VALENTINA
I run to the bathroom to splash some water on my face and remove the sleep from my eyes. My hair is still wet as I pull out the braid and finger the waves. I adjust the top of my silk pajamas and head back to the bedroom.
Deo storms in naked seconds later. His chest is almost touching mine when I notice the mess of blood he’s covered in. From the door, it looked like dirt. I take in a deep breath, scanning the rest of him to see where he’s been hurt, and my heart hammers in my chest.
“It’s not mine.” He pauses. “The blood,” his voice is low and strained as he reads my thoughts. “None of it is mine.”
When I reach out to touch the black and blue bruising around his ribs, his large hand immediately covers mine.
“It’s nothing,” he reassures me.
I gaze up at him and his eyes
