It only now struck Dane that the other guys must have paid for Jag’s hospital treatment, since he doubted Jag had insurance or a social security number.
Dane didn’t know what to expect from the inside of the house, but it looked deceptively normal, in the old-bachelor’s pad kind of way. A few fish trophies hung on the walls, making the space less bare, and while the kitchen was made out of mismatched cupboards, it was clean.
Dane had been so angry at Jag during the first part of his stay at the junkyard, yet now, seeing him so weak and beaten down triggered feelings so intense he was afraid they’d come out in his speech. Still, he cleared his throat. “Of course it is my job to take care of you. Aren’t we… you know?” he asked, lowering his voice in hope Frank wouldn’t hear him all the way by the fridge.
Jag didn’t seem to care for discretion though. “I don’t know. Are we? You ran away from me and fought me for it. And now you want to be my nurse?” He growled but had to lean on the kitchen table for support. “I am a man. I am perfectly capable. I can protect myself and my mate, and no one’s taking that job away from me!”
Frank turned and put a small pot on the cooker, clearly unwilling to become a part of their argument.
Dane took a deep breath and shut his eyes for two seconds to calm down. “No one is taking your job. But you are injured now, and if you don’t get better, you won’t be able to continue doing—”
“Oh? So I’m useless now?” Jag hissed and slipped away from Dane with deep grooves forming on his forehead.
Dane caught Frank’s gaze, and the older man cleared his throat. “I need to get something from my workshop. Settle him down in the room to the right,” he said before rushing for the door in the back of a dark room farther inside the house, as if Jag were after him with his spear. So much for his help.
Dane bit his lip and leaned down to breathe in the scent of Jag’s sweat and reassure himself that his mate was really here. Alive. “Don’t be like that. Let me help you.”
“Why? I finally see things clearly! You’ve been waiting for an opportunity to run from me all along. There’s no need for you to pretend anymore,” Jag said and once more evaded Dane, as if he were the prey now, and any affection—an attack.
Dane rubbed his face, because despite all his good will, his patience was starting to run thin. “I wanted to visit my family. There would be no reason for running away if you’d let me do that in the first place! And now stop being a stubborn goat.”
Jag’s nostrils flared, and he grabbed Dane’s jaw. “You lied to me! You think I’m stupid!”
Surprised by the sudden move, Dane stilled, meeting the golden-green gaze, which still burned hot in Jag’s pale features. But without the chains, without the threat of the unknown all around them, and with a pot simmering softly in the background, this man posed no threat to Dane. He already knew he’d lost the war for dominance and was grasping at straws.
What Jag refused to take in was that he didn’t need dirty tricks to keep Dane with him.
Emotion welled up inside Dane’s chest, and he looked at their feet. “I don’t. And I didn’t lie. I left you a message. I told you I’d be back. How was I to know you can’t read?”
“Anything else I can’t do that you want to point out?” Jag roared and gave Dane a weak shove before limping out of the kitchen.
“Jag, don’t be like that! I didn’t want to hurt you!” Dane followed him down the dark corridor and grabbed his shoulder with more strength than was strictly necessary.
“So what? You wouldn’t even be here if you didn’t need to lay low. Sooner or later, your problem with Rob and his club will be worked out, and you’ll go back to your family, your job, your computers and phones!”
It was painful to watch Jag shuffle rather than walk, but Dane was not giving up without a fight and tugged on his arm. “I haven’t decided what I want yet, so it’s you who’s giving me up without a fight!”
He knew he pushed the wrong button when Jag shoved him back. “I fought for you tooth and nail! I ran from the hospital and found you! I tried to show you what a life I could provide. I confessed my love. And you dare to look me in the eye and say that you haven’t decided yet? Leave me alone. I want to rest.” He shook his head and walked into a room with several guns on the wall. The sight of them made Dane stall for only a minute, because his gaze slid past the mean steel and the posters of motorcycles and horror movies, to Jag, who sat his bare ass on an unmade bed.