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Roxie patted her shoulder like she was consoling her.
I sipped Perrier and turned to Javi. “I don’t want to break up the party, but after all of that, I kinda need a bubble bath.”
I barely finished my last word before my Perrier was on the lustrous conference table (without a coaster!), my hand was in Javi’s, and he was dragging me to the door.
“Bye Angels!” I waved behind me. “And Rock Chicks! And Hottie Squad! And Tito and Tex!”
The last ones I had to shout from the hall.
I waited to speak all the way until Javi started to bend to pick me up to put me in the front seat of a Denali.
“Honey, stop,” I urged, putting a hand on his shoulder.
He straightened and scowled down at me.
I got up on tiptoe and cupped his face in my hands.
“I can climb into a car. I can climb out of it. Was what happened fun? No. Did it have a good ending? Yes.” I pressed against him. “I’m fine. Willow’s fine. The case is solved. It’s all good. You can stop being pissed and worried.”
“We have cameras outside SC,” he stated.
Oh boy.
“I saw the footage,” he continued.
Oh no.
“I saw him flip you. I saw you land hard. I saw him tase you. And I saw him shove you in the back of a car,” Javi carried on.
Yikes.
“Honey,”—I stroked his cheek—“I’m fine. Yes, I could use a bubble bath and some Tylenol. But I promise you, I’m good.”
“Life turns to shit,” he growled.
Oh, my poor guy.
“That was before.” I smiled brightly. “Now, even though there might be clouds to darken some days, you have to remember, you live in sunshine.”
He growled again, this time there were no words. He did this before his arms closed around me, and he kissed me.
It was a good one. Then again, they all were.
And when he was done, my man seemed in a much better mood.
“Let’s go home,” I requested.
Javi bent and nuzzled my earlobe with his nose (another new thing, and…nice!).
And his lips quirked as he picked me up and put me in the Denali.
Okay, so, if he wanted to cart me around, it made me feel delicate and pretty, I wasn’t going to argue.
Javi got in beside me.
And we went home.
TWENTY-NINE