Defending Everly (Mountain Mercenaries #5)(61)

She’d stood in front of his door like a princess waiting for her servant to do something she’d thought beneath her . . . like carry her own bag and open the door. She knew his shoulder hurt—and hello, he’d had a fucking sling on—but she’d still expected him to carry her bag.

Everly grabbed one of the bags and went into a bathroom. She reappeared two minutes later wearing jeans and a CSPD T-shirt. Ball sort of preferred her in her blue-and-white-striped pajama bottoms and the tank top she’d been wearing. She obviously hadn’t bothered with a brush, because her bedhead was sticking up in several different directions, which made the differences between her and Holly—who had to look perfect at all times—even more striking.

Even while the memories of his ex ran through his brain, Ball watched as Everly hurried to the front door to open it for him. Between her and Elise, his past idiocy with Holly was losing its ability to hurt him.

“Thanks, Ev.”

She nodded and turned to Allye. “Thanks for having us over. And for the talk.”

“Anytime. And I mean that,” Allye responded.

Elise signed, Thank you, and Allye signed, You’re welcome, back.

Thankful for his friends, and how easily they took things in stride, Ball gave a chin lift to Gray, who returned it.

“Don’t forget to clean that wound out in the morning,” Gray said.

“He won’t,” Everly answered for him.

Smiling as she wound her arm around him, as if she was going to take his weight or something, Ball said goodbye once more and turned to head for Everly’s white Jeep Cherokee. She hovered as he slid into the passenger seat and fretted over whether or not the seat belt would rub against his wound.

Ball took her face in his hands and kissed her. It wasn’t long, but it wasn’t short either. “I’m fine,” he said firmly. “Stop worrying.”

“Right. Stop worrying. Whatever,” she mumbled as she shut his door and walked around to the driver’s seat.

Ball grinned and turned to Elise in the back seat, who was also smiling. Overprotective, he finger spelled.

It’s nice, isn’t it?

Ball nodded. Yeah. It was nice.

The drive back to his house was peaceful. There weren’t many cars on the road, and the trip through downtown was fast and easy. Before he knew it, Everly was pulling up to his house. She repeated the mothering, helping him out and walking slowly with him up to his door. Elise was still in the car, and he could feel her eyes on them.

“Stay here tonight,” he said after he’d unlocked his door.

She hesitated, and he shamelessly used his injury to help persuade her. “I’ll need help with cleaning my wound in the morning. It’s the middle of the night, and you and Elise have to be exhausted. I don’t have a bed for her yet, but she can sleep on the couch downstairs like you guys were doing at Gray’s house. Are you on shift tomorrow?”

Everly shook her head.

“Right, and it’s Saturday, so Elise doesn’t have school. My feelings about what I want haven’t changed. Spend the weekend with me. You and Elise. Please?”

She nodded quickly, and Ball felt ten feet tall. He knew her independence was important to her.

“I’m working on Sunday, though.”

“It’s okay. Elise can stay here with me. I’ll take her home when you get off shift, or you can just come back here.”

He couldn’t read what she was thinking, but after a moment, she just nodded again. “Okay.”

“If you don’t want to, it’s okay, I just—”

“I want to. I’m hesitating because I don’t want to move too fast, too soon.”

He couldn’t help it. Ball laughed. “Too fast? Ev, if it was up to me, I’d call the guys and move all your shit into my house tomorrow.”

“Um . . . maybe we can postpone that until the day after tomorrow.”

Ball chuckled. “Go get your sister. I’m exhausted, and I figure you probably are too.”

“Yeah. Ball?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad you’re all right. I’m very proud of you. And even if that little girl never knows who you are or what you did for her, I do. Thank you.”

Her praise meant the world to him. Ball kissed her on the forehead. “You’re welcome. Now go get your sister. Her nose is practically glued to the window, watching us.”

Everly laughed. “Okay, but no lifting anything!”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Ball had no intention of going into his house and lifting a damn thing until Everly and Elise were by his side. He lived in a good neighborhood, but it was the middle of the damn night. “Get a move on. Nothing good ever happens after two a.m.,” he told her. “Go tell Elise that you guys are staying, and let’s all get inside.”

She nodded, and he watched as Everly hurried back to the car, opened the back door, and told her sister they were staying. Elise was out of the SUV in two seconds flat. She grabbed their bags from the back and was skipping toward him before even a minute had passed.

She grinned as she passed him and disappeared up the stairs toward his room with Everly’s bag.

Everly came up beside him, shaking her head. “Guess she’s good.”

“Guess so.”