Page 31 of The Wreckage of Us
“What are you doing?”
“I’m walking you to my car so I can drive you home. You shouldn’t be walking on these streets looking like this, and you definitely shouldn’t be alone. James said you’re staying with Ian for now, right?”
I nodded. “Yes. But you don’t—”
“Don’t be silly, Hazel. Us girls gotta look out for one another in a town filled with creeps. It’s not a big deal. Come on, now. Let’s get you home so we can clean up that wound.”
When we got to the ranch house, I tried to get Leah to go on with her day, but she wouldn’t leave my side.
“You can’t go without cleaning up that eye. Otherwise, it will be swollen shut for a while. I volunteer at Dr.Smith’s office. I can help you,” she offered.
I didn’t have the energy to fight her to go away. Plus, some odd part of me didn’t want to be left alone.
I sat on the edge of my bed as Leah headed to the kitchen to get a wet cloth and ice for my eye. When she came back, she sat beside me and did her best to nurse me back to good health.
“Who did this, Hazel?” she whispered.
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Of course it does. People shouldn’t be allowed to hurt you like this. They should pay for their actions.”
I gave her a lopsided smile and remained quiet. I didn’t need strangers knowing too much about my personal life. Even though Leah was nice, I hadn’t the need to lay all of my hardships at her feet.
“I’m really okay,” I lied.
She gave me a knowing smile. Then she frowned and shook her head. “Ian is going to lose his mind once he finds out.”
I raised an eyebrow. “That’s not very likely.”
“Are you kidding? Of course it is. You’re his roommate, and someone hurt you. He’s going to care about it.”
I snickered. “We really aren’t that kind of roommates. We pretty much stay out of each other’s way, unless he needs me to kick a random girl out at three in the morning.”
Leah brushed her hand against her face. “I don’t know, Hazel. This kind of stuff gets to Ian. His dad used to lay his hands on his mom before they left all those years ago, and it drove Ian crazy. He doesn’t take well to women being abused.”
Abused.
I didn’t know why that word made me want to throw up. That word made Charlie’s actions seem even more intense, but it was true. He did abuse me. He abused my mother. And I knew he wouldn’t stop, because when it came to Charlie, abuse was second nature.
“Listen, I know Ian is hard around the edges, but he’s really a good guy. I’ve known him all my life, seeing as how he’s best friends with my brother. When his parents ran off, it did a number on him, but that kindhearted boy is still there.”
“He’s cold all the time. He doesn’t have feelings.”
Leah laughed out loud. “That’s ridiculous. If anything, Ian Parker feels too much. That man has more feelings than most people in this world. He gets so overwhelmed by his emotions that he puts up that wall. But man, he cares. He cares so much that I think it drives him crazy.”
I lowered my head for a minute and held the towel with ice against my face. I wasn’t certain what else to say to Leah, so I shrugged my shoulders and gave her a small smile. “I’m getting a bit of a headache. I think I’m going to rest for a little while.”
“That’s a good idea. Take some ibuprofen for the pain, and keep icing that eye every few hours to help with the swelling, okay?”
“Okay, thank you, Leah. Truly, thank you.” She didn’t have to help me, but still, she did. That meant more to me than she’d ever know.
“Of course.” She stood from my bed and gave me a smile. “And if you ever need some girl time, let me know. Hanging around these boys on the ranch would drive me mad. I’m always around visiting the horses anyway, so maybe some days we can grab lunch or something.”
I gave her a true, genuine smile. “I’d love that.”
“Rest, Hazel. I hope you’re feeling better soon. And whatever you do, don’t let the asshole who did this to you get away with it.”
After Leah left, I locked the bathroom door as tears rolled down my cheeks from the pain shooting through me. The more time that passed, the more the punch to the face began to ache. The right side of my face was swollen and turning black and blue as each second passed. I looked like Mama, and that broke my heart so much.