Page 16 of Iron Will
“I’m… uh…” I falter.
I start to lose my nerve, but then think of a way that might buy me some cred and get them to take me seriously.
“I’m looking for Rourke,” I announce in a clear, strong voice.
The reaction I get is not what I was hoping for. One by one, they glance at each other, and start snickering. One does a wolf whistle. More than a couple of them look me up and down, so boldly I feel naked.
“You need Rourke, do ya?” one of them chuckles. “I bet he’s more than happy to give you what you want. But if he ain’t, I’m willing to help you out, darlin’.”
My face gets hot when I realize what he’s implying. I want to shoot back that isnotwhat I meant, but I get the impression that the more I protest, the more they’ll razz me.
“Look,” I try again, trying desperately to maintain at least a shred of professional demeanor. “I need to talk to him. Can you please tell me if you know where he is?”
More laughter and hoots great my question. Thankfully, one of the men takes pity on me.
“He’s in there, darlin’,” he smirks, lifting his chin toward Paisley’s room.
“Seriously?” Shaking my head in disbelief, I turn toward the half-open door and push inside.
The sight that greets me stops me in my tracks.
Paisley is sitting up in bed, laughing and grinning like crazy. Beside her is a stuffed rabbit almost as big as she is. In the chair facing her, Rourke is doingcoin tricks. Neither one of them notices me at first, and I stare in fascination as Rourke reaches his arm forward and pulls a quarter from the stuffed rabbit’s ear.
“Huh,” Rourke says, feigning puzzlement. “I dunno where all this money’s coming from, but it sure as heck ain’t mine. I guess it belongs to you.”
Rourke holds out the quarter, and waits. Paisley shyly dips her head, then reaches her palm outward. Rourke drops the coin, and Paisley’s fingers close around it. The tight fist she forms makes one thing clear: this is not a kid who takes money for granted.
I clear my throat, which suddenly feels like it has a lump in it.
“Good morning, Paisley. Do you remember me? Laney, from yesterday?”
She glances over and gives me a shy smile. “Hi!”
“How are you doing today?” I ask, taking a step forward.
“Good! Rourke got me this!” She reaches around the stuffed rabbit with her non-broken arm and squeezes it to her like a long-lost friend.
“Wow, what a nice rabbit!” I enthuse. “Have you named him yet?”
“It’s a her,” Paisley corrects me. “Her name is Bunnifer.”
“That’s a great name,” I say, stifling a giggle. Turning to Rourke, I say, “Can I please have a quick word with you? Outside?”
Rourke frowns, then shrugs. “Sure.” He gets to his feet, and reaches toward Paisley, pulling a quarter out from behind her ear, as well. “You’re just full of money today,” he tells her, holding it up. He drops it into her hand, where it clinks against the first one.
As Rourke follows me out of the room, I try not to be self-conscious that he might be staring at my butt. Our appearance in the hallway sparks a fresh round of hoots and catcalls, but Rourke tells the men to shut up, and they simmer down after a second.
“Okay, what do you want to talk to me about?” he asks when we’ve passed them.
“Let’s go somewhere a little quieter,” I reply, gesturing down the hall. “There’s a family lounge past the elevator bays.”
As the two of us walk down the hall side by side, I’m once again acutely aware of how large he is. It’s amazing that Paisley isn’t intimidated by him. On the contrary, she seems to trust him completely. And I have to admit, the more I see him around her, the more I’d be shocked if he hurt her. As scary and rough as he is, he seems completely gentle where she’s concerned.
Unlike her mother’s boyfriend.
“The family lounge is right in here,” I murmur, turning into a small room on the left-hand side of the hall. The room itself is unoccupied save for one person, one of the janitorial staff who must be on break. He’s immersed in his phone, but when he looks up and sees me he quickly stands up and exits the room with a look of apology.
“What was that about?” Rourke queries.