What Are You Doing Here?

AMELIA

Austin Hayes was an asshole.

A handsome, infuriating, insufferable asshole.

I leaned back against the taxi seat, watching Fairmont pass by through the window as I replayed my first official day at the Dark Wolves headquarters.

The city was alive with its usual evening rush, and normally, I would have enjoyed the view. Today, however, I was too busy thinking about my new job.

One would think that getting hired by the very Alpha who had personally selected me for the position would make things easier. Instead, Austin had looked at me as though my presence offended him.

What an Alpha! Was he that difficult with everyone, or was he deliberately trying to test my patience? Well, he could try all he wanted. I had enough patience for him.

I needed this job, and I wasn’t about to let one arrogant hockey captain ruin it for me.

Nathan hadn’t called or sent a message since he left. Not that I wanted him to. I was perfectly happy never hearing from him again.

He could take his cheating, his insults, and his ridiculous opinions about my worth and shove them somewhere unpleasant. I was done with him.

Whatever we had shared belonged in the past, and that was exactly where I intended to leave him.

By the time the taxi pulled up outside my house, I had convinced myself that my day couldn’t possibly get any more exhausting.

Then I stepped out and saw a man sitting on my front porch. I stopped in my tracks. Roman?

He rose as soon as he noticed me, a smile spreading across his face that made him look almost offensively pleased to see me.

My eyes immediately shifted to the car parked beside the house. It was my car, except that it barely looked like my car anymore.

I blinked, staring at the polished exterior. Had he repainted it? The paint looked brighter, the windows were spotless, and even the tires seemed to have regained some of their original shine. It looked better than it had in years.

“What the hell?” I muttered.

“That’s a lovely greeting.” Roman pressed a hand to his chest. “And here I was, practicing my apology all afternoon.”

I turned to him. He looked considerably better. His face no longer had that sickly pallor, and the bruising around his features had faded.

He was wearing a fitted black T-shirt that stretched across his broad chest, dark jeans, and boots. His dark hair was slightly messy, and the short beard framing his jaw made his emerald eyes stand out even more.

He also seemed to have regained his energy. He stood comfortably, without the stiffness and difficulty I’d noticed when he was injured.

It was a relief, although I wasn’t about to let him know that. “What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Waiting for you, obviously.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted to see your beautiful face.” He grinned. “And because I brought your car back. Mostly the car, actually. I didn’t want you thinking I was some criminal who stole your property and disappeared into the sunset.”

I stared at him like he had lost his mind. Why would he even take my car like that anyway?

He laughed. “All right, I deserved that look.”

“You scared the hell out of me,” I said out of the blue. These jokes weren’t going to do it at all.

His smile faded a little. “I know.” He rubbed the back of his neck, looking genuinely embarrassed. “I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have dragged you into whatever mess I was in. You didn’t deserve to get caught up in it, and I hate that I put you in danger.”

For a moment, I didn’t know what to say. He looked sincere, which was inconvenient because I’d prepared myself to be thoroughly unpleasant if he tried to act as though nothing had happened.

“I’m not asking you to forgive me immediately,” he continued. “But I wanted to make things right. So, I cleaned up your car.”

“Cleaned it up?”

“Well, technically, I had some people help me. I’m not going to pretend I spent the entire day polishing your tires with my bare hands.” His grin returned. “Although, if that’s what it takes to earn your forgiveness, I might consider it.”

Despite myself, the corner of my mouth twitched. I quickly suppressed it, but Roman had noticed it.

“Oh, there it is!”

“What?” I blinked.

“Almost a smile. I knew you had one somewhere.”

Such an idiot. “Don’t get excited over nothing.”

“Too late.”

I rolled my eyes and walked toward the car, needing to see for myself what he’d done.

The moment I opened the driver’s door, I froze. The seats had been thoroughly cleaned. There was no trace of the blood that had stained them when I’d helped him, and the interior smelled fresh. The dashboard had been polished, the floor mats looked new, and several worn-out fittings I’d grown accustomed to ignoring had been replaced.

I ran my fingers over the steering wheel. He’d gone beyond cleaning it.

“You replaced parts?” I asked, looking at him.

“Some of them. A few were practically begging to be put out of their misery.”

I was pleasantly surprised, but… I turned to him slowly. “Roman.”

“Yes?”

“Why?”

He shrugged, but there was something careful in his expression now. “Because it was the right thing to do. You helped me when you had every reason to leave me bleeding on the road. The least I could do was return the favor.”

I studied him for a moment before looking back at the car. “Thank you,” I murmured.

His smile softened. “You’re welcome.”

I glanced at him again, taking in the way he stood so easily. “How are you feeling? You seem much better.”

“Better than I was, definitely. Thanks to you.”

“Are you still in pain?”

“Nothing I can’t handle.”

I shook my head with a soft sigh, but my gaze drifted to his shoulder. “What happened to you in the first place?”

He hesitated briefly. “I got into a fight.”

I didn’t like the answer, but I wasn’t entitled to his life story. Besides, the fact that he was standing in front of me looking healthier was more important than satisfying my curiosity.

Still, I couldn’t help wondering what kind of fight had left him in such a terrible state.

Roman clapped his hands together suddenly. “Right! Enough serious conversation. Get in.”

I blinked. “Excuse me?”

If he thought, even for a moment, that I’d let him drive me in my car after what had happened, then he must be out of his fucking mind.