Earl of Gold (Lords of Scandal #7) - Tammy Andresen Page 0,16

three men. Best to eliminate one quickly. With that in mind, he didn’t hesitate, just threw a punch, popping the guy in front of him straight into his nose before the other men had even reached their side of the road.

The guy fell like a pile of bricks as the other two broke into a run barreling toward them. “Inside,” he barked at Penny as he widened his stance.

Then he raised his fists. Let them come. He was ready.

Penny blinked as she watched the two other men jump on Logan, engulfing him under their weight. She had to do something.

She could hear them pummeling his body with their fists.

Reaching down, she grabbed one of the broken pickets laying on the ground.

Logan pushed one of the men off him, bringing a hard fist into the other man’s stomach. The ruffian doubled over with a groan. Penny didn’t hesitate. Raising the picket over her head, she brought down the jagged wood on his back, sending him crashing to the ground.

She gasped as the blow jarred through her body. How did men fight like this? Logan spun and delivered an uppercut to the third man. He went careening back into the street. Then, without a word, Logan grabbed her hand and began pulling her up the stairs.

Wrenching open the door, he was met by Clarissa, once again holding a poker in her hands. “Need this?” she asked, peering over Logan’s shoulder.

He didn’t answer as he moved into the room, still pulling Penny behind him. Once they were both inside, he slammed and bolted the door behind him.

Logan turned to look at her then and that’s when she realized just how many punches he’d taken.

His lip was swollen and split, his cheek red, and there was a gash just over his eye.

“Oh Logan,” she said, reaching up a hand but dropping it again. He’d gotten these wounds defending her and the children.

It made her ache inside to see how he’d put himself in harm’s way and for the first time, she allowed herself to think about what it would be like to have him as her partner.

A man who helped her carry the burden and share in the love of her adopted family. A man who defended them and repaired fences and…her breath caught.

A man who would provide her with a family of her very own in addition to the one she’d already built. But surely, he wouldn’t want her. She wasn’t a lady, she was poor, and she came with an entire cast of little girls to support.

He grimaced. “This place isn’t safe.”

She nodded. “I know. That’s why I accepted your offer tonight.” She didn’t add, despite any hidden consequences. Because she trusted him. She’d worried about his motives at first, but he truly seemed to want to help. She couldn’t deny that after the hits he’d taken.

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” she said, then pulled off her gardening gloves and slid her bare hand into his.

The feel of his rougher palm against her softer one, made tendrils of pleasure dance through her arm, but she ignored them as she led him down the stairs to the kitchen below.

Working quickly, she put water on the stove to heat and got out fresh rags. Once the water heated, she began cleaning the wounds. The cut above his eye still bled, and she gently dabbed at the wound. Rinsing the cloth, she worked down his face, then his neck. “Take off your shirt,” she demanded. She needed to see what had happened to his body.

He complied without a word, gingerly pulling the fabric over his head, wincing as his arm stretched up.

She gasped. Not because of the bruises blooming on his flesh but because he was so…stunning. Hard muscles rippled in waves down his chest, tapering into a narrow waist. A smattering of hair sprinkled across his pectorals and she had the urge to run her hand through it. Feel its texture against her palm. She pressed her hands to her breastbone to keep her heart from beating out of her chest.

Her breath released in short gasps and her body ached with something she couldn’t name as she reached for the rag again and began to cleanse his torso. Even through the cloth, she could feel the dips and ripples of his muscles and her head dipped lower. She knew she was intimately close, but she wanted to feel him, smell him. Penny would like him to wrap his arm about her waist and draw