Mace came up from the crouch but stil close, right in my space.
“We’l clean it and Daisy’s doctor can stitch it,” he told me.
“Then can I cal Floyd?” I asked.
“I told you, not until we debrief.”
“I didn’t agree to that.”
“I wasn’t giving you an option.”
My eyes bugged out, beyond pissed off, rocketing straight to angry as hel .
Before I could blow, Luke asked from behind me, “Do you want me to uncuff her?”
“No,” Mace said.
“Yes,” I said at the same time.
Not surprisingly, Luke didn’t uncuff me.
“Sit down. I’l take off your boots so we can get the jeans off,” Mace demanded.
“Stop bossing me around and I’l take off my own boots, thank you very much,” I shot back.
“That’l be hard to do with your hands cuffed behind you,” Mace returned.
“Uncuff me then,” I retorted.
“Stel a,” Mace said warningly.
“Mace,” I returned the gesture.
Mace sighed and looked over my head and I knew he was looking at Luke. I also knew from the expression on his face that he was also looking for patience.
I heard Luke chuckle.
It hit me then that I was standing in a strange house; I had a gunshot wound, my hands cuffed behind my back and my jeans pul ed down around my thighs.
Worse than that, Linnie’d had the back of her head blown off and Buzz was out there somewhere without my hand to hold onto.
I looked down at my boots then I felt the tears come to my eyes.
“This is humiliating,” I whispered, blinking back the tears.
Immediately after I uttered the words, I felt Luke’s presence retreat just as Mace got deeper in my space. His hands came to either side of my neck and I sucked in breath at the feel of their warm strength.
God, I missed it when he touched me.
“Kitten,” he murmured and my eyes flew to his.
His eyes had grown soft. I hadn’t seen that look in a long time.
I missed that too.
“Don’t cal me that,” I whispered.
His eyes flashed yet again with something I couldn’t decipher and, stil in a voice that was deep, low and sweet, he said, “Stel a.”