hand when he turns it over. “Oh my God, I’m sorry, I don’t know why I thought hitting you would help anything.”
“It’s fine, Bella. I’m fine. I’m more worried about your hand. It’s really swollen. You may have broken something.” It sure feels like I did. I sniffle and suck in some choppy breaths. “Can you move your fingers?”
As I try to open my fist, an excruciating pain blows up in my hand. I scream at the shock of how bad it is, just when I hear a door slam closed. “What the fuck are you doing? What did you do to her?” Damien roars as he barrels into the kitchen and bodily shoves Gio away from me. He follows and grabs Gio by his shirt and slams him into the wall. “Why is she crying, and why is her hand fuckin’ double the size it should be?”
“Back up,” Gio warns.
“What the fuck did you do to her?”
“It was my fault, Damien. Let him go. Please,” I plead with him, not needing any more conflict tonight. “I don’t want this. Please don’t do this to each other.”
With a final shove, he turns his back on Gio and comes right to me. Lifting my hand, he gingerly examines it. “Get her some fuckin’ ice,” he orders Gio, and then puts a fist beneath my chin and tilts my head up. When my blotchy face and bloodshot eyes meet his, he hisses to try to gain control. “What happened?” he asks me in a much softer and way more welcoming tone than he did to Gio.
“I went to hit him, and he moved, my fist swung high.” My lip quivers, and he grunts, then shuts the tap off.
“Hang tight a minute. The ice will help, but with the pressure it will get a little worse before it gets better.”
Gio hands him a baggie filled with ice wrapped in a towel, and when he sets it on my hand, I try to pull away. “Shit. Oww.”
As gentle as he can, he holds my arm to keep me still and bends his knees so he’s eye level with me. “Look at me, Iz.” I tilt my head back, and our noses practically brush. Just him being close makes it feel a little better. “I thought you knew how to punch.” His lips quirk.
“I… I do. But apparently, I’m not as… as good as I thought.”
He jerks his head back in Gio’s direction. “I thought you said your brother taught you how to fight. Remember at dinner you told me you’d knock her out?”
I know what he’s trying to do, and it’s working. “I would if you’d have let me at her.”
“Who are you talking about?” Gio inches closer to us.
“My ex-wife.” Damien divulges. “Who is now my sister-in-law.”
Gio’s head rears back. “What in the ever-loving hell?”
“Let’s just say your sister didn’t like the way the evening was going and made sure to let everyone know. It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in whenever we meet for that beer.”
“They both deserved my wrath,” I mumble, still fired up about Laila and Jordan.
“What’d Gio do to deserve it?”
I actually manage to laugh a little. “He asked if me hitting him would make me feel better. And I said yes.”
“My ribs hurt like a mofo, and when I saw that’s where her fist was aiming, I moved, but she ended up swinging at a bad angle and clocked me right on my jaw.”
“Man, you’re off your game.”
“Tell me about it.”
Some kind of understanding is spoken between the two men, and after Gio lifts his chin, Damien announces, “I’m taking her to the ER.”
Chapter 15
Damien
It turns out Izzy’s hand isn’t broken—just swollen and bruised—so she’s going to need to keep it wrapped and iced for a few days. They also gave her some pain medication that’s making her loopy, and admittedly, I can’t stop laughing with her. By the time we make it home, she’s almost passed out, but she’s doing it with a smile on her face.
Not that I like her in this state, but it’s a lot better than her being in pain. I knew I loved her, that I wanted to do whatever in my power to keep her safe and make her happy, but seeing her hurt and not being able to do anything about it, for what was all intents and purposes a small injury, gave me a kick in the nuts. If something bad actually happened to her, I don’t know