Read Online Protect Me by Selma Wolfe - Free Book Online Page A

to move away, but close enough that she could see her own broken
expression mirrored in his eyes.
    “Look,”
he said, and heaved out a sigh. He reached up and shoved his fingers through
his hair, staring around the room. His shoulders dropped. “I don’t - I’m sorry,
okay? You’re - you’re probably right. I just… I’m on my own here, and I didn’t
know what else to do, and… You can keep a secret, right?” When he looked around
at her his expression was more like the Rick she knew; the one that laughed
easily and always looked like he was hopeful without being expectant. “I just
need to show you, to give you an idea.”
    Hope
stared at him. She trusted Rick with her own life. She’d already proven that,
to herself if to nobody else, however unwise that decision might be.
    But
could she trust Rick with his own life?
    She
flicked her gaze up at his expectant face, his eyelashes lowered and his
expression serious. Her gut clenched. As much as Hope wanted to refuse him, to
grab his arm and drag him bodily upstairs,that wasn’t something she could do.
If she insisted on autonomy over her life, then she couldn’t be a hypocrite. No
matter how tempting it was.
    Hope
inclined her head and watched Rick’s eyes light up.
    “If
it’s truly that dangerous, you should get rid of it. But show me,” she said.
    As if
he’d been holding his breath and waiting, Rick snatched up a wrapped razor on
the counter. Hope forced herself not to react other than a slight widening of
her eyes.
    “Don’t
freak out,” Rick said wryly.
    Then he
turned his arm to expose the vulnerable underside of his forearm, and slashed a
bright red line down its length.
    Hope
made a sudden, horrified movement that went nowhere. “What are you doing?” she
breathed.
    She
wasn’t sure if she was comforted or not when Rick grimaced in pain. He held up
a finger.
    “Wait,”
he said. “Trust me, I’m not doing this recreationally.”
    He
reached for the test tube lying on the counter in front of him. There was time
for Hope to catch a quick glimpse of the small amount of clear liquid inside.
Rick flicked a finger against the glass before angling it carefully over his arm.
    “Watch,”
he said, and then poured the contents of the vial over the length of his arm.
    Hope
watched, uncomprehending, as he dripped the liquid across the cut - which was
shallow, thankfully. It looked like he was putting water on it, which probably
wouldn’t hurt him, but wouldn’t do much good either.
    She
followed his movement to the base of his elbow and then something caught her
attention above it. Hope looked back up.
    The
hairs on the back of her neck raised and prickled.
    “What,”
she said slowly, forcing herself to breathe steadily, not to back away, “what
is that?”
    Because
right in front of her eyes Rick’s skin was… mending. There was no other word
for it. The torn flesh was knitting itself together, healing over the wound
until nothing remained but a smear of red over smooth pale skin. She watched
the bloody cut on his arm blur and vanish one inch at a time, all the way down
to the base of his elbow, until Rick’s forearm was smooth and whole again.
    It was
unnatural. Hope wasn’t sure if she wanted to grab some for herself or vomit.
    “You
see?” Rick said. He sounded almost breathless as he raised his head. Hope
realized that this was exciting to him. He sounded eager and demanding at once.
    Just
before his eyes met hers, Hope schooled her face into something neutral. Even
now, as irrational as it was, she couldn’t quite bear to see his face fall at
her lack of enthusiasm over something that, when she thought about it, was
pretty close to a superhuman feat.
    “So
this is your secret. This is what you’re hiding.” It was easier to give in to
her feet than to her gut; she allowed herself to pace back and forth, making
sure not to brush against anything. Who knew what other secrets were lurking
down here? She wanted her boots to stamp