Change of Heart - By S.E. Edwards Page 0,38
it to—”
“Penny.” He interrupts my by lifting up his hands. “I’m fine. Seriously. I don’t need you to take care of me. I know it might look bad, but I’ve been in more than a few fights before. I’ve gotten scuffed up worse than this. You’re just overreacting because there’s a lot of blood. I know how girls are.”
“Oh, you know how girls are, do you?” I demand, stalking up to him. I snatch the bottle and towel from his hands.
“No, don’t…” Rich tries to protest as I pour the whiskey on the cloth. “Damn it! Do you know how much that cost me?”
“Sit still, and don’t fidget,” I tell him in my most commanding tone. I start dabbing the wet towel around the cut. Even though I pretend to be irritated with him, I take great care to clean the wound gently. Rich stiffens at first, then relaxes when he sees I’m not trying to hurt him. Still, every once in a while, I catch a tender spot, causing him to suck air sharply through gritted teeth.
I clean the blood away with quiet efficiency. Victor’s knife cleaved Rich’s skin right in two, but thankfully did not go deep into the muscle. I pause to retrieve another towel, then hold it tight against the parts that start bleeding again.
Rich watches me the entire time without saying a thing. I’m so focused on what I’m doing that I’m surprised when he reaches over and tucks an errant strand of hair behind my ear. “Man pride,” he says softly. “I like that.”
I sniff. I don’t meet his eyes so I can hide my smile.
When I’m done, I stand up and shove both towels into his hands. “There. Now, if it starts bleeding, use those to stem the flow.” I stop, shake my head, and run to the bathroom to get a couple of fresh ones. I give those to him instead. “Use the clean ones,” I correct. “I’ll be right back.”
“Where are you going?” he calls out.
“We can’t just leave you like that. I need bandages, real antiseptic, probably some pain killers.” I look around the room. “Where did you put those keys?”
“Oh.” Rich tilts his head in the direction of the open balcony. “They’re in my jeans. Front right pocket.”
“Right.” I nod, and go out to get them. When I return, Rich seems strangely melancholy.
“You know,” he says quietly, “I don’t really expect you to come back.”
“What?” I turn on him, temper flaring—
“I mean, I can appreciate what you did for me. But we’re both adults. There’s no need to pretend. Most girls would have just sneaked out, or waited until I was asleep. You did your part to help—” he gestures at his leg, “—but I know what you really want. Like I said before, I won’t hold it against you. And… you don’t need to feel guilty about leaving, either.”
“What?” I repeat. “Rich, I am not leaving. I’m going out to find a store, and…” I trail off, remembering that I don’t have my wallet or any money.
“Wait. Fuck. I’m such an idiot. Before you go…” he motions to the TV stand. “The top drawer in the bureau. I can’t believe I forgot.”
Confused, I walk over and pull open the drawer. What I find inside makes me so happy I could scream. There, at the bottom of the wooden chamber, lies my familiar faux-leather wallet.
I snatch it up and open it hungrily. Relief blooms in my stomach when I find all my IDs inside—even the poor fake I wanted to use the night I had met Rich.
I spin around. I can’t keep the delight from my voice. “Rich, this is amazing! Did you get it from Victor? How?” I notice the wallet seems a bit thicker than I remember. Curious, I open the cash sleeve. I’m shocked to find a bunch of fifty-dollar bills inside. “Rich, what is this?”
“I remember you telling me you were low on funds,” he says matter-of-factly. “So, I put some money inside.”
“What are you talking about? Why would you give me money?” I riffle through the bills, doing a quick count in my head. “There’s more than a grand in here! I can’t take that!”
“You can, and you will. It’s just money. God knows, I have enough as it is.”
“What do you mean?”
He shakes his head. “Never mind. I just can’t believe I forgot to give it to you before.” He barks a laugh. “Imagine, if you had left earlier tonight, I would have