Girl looked like she’d been in a cage match with a professional MMA fighter who’d shown no mercy. Made him want to puke. Yeah, he hit women and he fucking loved it, but so did they. He’d never hit someone who hadn’t asked to be hit, and even when they had, he’d never do this kind of damage.
Her face was a wreck, and there wasn’t much skin showing between the bruises. Not to mention she looked malnourished. Maybe she’d been on the street for a while and she’d gotten jumped? That could explain the lack of stuff, her having no shoes.
“Hey, hey,” he said, holding up his hands and backing up a few steps. “You’re okay. I’m not gonna hurt you, promise.”
He made no promises about what he was gonna do to whoever had done this to her, though. And now that he was getting a better look, she seemed familiar somehow. He couldn’t place from where, though. No surprise since she probably hadn’t looked like a worn out crash test dummy the last time he’d laid eyes on her.
“You’re not in trouble. I just live here, that’s all,” he said, gesturing upstairs to the loft apartment he shared with his partners.
She blinked at him, looking a smidge less terrified.
“Do you know Hudson?”
Her voice sounded like a hinge that needed oiling, and the way she winced and her brow creased said it hurt to get that many words out.
“I do. Doyouknow Hudson?”
Her face fell and she shook her head, grimacing when she did.
So the mystery woman was asking for Hudson but didn’t know him? This shit was just getting weirder with every passing second.
“If you tell me your name, I’ll let him know you’re here,” he volunteered, hoping she might drop some more clues about what the everliving fuck was going on.
“He’s here?”
A spark of hope lit up her eye that wasn’t swollen shut. Pretty whisky amber color from what he could see, though that wasn’t much because of the swollen flesh and the burst blood vessels. Fuck—who did he have to fuck up for doing this to her? Because he would. Huds didn’t let him get in fights nearly often enough but he was pretty sure the big guy would give him a pass on this motherfucker.
“Yeah. I’ll go get him, no problem.”
Hudson was not a morning person but he wouldn’t mind being dragged outta bed for this. Dude was a sucker for a damsel in distress. If Ian and Ry didn’t watch him carefully, Huds would adopt every stray that came within a hundred yards. Human, animal, plant, furniture—didn’t matter to his big-hearted softie of a best friend, he’d take them all in. That man neededsupervision.
“What’s your name, sweetheart? Who can I tell Hud is here?”
She looked down at the stone she was sitting on like she could bore a hole in it with her gaze.
“No one,” she muttered. “This was stupid. I’m sorry, I’ll go.”
Then with her torn up soles and looking like a sack of worn out bones, she actually tried to stand. He wanted to yell at her—because what in the actual fuck was she thinking?—but he didn’t even have time to raise his voice because she passed out. He barely had time to catch her before she slumped to the ground.
Ian didn’t hesitate to scoop her up in his arms and head toward the entrance to their apartment.
“The only place you’re going is home with me.”