to throw him out earlier, Finn growled, “Get a handle on this.”
“Working on it. She okay?” the bouncer asked, nodding his head toward Tucker.
“Don’t know.” She wasn’t fighting him, which was a bad sign. What little he knew about the woman suggested she probably wasn’t one to take kindly to being hauled about. Something he had to respect. But she also wasn’t limp and lifeless, as he’d feared he might find her.
Confident the men Tucker had hired were capable of getting control now that they were close enough to the fight, Finn strode swiftly to the booth he’d been in minutes before. Duchess gave a low whimper, but was right behind him.
He eased Tucker down onto the vinyl seat, propping her against the wall before pulling back so he could look down at her.
He expected to find her a little dazed.
Instead, those dark blue eyes that always seemed to snag him raged with anger.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Twice now she’d growled those words at him. He was really starting to hate that question. “Saving your ass, darlin’.”
“My ass didn’t need saving. It’s perfectly capable of taking care of itself.”
“Didn’t look like it from where I was standing...looking down on you sprawled across the floor.”
Pulling her feet back, she tried to jerk up and sit straight.
Finn grasped her calves and pinned her legs right where they were. “Oh, no, you don’t.”
“Get your hands off of me.”
“Gladly, as soon as you promise to stay put.”
“I have to handle the situation.”
Finn threw a glance over his shoulder. Five bouncers had swarmed the area and were each manhandling a soldier in the general direction of the door.
“Your security team has it well in hand.”
“I’m sure they do, but that doesn’t mean I don’t need to be there. This is my place. It’s my responsibility.”
His lips twitched. “I imagine you pay good money for men who can handle this kind of thing for you. Let them earn their paychecks. You had the wind knocked out of you.”
He watched her little button nose scrunch up and her soft pink mouth twist into a grimace. A shudder ripped through her body and she finally sagged against the side of the booth. “God, I can’t believe I didn’t see that punch coming.”
Bowing her head, she started to probe along her cheekbone. He didn’t miss her wince. The skin was already starting to mottle. In a few hours she was going to have one hell of a bruise across her cheek.
“I’m damn impressed.”
Her gaze flashed up to him before dropping back to the table again. “Yeah, my guys are good. I only hire the best.”
“I wasn’t talking about your staff. I was talking about how well you took that punch. He was one hulking dude and put everything he had behind that hit.”
“My cheekbone is throbbing with the proof of that.”
“I know some pretty badass women, and I don’t think any of them could have taken that hit and still been coherent enough to hold a conversation with me right now. Why isn’t your brain rattled?”
She shrugged. “Not the first punch I’ve ever taken.”
Shit. For the second time tonight, Finn wanted to knock someone on their ass—preferably anyone who’d ever given Tucker bruises.
She must have registered where his brain had gone because she quickly said, “No. Not that way.” She scoffed, the rough sound scraping through her throat. “I’ve been involved in martial arts and self-defense off and on for years. I was raised by a single dad who believed in making sure his little girl could take care of herself.”
“Smart man.”
“He is. But that’s all I meant by not the first time I’ve taken a punch.”
Satisfied she was showing no signs of concussion, Finn turned away long enough to snag the arm of a passing waitress and request she bring him a towel or bag filled with ice.
He might not know her well, but even Finn realized it was a testament to just how much her cheek must be hurting that Tucker didn’t make some snide comment about him ordering her staff around. Or that after the waitress returned with some ice wrapped in a towel, she didn’t protest when Finn moved close, sliding his hip against hers, to place it against her cheek.
But she did hiss and jerk back in response to the pain and cold.
Finn wrapped a hand around the back of her neck, holding her in place.
“That hurts,” she grumbled.
What was wrong with him? He wanted to pick her up, plop her down into his lap and do whatever it took to make the pain go away. Even though he knew that wasn’t possible.
The only person Finn ever worried about taking care of was Duchess—and she wasn’t technically a person.
“I’m sorry, but something tells me you’d rather keep the swelling and bruising to a minimum.”
With a sigh, she settled against the wall, the warmth of his palm cupping her head. The soft rain of her hair brushed across the back of his hand.
His gaze snagged on her lips. He wanted to taste them. Wanted to know if the taste of her would be just as spicy as her attitude, or if that prickly outer shell hid a sweetness designed to bring a man to his knees.
But he didn’t get the chance. He could feel the presence behind him long before the man spoke.
“Boss, problem’s all taken care of.”
“Great. Thanks, Wyatt.”
“You okay?”
“She’s good. Looks like she’ll have one hell of a bruise tomorrow, though.”
The toe of her shoe connected with his hip. “I can speak for myself, thank you very much.” Her gaze shifted to the man standing just over his shoulder. “I’m fine. Give me a few minutes and I’ll be back out on the floor.”
“Take your time. The guys and I have everything in hand.”
Finn watched Wyatt disappear. Beside him, Duchess stirred. She moved to follow and Finn was too preoccupied to notice or call her back. He wasn’t worried about her—she was better behaved than the morons they’d just thrown out.
“Hey, how the hell did you get back in, anyway? I’m pretty sure I said you and your dog weren’t welcome.”
“And yet we weren’t the ones who just tried to start a riot in the middle of your
