Vicious Rebel (82 Street Vandals #2) - Heather Long Page 0,55

tilted my head so he could study it. I swore his eyes chilled a little more.

“Any other injuries?”

“Not really. I mean, the counter hurt when I bounced against it. But I feel fine.” I grinned at him. The redness on my arm had already begun to fade, and the little cut on my neck didn’t bother me at all. “You don’t need to make a list of injuries for this guy. He’s already dead.”

Jasper met my smile with a faint one of his own. “His partner isn’t.”

Oh.

My amusement faded.

“Liam and Kestrel caught him,” Jasper murmured, still touching my chin. The lightness of his fingers made for a barely there sensation. It was kind of weird. We hadn’t really seen each other, much less been alone, since the night he kissed me and walked out so pissed off.

Considering I’d just made out with Rome and I’d had sex with Vaughn, now might not be the time to address it. My romantic life had gotten far more complicated in a very short time span, considering the absolute dregs it had been before.

“What’s a matter?” At the coaxing note, I almost wanted to tell him, but I just shook my head.

“I’m tired.” Not a lie. “I was sleeping, you see, and these two jerks decided to wake us up by beating each other up.”

“Fair,” he said, that almost smile back as his hand fell away from my face. “Next time, we’ll try to be quieter about it.”

Next time.

“I have your things, Starling,” Rome said. “Do you want to change into them or just wear that back? You can, if you want. I also brought you thicker socks and another jacket.”

Liam had also returned, cleaned up and in fresh clothes. No shirt though. He wore just gray sweatpants as he brushed up against me to get past. There was no mistaking it was intentional, because Jasper glared at him and then caught my hand and tugged me away from him.

“I’m fine like this,” I said, because I really didn’t need Jasper starting another fight. Not when I already owed Liam for his silence. “You’re coming with us?” The last I directed at Rome, and Jasper made a face.

Oh, did Jasper not want him coming?

“Of course,” Jasper said, sliding me in front of him and giving me a little nudge toward Rome and the living room. “If he wants.” The living room was in shambles.

“We can’t leave it like this,” I said abruptly and felt more than saw all three of them stare at me. “This is a wreck. And you guys broke that frame.” It was one of the beautiful paintings from the wall. Sidestepping carefully to avoid the glass, I retrieved the painting.

“It’s fine, Hellspawn,” Liam drawled. “I’d rather you take the junkyard dog back to his pen. I can clean this up tomorrow.” Rome took the frame from me and set it down. “Besides, you two had a long enough day as it is.”

Not rising to the bait, Jasper nodded to Rome, who passed him a coat, and then Jasper held it up for me. That was it, the guys were just letting this go? They beat each other bloody, wreck the living room, and that was that?

I would never understand men.

Ever.

“Thank you for letting us use your bike,” I told Liam. “And you have a very nice place.”

“It’s always open to you, Hellspawn. Just make sure you leave the junkyard dog at home.”

Jasper glared over his shoulder at Liam but gave me a gentle push toward the door. Rome said nothing, but then, I guessed the twins didn’t need to say much. Liam followed us to the door, and I caught him watching us as the elevator arrived.

He winked at me and then closed the door.

The return to the clubhouse, as they all called it, seemed to take forever as Jasper navigated his way through the quiet streets. Rome sat in the backseat. I’d offered to go back there, but both he and Jasper had pointed at the passenger seat.

Curls of fog hung in the air, and the traffic around the center of town dwindled as we made our way past affluent nightclubs and dancing spots. More than one looked to be busy with lines out front, but then we were in the business district and fewer people occupied the sidewalks.

The absolute silence was both a blessing and a curse, but I had no idea what to say to fill the emptiness. As it was, I was fighting off yawns by