Page 8 of Property of Brute & Axl
They share a look, and I get the feeling they didn’t think I’d notice that. Frankly, it wasn’t until waking up around three this morning and not being able to sleep that I began to interpret how they’d looked at each other during my panic attack.
Axl sighs but doesn’t say anything. I notice he defers to Brute at some of my questions, and I wonder if that’s because he doesn’t want to hurt me or for some other reason.
Brute scrubs one of his brawny hands up and down his face, scratching at his jaw before he stands up and grips the rails at the end of my bed. “We didn’t.” His honesty shocks me. “It’s been a minute since we’ve seen you. A baby hadn’t been a thought.”
Analyzing his reasoning, no follow-up questions can be asked because the doctor enters with a nurse, who is holding what I assume are my discharge papers.
“Good morning.” The doctor's cheerful greeting dies when he spots the two men with me. “Uh, hello.”
They grunt in response, making the nurse roll her eyes as she steps in.
“Discharge and care instructions.” She waves a paper. “Prescriptions and dosing information.” She waves two more sheets. “And future appointments. It’s important you don’t miss these.” She ignores Brute and Axl while speaking to me.
“Thank you.” I accept all the paperwork as the doctor finally speaks, reiterating everything that’s written down.
After Brute’s growled, “We got it,” they exit the room.
“Uhm, so, I guess I leave now.” With nowhere to go.
“Do you need help getting dressed?” Axl asks as he gets the clothes they’d brought for me from the small closet.
He’s unpacking them when I ask, “Will they fit?” They hadn’t known about the baby when they were purchased.
His grin is disarming as his head pops up. “We went safe with sweats, a baggy shirt, and Crocs. Weren’t sure what the injuries were, so we wanted it to be simple for you.”
I wilt, and tears pop up at their thoughtfulness. I don’t know why, but I feel like that’s the kindest thing someone has done for me in a long time.
“What is this?” I’m surprised at Brute’s gentle touch as he grips my chin with his thumb and pointer finger, lifting my face and stepping between my legs. “Why are you upset?” He seems genuinely perplexed. So am I.
“I don’t remember anything. Nobody from a week ago. Has it been a week? I don’t even know that. And here you two are, big, bad, intimidating, and you thought about how I would feel. Who does that?” I sob, and he draws me carefully into his chest, rubbing soothing circles on my back. Not at all what I’d expect from such a closed-off man.
“Breathe, princess. Close your eyes and focus on breathing.” Brute’s growly voice grounds me as Axl moves in behind me on the bed, straddling my back with his legs on the outside of my body and his hands on my bare thighs.
Their touch is a welcoming sensation as I’m encapsulated between them, protected from all sides. Whoever they are, whatever they’ve done, it’ll never matter to me, not now that they’re showering me with empathy and compassion when I need it more than anything else in the world.
Chapter 6
Axl
“You fuck up either of these bikes, and you’ll never patch into the club. We fucking clear?” I glare between Neo and Olympus as they hand me the keys to the truck they brought for us to drive Finleigh home in.
“Not a scratch.” Neo holds up two fingers like he’s a damn Boy Scout. I’m tempted to snap them in half, but then he might really fuck up my bike.
“Got it,” Olympus promises, his eyes shifting to Brute, who is pushing Fin out of the hospital in a wheelchair.
“Eyes off the woman,” I snap.
Startled, Oly looks at me. “That’s Finleigh Collins,” he says coldly, yet assuredly.
“You know her?” My hand balls into a tight fist at my side. If he’s had his hands on her, I’m snapping his neck right here.
“Not personally. She was in the news a few months ago for an art gallery thing. I don’t remember all the details.”
“How many months ago?” I ask, wondering about the timing.
“Four, maybe five. Around the time you were up here for a job.” Fuck.
“When we get back, find me the clip you saw.” He nods and takes the wheelchair from Brute as he helps Fin into the truck, returning it inside.