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Tilly
I stand to the side as Sebastian talks to two police officers in uniforms. They arrived within minutes after the fight ended.
Sebastian hauled the guy who had hit him to his feet and handed him over to one of the officers who placed handcuffs on him. By that time, the drunken jerk was sobbing about how sorry he was and that he didn’t want his parents to find out what he’d done.
I listened to the bartender explain that she was the one who called 9-1-1 to report that a policeman had been punched in her bar. The squad car came screaming down the street with the siren blaring and lights flashing.
“Just throw him in lockup overnight, Tim.” Sebastian pats the back of one of the uniformed officers as the other leads the handcuffed man out of the bar. “He needs to sober up.”
“It looks like he got you pretty good.” Tim raises his chin. “Do you need to be checked out?”
Sebastian shakes it off with a wave of his hand in the air. “No broken bones. It’s just a little blood.”
It’s more than a little. The blood that trailed onto his shirt also splattered on the lapels of his jacket. He wiped most of the blood from his face with a few paper napkins the bartender handed him.
Tim turns toward the doorway. “You’re a better man than me, Detective. I wouldn’t let him off so easy.”
Sebastian chuckles. “I’m considering sending him my dry cleaning bill.”
“I feel like I should take care of that for you.” The bartender takes a few steps so she’s standing next to Sebastian as Tim leaves. “None of this would have happened if you weren’t defending my honor. I’m Chelsie by the way.”
Sebastian’s gaze skims her face. She’s cute. Her hair is red, her body curvy. She’s definitely the same type physically as Wendy.
“It’s my job to step in if I notice a disturbance.” He swipes another napkin under his nose. “You should think about security if this is a regular occurrence.”
“I’m just about to close up for the night.” She looks around the bar. A lot of the patrons cleared out after the fight, but there are still a few people lingering. “You can stay for a beer. Consider it a thank-you. We’ll talk about those extra security measures.”
Seriously? Is she hitting on him right now?
He looks past her shoulder to lock eyes with me. “I have plans.”
“You can’t break them?” She steps closer to him. “The beer would be on the house and I live upstairs. You can get cleaned up before I thank you for what you did tonight.”
He smiles at me. “I can’t break them. I’m going home with the beautiful woman I live with.”
She steals a glance over her shoulder at me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were with someone. My mistake.”
“No harm, no foul.” He strums his fingers on the top of the bar before he walks past her, reaching out to me. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
I place my hand in his. “I’m all for that.”
***
The looks Sebastian got on the subway weren’t shocking to me. New York City is filled with one unexpected visual surprise after another, but a tall, handsome man in a suit covered in blood splatter will draw more than a few stunned glances and whispers.
We sat next to each other on the train as Sebastian talked to his lieutenant on the phone about what had happened at the bar.
Judging from what I could hear of Sebastian’s side of the call, she had been notified by one of the uniformed officers of the fight. He laughed it off and explained to her that the man who had hit him was drunk.
He assured her that he didn’t need to see a doctor and then he told her he’d see her the day after tomorrow.
The entire time he spoke with her he held my trembling hand.
I’m still shaking as we walk into the foyer of our apartment.
“Are you cold?” It’s the second time he’s asked me that. The first time was on the subway platform when we were waiting for the train. He was ready to slide his suit jacket off to drape over my shoulders, but I’d insisted that I was okay.
“No. I’m fine,” I say under my breath as I wait for him to unlock the apartment door.
He motions for me to go first and I do. He flicks on the light switch and the room fills with the warm glow from the chandelier above the dining room table. “What a night.”
I look back at him. The skin around his nose is starting to bruise. “Maybe you should use an ice pack on your nose. I keep one in the freezer.”
“I saw it the other day.” He slides his suit jacket from his body. “It’s next to the container of ice cream that expired two years ago.”
I know he’s trying to make me smile, but it’s not going to work. The image of him being hit keeps running on an endless loop in my mind.
“I need to shower.” His hands make quick work of the buttons of his dress shirt. “I’ll wash the shirt tomorrow and drop off the suit at the dry cleaner.”
I look down at the bloodied clothes on the floor. “Why aren’t you pressing charges?”
He rubs his jaw. “He meant no harm.”
I almost laugh. “He punched you in the face. He meant to harm you.”
He maintains eye contact, never wavering. “He’s young, Matilda. He was drunk. He’s a first-year med student at Columbia with no prior arrests. I’m not going to fuck up that kid’s life because he’s a lightweight who can’t handle a few beers.”
“So he gets a free pass?” I hear the indignation in my voice. “It’s fine now to punch someone in the face? You can assault a police officer and walk away?”
“I’ll drop by his dorm room in a couple of days to remind him to keep his fists to himself.” He unbuckles his belt. “If he were a repeat offender, he would be in front of a judge tonight.”
Frustration tenses my neck. I reach back to squeeze it, my hand still shaking.
“Let me.” He rounds me in an instant, his large hand leaping to my neck. His touch is soft and gentle. “You’re still shaking.”
I am. I clench my hands together, but it does little to stop the quivering. “It’s been a long day.”
His hand slows. “Shower with me, Matilda.”
My heart hammers inside my chest, a rhythm I’ve never felt before. I don’t turn to look at him. “I don’t think that’s a ...”
“Good idea?” he questions. “Why not?”
Because we had a twenty-second kiss that transported me to a place I’ve never been before where I felt safe and wanted. It thrilled me and scared me.
“You’ve seen me naked,” he says in a dangerously low tone. “I’ve seen you practically naked.”
I spin on my heel, leaving his hand dangling in the air. “Tonight felt like a lot, Sebastian.”
“The kiss or the punch?” His blue eyes sear into me.
“All of it,” I admit. “I’m still processing it all.”
“I understand,” he says in a calm and controlled tone. “Tomorrow our kiss is the only thing I’m going to remember about tonight.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, warding off my warring emotions. I want to cry and laugh, scream and hurl something at the wall out of anger. I hate that someone hurt him and love that he can see so much potential in others, even if they don’t deserve it.
“I’ll be in the shower.” He unzips his pants. “The invitation to join me is still on the table. It will help you relax and you have my word that we won’t do anything you’re not ready for. You set the pace. I follow your lead.”
I nod as I rub my chin. “I’ll wait here.”
“I understand.” He leans forward to sweep his lips over my forehead. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
I stand in silence as he walks toward the main bathroom, leaving me wondering if I should throw caution to the wind and follow him.
