She almost screamed when an arm came around her middle. She jerked her head around to see an angry Kaleb staring down at her.
“Hi,” she said lamely.
“Hi, where are you going?”
She shivered at the gravelly tone of his voice. “H … home.”
“I thought we had a date?’ he asked.
“We did, but you didn’t show up.”
If anything, his scowl got darker. “You were supposed to wait in the lobby. I told your receptionist I’d be there at six, and it’s actually a few minutes before.”
“I didn’t get a message.”
Kaleb wiped his free hand down his face. “Dammit. I’m sorry, baby.” He tightened his arm and started leading her back to his large SUV that was parked illegally in front of her building.
“How’d you find me?”
“I saw the back of your head when I pulled up. I lost you for a second when I got to the sidewalk and headed your way. By the time I got to you, you were hailing a cab.”
She sniffed. “I fell.”
He stopped abruptly and grabbed her shoulders. “Are you hurt?”
She nodded. “It’s not bad, though.”
“Where?”
“My hands and knees.”
He lifted her in his arms and started walking briskly toward his vehicle.
“I can walk,” she told him.
“No.”
She tucked her chin down. “People are staring at us.”
“I don’t give a fuck,” he said with a growl.
She gasped and then grinned. “Everybody heard you curse.”
“Yeah, I curse sometimes. You’ll get used to it.”
“It doesn’t bother me. We just got a few offended looks from people.”
He deposited her in the passenger seat of his vehicle and grabbed her hands. He wiped the dirt and grime from her palms with a napkin from his glove compartment.
He pulled one pant leg up the best he could since they were tight at the bottom. “Goddammit,” he barked, making her jump.
She leaned forward to see the damage and winced. “It’s still bleeding,” she informed him, although he could see that for himself.
He gently tugged her pant leg down, put on her seatbelt, and went around to the driver’s side. Then he grabbed a Kleenex from his side door and turned to her. He cupped her face and wiped the tears and dirt from her face, and then the color from her lip.
“I don’t like seeing you in makeup.”
She scowled at him. “I thought I looked pretty.”