Page 128 of On the Double
“How long until Max gets here?” I panted.
“He’s still five minutes out.”
I nodded, squeezing my eyes shut as the pain started to become more pronounced. Brock ran over, taking up my other arm. I was more than grateful for the help. Conserving my energy would help before I crashed and everything started coming back.
“What the fuck, Edu? Do not get shot. They were simple fucking orders from Harper. Now we’re all going to have to hear about it.”
“Actually, it was stay safe,” I muttered.
“And don’t stick your dick in another woman,” Lock added.
“At least we can say he kept up one end of the bargain.”
As they lowered me to the ground, I laid back, thinking of all the ways I could spin this. “You know, it’s really not that bad. I can spin this in my favor.”
“How do you figure?” Brock asked.
I lifted my head and looked down at the blood-soaked bandage. “I’ll tell her it’s just a scratch.”
“That’s leaking half the blood from your body?” Lock asked.
“It’s not really that bad.”
“No, you’re right,” he nodded.
I screamed as he pressed down hard on the wound. It felt like he was tearing my insides out. “Fucking hell! What are you doing?”
“You said it was just a scratch,” he countered. “I’m sorry, did that hurt more than a scratch?”
“A fucking paper cut feels worse than this, but you don’t see me pressing down on them,” I shouted.
“You know, it’s not a bad idea,” Brock said to Lock. “We’ll just cuthim all over the place with paper. Then she won’t notice the massive hole in his side.”
“It’s not that big,” I panted, pressing my hand to the wound. “It’s like…what, maybe an inch wide?”
“Yeah, I know when I walk around with an inch-wide hole in my side, I’m completely fucking fine!” Lock ended with a shout.
I winced at how loud he was being. “You know, you’re usually supposed to be nice to the guy with the hole in him.”
“Sure, I’ll be nice. Meanwhile, we have to find a way to return you to your woman without her flipping the fuck out,” Lock snapped.
“It’s part of the job,” I argued. “If she can’t handle it, then she has no business being with a guy like me.”
“Right, that’ll go over well,” Brock snorted. “While she has tears streaming down her face and is freaking out over the fact that you’ve got a hole in your side, you can reprimand her for showing her true feelings. That she actually cares,” he reiterated.
I rolled my eyes at him. “You know, you’re so fucking dramatic. She won’t cry.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “I want you to think of something. Remember what it felt like when you found out she was in an accident? Remember that churning feeling in your gut, like you were going to throw up because of how much pain she was in?”
I did remember that.
“Remember how upset you were and how you stayed by her side for weeks because she was hurt? Do you really think she’s not gonna fucking cry?”
I dropped my head to the ground. “Shit. I’m in trouble.”
“You’re worse than in trouble,” Lock nodded. “You’re fucked.”
“How ya feelin’?”Lock asked. “Is the bandage holding?”