Mia’s hand fluttered down and squeezed her good one. “I’ll be right back, okay?”
Her gaze darted to Alec then West. She wasn’t scared of either man. She knew they wouldn’t hurt her. But still, she gave Mia a grateful look.
The other woman turned and raced out.
“Mia!” Alec warned. “Slow down. No running. And hold onto the railing as you go down the stairs.”
She watched him. She’d done a bit of a study watching these Malone men. Alec was stern and a bit forbidding. West was broody. His looks weren’t as dark as Alec’s. He was shorter by a couple of inches but stockier. Thick with muscle. He didn’t smile. His eyes didn’t ever go soft. She wasn’t sure what had drawn her to him. The others, except for Jaret, were all easy going. Quick to laugh, quick to anger. They had their differences, of course. Raid had a huge appetite, for food as well as women, it seemed. Beau was a big flirt and a complete rascal. Tanner was just plain trouble. If there was a riot, he’d be in the middle of it. Maddox had a darker depth to him. He smiled, but it never quite reached his eyes.
Then there was Butch. She was maybe closer to him than all the others. He could be gentle, sweet almost, but he had a deep, protective streak when it came to those weaker than him. Especially animals and children.
She’d seen his face when Beau had carried her out of the truck. He’d looked like murderous.
“Alec,” she whispered.
“Yeah, sweetheart?”
She saw West tense for some reason, but only out of the corner of her eye since she was trying to avoid looking directly at him.
“You need to make sure Mia never goes over to my house. Not without you. Maybe not even then.”
Alec tensed, his gaze was firm on her. “You have my word.”
“Might be best not to send Butch either.” She attempted another smile but failed. “I don’t want to be visiting him in prison for the next twenty years. And he wouldn’t look good in orange.”
That was a lie. Butch had the Malone dark good looks. He would look good in anything.
“Butch is a big boy,” West growled. “You don’t have to worry about him.”
She looked up at Alec pleadingly. He nodded to her once, and she let out a sigh of relief.
“West is right, though, darlin’. Not your job to worry about us. Especially not at this moment, yes?” he asked.
“Yes,” she agreed softly.
By that time, Mia was back, a glass of water in her hand. She set it down on the bedside table and Flick placed the Tylenol in her mouth with a grimace.
“You having trouble swallowing?” West barked at her.
She jolted and hissed as pain shot up her back.
“Damn it, West.” Mia glared at the second oldest Malone brother in a way Flick would never have dared to. Mind you, from what she’d seen these boys didn’t intimidate Mia. Then again, it was obvious they all adored her.
“Sorry,” West muttered, actually looking like he felt remorseful.
She swallowed down some water, taking in the disgusting tablets. “Sorry. Not a fan of pills.”
“You want to tell us what injuries you do have and how serious they are?” Alec asked her.
“It’s not that bad, it looks worse than it really is,” she quickly reassured him.
Mia made a low sound of dissent. Alec sighed.
“Don’t lie to us, Felicity,” West told her in a low voice
What the hell? Why did he think he got to dictate to her? “I’m not lying.”
She sensed, rather than saw, his surprise, since she wasn’t actually looking at him. Maybe if she didn’t look directly at him, she could pretend he wasn’t there.