Page 51 of Ravaged By the Dark (The Righteous 2)
“Yes.”
“Fiiiine,” he whined but did as she asked.
“You can have a late dessert when I’m done talking and take the new toy car Francine got you.” J.J. didn’t acknowledge her peace offering, but he did snag his car on his way to the stairs.
As she turned around, Arek was there. He reached her first, and he took her hips in his hands and made her turn to look at him. He gently ran his thumb over her bloody lip. It wasn’t going to be pretty tomorrow. She could already feel it throbbing and starting to swell. Arek made a face that she couldn’t read before he yanked open her freezer and rummaged around until he found a bag of frozen peas. He wrapped it in a cloth before dabbing at her lip.
“Hold this to your lip. It will help with the swelling. Did I do this,” Arek asked, his eyes worried.
“No, not directly. I slammed my face into your shoulder when I was trying to get you to stop,” she mumbled.
“You did?” Arek furrowed his brow, and she watched his reaction carefully, and she couldn’t decide if she was more or less comforted that he truly hadn’t noticed her.
She spotted Cody limp his way in and close the door behind him before he flopped down at the kitchen table. He did look one punch away from death, but Arek did not. He was going to have a nasty black eye and a bloody nose, but other than that, he looked unscathed.
Renee looked up at Arek’s still worried expression and then into her brother’s arrogant one.
“Okay, who wants to start,” she asked as she turned her anger on the two overly testosterone-filled males in her way too small kitchen. “And there better be a fucking good explanation for this.”
