“You said it. I just agreed with you.”
“Close enough.” She went back to cleaning his face with tender strokes. “Do you know why they attacked you?”
“No, but I figure it’s got to be one of two things based on what they said. Either someone doesn’t want me talking to Sam Appelhoff or someone is trying to warn me away from you.”
“What did they say?”
“ ‘Stay away from her if you know what’s good for you.’ ”
She stepped back and went into the bathroom to rinse the cloth, and she spotted the ice bucket. “Hold that thought. I’ll be right back.”
“Don’t. Fucking. Move.”
Penny froze halfway to the door. The command in his voice was absolute, his gray-green eyes as stormy as she’d ever seen them. She held her breath as he lifted the towel from the floor, the bleached white now dotted with patches of blood from her feet.
“What the hell, Penny?”
“I stepped on some glass in the parking lot,” she said quietly. “It’s no big deal.”
“Really? Because it looks like a pretty big fucking deal to me. Come here. Let me take a look.”
She didn’t want to. He looked angry. Really angry. If she didn’t know better, she’d swear lightning flashed in his eyes. She shook her head.
He rose to standing. Had he been that tall and wide before? Or did the clenched, sculpted jaw and thunderous expression just make him appear that way?
She took another step toward the door.
“Don’t,” he warned.
“You’re not the boss of me,” she said, her voice barely more than a whisper. Then, she turned and resumed her short path to the door, her heart jackhammering in her chest.
She didn’t hear him move. All she knew was, when she reached for the knob, her feet were no longer touching the ground. The ice bucket clattered to the floor as a large arm wound around her midsection and hauled her back to the bed in an impressive show of strength because she was no lightweight.
Their positions had reversed. Penny was now the one sitting on the bed, and Jaxson was tending to her. He lifted her feet, upsetting her balance and forcing her to put her elbows behind her to remain semi-upright and see what he would do next.
For as strong as he was, his touch was gentle as he used the damp cloth to wipe away some of the blood, grime, and pine tar. It might have been a tender moment if her feet were not quite so ticklish. He stroked a spot along her arch, and she reflexively kicked out, catching him in the face.
“I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed.
“You’re a menace, did anyone ever tell you that?”
“All the time,” she admitted.
“Sit still. You’ve still got some glass in here.”
“I can’t help it!”
“Roll over.”
“I don’t want to.”
He growled. Actually growled. She’d read about alpha-male types doing that in books, but she’d never actually heard the sound before. Low and guttural, it sent butterflies alight in her core along with a healthy wave of lust.
She probably shouldn’t be feeling that.
In another unexpected display of strength and skill, he flipped her onto her stomach and then turned and straddled her legs, effectively sitting on the backs of her thighs. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t displace him. Half-laughing, half-howling, she had no choice but to acquiesce as he cleaned and tended to her cuts.
When he was finished, he stepped away, and she immediately scrambled to sitting.
“Stay off of them for a few minutes,” he commanded. “I’ll be right back.”
He picked the bucket off the floor along with the plastic bag insert, and with one last warning look back at her, he went in search of the ice machine.
Penny didn’t know what to do at that point. Part of her wanted to get up and walk out, just for spite. But another part of her—a bigger part—recognized that he was more concerned with her trivial injuries than his own, and that brought back some of that euphoria she’d been feeling earlier.
She was still debating what to do when he returned a few minutes later. He seemed surprised to find her in the same place. She was kind of surprised, too.
He pulled the bag of ice out of the bucket and twisted it shut, then wrapped it in a clean towel. “Here. This will help.”
She shoved it back at him. “You need it more than I do.”
He exhaled and sank down into a chair, bringing the bag to his swollen jaw and reminding her that his injuries hadn’t been self-inflicted.
“I don’t think this has anything to do with Sam,” she said finally. “The Sanctuary guys are protective of their wives, but they don’t do things like this.”
“So, this is because of you?”
“Maybe,” Penny admitted, hating the idea that she was the reason Jaxson had gotten hurt again. “But it might be less about me and more about you.”
“Care to explain?”
She shook her head. “It won’t make sense.”
“Try me anyway.”
“Okay, but I need to give you some history first, I think.”
“All right.”
“Before Sanctuary was Sanctuary, it was the Winston resort—restaurant, hotel, all-around popular vacation destination for those looking for a mountain getaway. The Winstons were powerful, too, having been around since Sumneyville was first founded. They were active in local politics and very community-oriented. They hosted our proms, weddings, and held events where they invited the whole town.”
Penny had many fond memories of those days. Fourth of July picnics. Fall harvest balls. Christmas sleigh rides with special appearances by “Santa.”
“They were well-respected pillars of the community, but as always, there were those who resented them for that.”
Jaxson nodded in understanding.
“It didn’t really matter. No one paid the grumblers much mind—sour grapes and all that. But then things changed. After Matt enlisted in the Navy, there was a terrible fire. The resort was destroyed, and the entire family died, except for Matt because he wasn’t there.”
“Arson?” he guessed.
“It was ruled an accident,” she answered carefully. There had been rumors that the then-new fire chief, Jerry Petraski, who wasn’t a big fan of the Winstons, hadn’t done a proper investigation. “Everyone was devastated. Well, almost everyone.”
Penny frowned and then continued, “Fast-forward to a few years ago. Matt Winston returned with plans for rebuilding the family resort as a place for veterans to reacclimate back into society.”
“Let me guess,” Jaxson said. “Not everyone was pleased.”
“Exactly. Most of the town supports them, but there are those who’d rather not see the return of a Winston in local politics. They’ve been spreading rumors about the place, whispering absurdities, inciting fear among the locals to try to discredit Matt and his guys.”
“Okay,” Jaxson said slowly, “but what does any of that have to do with me? I mean, I get that I’m former military, but I’m not associated with them.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Penny said, shaking her head. “Guilt by association. You’re like them, and that’s close enough.”