.
Back on the couch, Cin was nodding off.
“We better let her sleep,” I told Jake, and he agreed.
After we had carried her barely-conscious form to the bed and tucked her in, we went back to the couch. There, I told him about the lock and the Yarvis phone call, and he was visibly relieved too.
“Still,” I said. “After all that happened, doesn’t part of you think that maybe we’re more trouble for her than good?”
